Lieutenant Thomas Archibald Mitford Stuart Lewis (26 June 1894 – 21 June 1961) was a British

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

credited with six aerial victories.

World War I

Lewis was commissioned from cadet to temporary second lieutenant (on probation) in the

Royal West Kent Regiment The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Quee ...

on 5 August 1916. On 15 May 1917 he was transferred to the General List to serve in the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

as a flying officer (

observer An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment. Observer may also refer to: Computer science and information theory * In information theory, any system which receives information from an object * State observer in con ...

), with seniority from 8 April. Lewis was posted to No. 20 Squadron RFC, flying the F.E.2d two-seater fighter. He gained his first aerial victory on 29 April 1917, by destroying an

Albatros D.III The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service ('' Luftstreitkräfte'') during World War I. A modified licence model was built by Oeffag for the Austro-Hungarian Air Service ( ''Luftfahrtruppen''). ...

over

Kortrijk Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...

–

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

, piloted by Second Lieutenant E. J. Smart. For his next two victories he flew with Captain Hugh G. White, driving down another D.III over Zandvoorde on 23 May, and an

Albatros D.V The Albatros D.V is a fighter aircraft built by the Albatros Flugzeugwerke and used by the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' (Imperial German Air Service) during World War I. The D.V was the final development of the Albatros D.I family and the last Albatro ...

over Comines– Quesnoy on the 26th. On 5 June, piloted by Lieutenant Harold L. Satchell, Lewis shot down an

over Becelaère–Zandvoorde. The pilot,

Karl Emil Schäfer Karl Emil Schäfer (17 December 1891 – 5 June 1917) was a German pilot during World War I; he became one of the major German flying aces of the war, with 30 confirmed aerial victories. Early life and infantry service Schäfer was born in Kr ...

, commander of ''

Jagdstaffel 28 Royal Württemberg Jagdstaffel 28, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 28, was a "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. As one of the original German fighter squa ...

'', was killed. On the afternoon of 27 July, with pilot Second Lieutenant G. T. Burkett, Lewis destroyed two more Albatros D.Vs over

Menen Menen (; french: Menin ; vls, Mêenn or ) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Menen proper and the towns of Lauwe and Rekkem. The city is situated on the French/Be ...

, but was severely wounded by an

incendiary bullet Incendiary ammunition is a type of ammunition that contains a chemical that, upon hitting a hard obstacle, has the characteristic of causing fire/setting flammable materials in the vincinity of the impact on fire. World War I The first time ince ...

. His leg was later amputated. On 26 September 1917 Lewis was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

as a result of this action. His citation, published on 10 January 1918, read: :Temporary 2nd Lieutenant Thomas Archibald Mitford Stuart Lewis, General List and Royal Flying Corps. ::"For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. Whilst acting as Observer his patrol engaged a superior force of enemy scouts. His Pilot was wounded, but they continued to fight, destroying one enemy machine. He was then severely wounded, but continued to work his gun lying on his back. By this means they were able to destroy a second enemy machine. Afterwards, when returning to our lines with their machine badly damaged, he and his Pilot drove off two machines which were pursuing them, having displayed the greatest gallantry and presence of mind." Lewis was promoted to lieutenant on 5 February 1918, but ceased to be an observer on 30 May, serving as an administrative officer. He was reassigned as a lieutenant (grade B) in the RAF's Technical Branch on 3 February 1919.

Later life

Lewis retained his interest in aviation post-war being one of the founders of the Cinque Ports Flying Club, based at

Lympne Aerodrome Lympne Airport , was a military and later civil airfield , at Lympne, Kent, United Kingdom, which operated from 1916 to 1984. During the First World War RFC Lympne was originally an acceptance point for aircraft being delivered to, and returni ...

, Kent, in 1928. He returned to military service during World War II, being commissioned as a probationary acting pilot officer "for the duration of hostilities" in the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF ...

's Training Branch on 2 February 1941, until resigning his commission on 24 April 1942.

References

Bibliography

Norman Franks Norman Leslie Robert Franks (born 1940) is an English militaria writer who specialises in aviation topics. He focuses on the pilots and squadrons of World Wars I and II. Biography He published his first book in 1976. He was an Organisation a ...

; Russell Guest; Gregory Alegi. ''Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI''. Grub Street, 1997. , . {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Thomas 1894 births 1961 deaths People from North Northamptonshire Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment officers Royal Flying Corps officers British World War I flying aces Recipients of the Military Cross English amputees Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II British Army personnel of World War I Royal Air Force officers Military personnel from Northamptonshire