James Anderson Slater
| James Anderson Slater | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Jimmy |
| Born |
27 November 1896 Worthing, Sussex, England |
| Died | 26 November 1925 (aged 28) Pewsey, Wiltshire, England |
| Buried at | St. Mary the Virgin, Upavon, Wiltshire, England (51°17′43″N 1°48′44″W / 51.29528°N 1.81222°WCoordinates: 51°17′43″N 1°48′44″W / 51.29528°N 1.81222°W) |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 British Army Royal Air Force
|
| Years of service | 1914–1925 |
| Rank | Flight Lieutenant |
| Unit |
Royal Sussex Regiment No. 18 Squadron RFC No. 1 Squadron RFC No. 64 Squadron RFC/RAF No. 3 Squadron RAF |
| Battles/wars |
World War I • Western Front |
| Awards |
Military Cross & Bar Distinguished Flying Cross |
Flight Lieutenant James Anderson Slater MC*, DFC (27 November 1896 – 26 November 1925) was a British First World War flying ace, credited with 24 aerial victories. He served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) as an instructor after the war until killed in a flying accident.
Slater joined the British Army's Royal Sussex Regiment as a private in 1914, and was commissioned as a temporary second lieutenant on 29 September. In 1915 he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps to serve as an observer and flew in France with No. 18 Squadron RFC from November 1915 to March 1916. He then trained as a pilot, and on 30 June 1916 was appointed a flying officer.
Slater was posted to No. 1 Squadron RFC in August 1916, to fly the Nieuport 17 single-seat fighter, and gained his first two aerial victories in February and March 1917. He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 April 1917. In May he returned to England to serve as an instructor until 27 July 1917, when he was appointed a flight commander with the acting-rank of captain in the newly formed No. 64 Squadron RFC. The squadron was based at Sedgeford, Norfolk, where Slater was reported to have "beat up Hunstanton at 8 a.m. on Sunday mornings, buzzing his girlfriend's house at chimney pot height", and to have been in the habit of flying his aircraft through the aerodrome's hangars.
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