John Herbert Hedley | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Luckiest Man Alive |
Born |
North Shields, Northumberland, England |
19 July 1887
Died | 1 April 1977 Los Angeles, California, United States |
(aged 89)
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/branch |
British Army Royal Air Force |
Years of service | 1914–1918 |
Rank | Captain |
Unit |
Northumberland Fusiliers 26th Battalion (3rd Tyneside Irish) Army Cyclist Corps Lincolnshire Regiment (17th Labour Company) Labour Corps No. 62 Squadron Royal Flying Corps No. 20 Squadron Royal Flying Corps No. 20 Squadron RAF |
Awards | French Croix de Guerre |
Other work | Accountant, speaker, lawyer |
Captain John Herbert Hedley (19 July 1887 – 1 April 1977) was a World War I British flying ace credited with eleven aerial victories. The observer ace claimed to have survived a bizarre flying mishap which earned him the moniker "The Luckiest Man Alive." Hedley also survived uninjured after his plane was shot down in 1918, and he became a prisoner of war. After his immigration to the United States in 1920, he became a regular on the lecture circuit, enthralling American audiences with the stories of his military service.
John Herbert Hedley, son of Ralph Hedley and his wife Ann Dunn Hair Hedley, was born on 19 July 1887 in North Shields, Northumberland, England. He was the oldest of three surviving sons. In 1891 and 1901, John, his parents, and two brothers continued to live in North Shields. His father was employed as a shipyard timekeeper, and his mother worked as a general shopkeeper. However, Ralph Hedley (1863–1901) died at age 38, shortly after the 1901 census, his death registered at Tynemouth, Northumberland in the second quarter of the year. At the time of the 1911 census, John Hedley was employed as an accountant's clerk and resided with his widowed mother and two younger brothers in North Shields. His mother, Ann Dunn Hair Hedley (1859–1912), died the following year at age 52. In the last quarter of 1912, John's marriage to Isabella C Sands was registered in Tynemouth, Northumberland. His son John Herbert Hedley, Jr. was born in 1914 in North Shields, the birth also registered in Tynemouth.
There is some disagreement among a variety of sources with regard to the details of John Hedley's military career. Hedley indicated that he joined the British Army on 4 August 1914. His medal index card indicates that he was with the Northumberland Fusiliers. This is supported by the London Gazette which reported that Hedley received a promotion from temporary Second Lieutenant to temporary Captain in the 26th Battalion (3rd Tyneside Irish) of the Northumberland Fusiliers on 1 May 1915. On 27 July 1915, he was appointed temporary Captain in the Army Cyclist Corps, from the 26th (Service) Battalion (3rd Tyneside Irish) of the Northumberland Fusiliers. The Gazette further indicated that he returned to the Northumberland Fusiliers as temporary Captain on 10 November 1915. According to author Norman Franks, John Herbert Hedley served with the Lincolnshire Regiment (17th Labour Company) before transfer to the Royal Flying Corps General List and was not promoted to temporary Captain until 13 April 1917. This is partially supported by the Gazette, which announced that temporary Captain J. H. Hedley of the Lincolnshire Regiment was appointed temporary captain in the Labour Corps, retaining present seniority, effective 13 April 1917. Further, Franks indicates that in October 1917, Hedley was with the No. 62 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps in England and the following month, on 6 November 1917, he joined No. 20 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. However, the London Gazette indicates that temporary Captain J. H. Hedley, Labour Corps, transferred to the Royal Flying Corps General List on 22 December 1917, with seniority from 4 November 1917. Captain John Hedley is credited with eleven aerial victories, all while he was with No. 20 Squadron, and all from the Bristol F.2b.