John Leacroft
| John Leacroft | |
|---|---|
| Born |
4 November 1888 Derby, Derbyshire, England |
| Died | 26 August 1971 (aged 82) Bexhill, Sussex, England |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | British Army Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1909, ca 1914–1937, 1939–1945 |
| Rank | Group Captain |
| Unit | |
| Commands held |
No. 17 Squadron RAF RAF Thornaby |
| Awards | Military Cross & Bar |
Army Service Corps
Royal Flying Corps
Group Captain John Leacroft MC & Bar (4 November 1888 – 26 August 1971) was a World War I fighter ace credited with 22 victories. He remained in the Royal Air Force until 1937, and returned to service during World War II in administrative roles.
John Leacroft born on 4 November 1888, the son of Dr John William Leacroft. He was educated at Aldenham School before going up to Pembroke College, Cambridge. He first joined the British Armed Forces when he was commissioned as a second lieutenant for service with the senior division of the University of Cambridge Officers' Training Corps on 3 February 1909, but he resigned this commission on 1 November the same year.
Leacroft joined the Army Service Corps with the outbreak of war in 1914, and served with them in France and Egypt. He had been promoted to captain by the time he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps in 1915.
Leacroft was originally posted as an observer with No. 14 Squadron RAF in Egypt in 1916. He saw action during the Senussi Uprising and the second Turkish attack on the Suez Canal as part of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. After receiving pilot training he was appointed a Flying Officer on 20 March 1917, and posted to No. 19 Squadron RAF to fly Spad VIIs in May 1917, just as low-level ground attack sorties were being introduced in the lead up to the Battle of Messines. He scored his first victory on 17 June 1917. He tallied one each in July and August, and a double on 1 September to become an ace. By the end of the month he was a double ace. He had been appointed a Flight Commander on 22 July 1917. After four more triumphs in October, he was withdrawn from the front. Two of his October victories came in support of Allied troops during the Third Battle of Ypres, when on other occasions he carried a box of 25 lb bombs in his cockpit, as the Spad had no bomb racks. For these missions, he was awarded the Military Cross on 27 October 1918, the citation, published the following March, read:
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