The two aviators ran to their planes and took off, they landed heroes. The day was April 14, 1918. For Lt. Douglas Campbell, it was the culmination of a dream to serve his country in battle. Campbell, the son of famous astronomer William Campbell, had dropped out of Harvard with friend Quentin Roosevelt (the President’s youngest son) to join the Air Service after America declared war. He was assigned to the famed 94th Aero Squadron stationed in France. “The Hat in the Ring Squadron” would later produce the Ace of Aces Eddie Rickenbacker. But before Rickenbacker, there was Douglas Campbell. Campbell flew the first patrol of the squadron, along with Rickenbacker and Raoul Lufbery (who already had 15 victories flying with the Lafayette Escadrille). On April 14, Campbell and Winslow were on stand-by when a report came in of two German aircraft heading toward the air field. The pair scrambled and a dog fight ensued. The nimble Nieuport’s got the better of the Boche, even though at one point Campbell stalled and plunged to within 100 feet of the ground before recovering and downing his foe. Campbell became the first American-trained pilot to score a kill and on May 31 became the first American-trained ace when he downed his fifth German plane. Unfortunately, a later mission resulted in a serious shrapnel wound from anti-aircraft fire, putting him out of the war. He returned to America where the Distinguished Service Cross and Croix de Guerre recipient participated in bond tours.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Campbell_(aviator)
https://www.airforcemag.com/PDF/MagazineArchive/Documents/1988/April%201988/0488victory.pdf
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