Flight Sergeant Ernest John Elton was the highest scoring sergeant flying ace

Flying ace

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...

 for British aviation during World War I. He was credited with 17 aerial victories.

While an Air Mechanic with No. 6 Squadron RFC, Elton worked with Lanoe Hawker

Lanoe Hawker

Lanoe George Hawker VC, DSO was a British flying ace, with seven credited victories, during the First World War. He was the first British flying ace, and the third pilot to receive the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded...

 in June 1915 in developing a machine gun mount for the Bristol Scout

Bristol Scout

The Bristol Scout was a simple, single seat, rotary-engined biplane originally intended as a civilian racing aircraft. Like other similar fast, light aircraft of the period - it was acquired by the RNAS and the RFC as a "scout", or fast reconnaissance type...

.

In February 1918, Elton piloted a Bristol F.2 Fighter

Bristol F.2 Fighter

The Bristol F.2 Fighter was a British two-seat biplane fighter and reconnaissance aircraft of the First World War flown by the Royal Flying Corps. It is often simply called the Bristol Fighter or popularly the "Brisfit" or "Biff". Despite being a two-seater, the F.2B proved to be an agile aircraft...

 to his first victory, when he destroyed two Albatros D.V

Albatros D.V

|-See also:-Bibliography:*Bennett, Leon. Gunning for the Red Baron. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2006. ISBN 1-58544-507-X....

s near Lens

Lens, Pas-de-Calais

Lens is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. It is one of France's large Picarde cities along with Lille, Valenciennes, Amiens, Roubaix, Tourcoing, Arras, and Douai.-Metropolitan area:...

. He and his gunner were unhurt when shot down during this engagement. In the next 31 days, Elton would be credited with destroying twelve more enemy aircraft and driving two down out of control. He scored ten of his wins himself, and his gunner in the rear seat scored six times. His string culminated in a triple victory on 29 March 1918, when he destroyed three German two-seater reconnaissance planes in ten minutes. They were the only two-seaters he ever destroyed; the remainder of his wins were over enemy fighters, principally Albatros D.Vs.

Reference

• British and Empire Aces of World War I. Christopher Shores, Mark Rolfe. Osprey Publishing, 2001. ISBN 1841763772, 9781841763774
• Bristol F2 Fighter Aces of World War I. Jon Guttman, Harry Dempsey. Osprey Publishing, 2007. ISBN 1846032016, 9781846032011