Arch Whitehouse

[PPF]

According to his biography "The Fledgling" he served as a Gunner and became a Pilot.

In a WWI Biography he claimed to have gone straight from the trenches to air Gunner-if I remember rightly.

What Was his squadron? Rank? Any claims as a Ace or shared victories?

[quemerford]

Transferred in the field and posted to 4th Brigade as an air gunner. Source: AIR 76 record.

[topgun1918]

Arthur George Joseph "Arch" Whitehouse served in the Northants Yeomanry before transferring into the RFC where he became an Observer in No 22 Squadron and while often quoted with twenty or more victories, does not appear to achieved "ace" status.  I have details of four claims - two Albatros scouts on 12 August 1917, one in flames and another out of control and a two-seater crashed on 2 October 1917, all three with Lt J C Bush as his pilot and appearing the RFC Communiques (numbers 101 and 108).  The fourth does not appear in the Communiques and was an Albatros scout "destroyed" on 10 October 1917 with Lt W G Meggitt as his pilot.

 

He was awarded the Military Medal, notification appearing in the London Gazette of 17 December 1917.

 

He was later commissioned and as a 2nd Lt was transferred to the Unemployed List on 28 September 1919.

 

Graeme

 

[David Filsell]

Almost forgotten now, and much derided in recent years for 'throwing a long lasso' about his feats. Not \east he wrote a tail about being one of VonRs victims, which he was most certainly not. I have somewhere. He was  published in Flying Aces in the US - and I believe founded the magazine. At least one of his articles in the pre or early plastic kits era in the UK appeared in Aero Modeller. I'll try to look it out. But he was a hugely prolific writer on aviation - and other things - his stories appeared in popular American Aviation and Great War magazines. From memory I  think he died in the US. There was a thread about him on 2008 on the Forum

[RaySearching]

On 08/08/2016 at 11:02, David Filsell said:

There was a thread about him on 2008 on the Forum

 

As well as the 2008 Thread

Discussed in several threads over the years  the most recent Jan 15 Here

 

Regards Ray

Edited 12 August , 2016 by RaySearching
testing the facility to edit

[paulgranger]

Most of his books were published in the early '60s, just at the time I became old enough to be promoted from the childrens' to the grown-ups' section of our local library. I think I read all his popular titles, but couldn't tell you what they were like nowadays. Bit 'Boys Own', I think.

[David Filsell]

'Bigglesesque"?

[observer]

summary of his war record...at https://www.theaerodrome.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7640#google_vignette

He was never an ace although he did indeed 1/2 share in 4 shootdowns of Enemy aircract {as a gunner}

beame a pilot 1918-1919