Raymond Collishaw

Raymond Collishaw
Raymond Collishaw in the cockpit c. 1917
Nickname(s)	"Collie"
Born	22 November 1893 (1893-11-22) Nanaimo, British Columbia
Died	28 September 1976(1976-09-28) (aged 82) West Vancouver, British Columbia
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Naval Air Service (1915–18) Royal Air Force (1918–43)
Years of service	1915–43
Rank	Air Vice Marshal
Commands held	No. 14 Group (1942–43) No. 204 Group (1941) No. 202 Group (1939–41) Egypt Group (1939) RAF Heliopolis (1936–39) No. 5 Wing (1935–36) RAF Upper Heyford (1935) RAF Bircham Newton (1932–35) No. 23 Squadron (1925–27) No. 41 Squadron (1923–24) No. 30 Squadron (1921–23) No. 47 Squadron (1919–20) No. 3 Squadron RNAS (1918)
Battles/wars	First World War Russian Civil War Second World War
Awards	Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order & Bar Officer of the Order of the British Empire Distinguished Service Cross Distinguished Flying Cross Mentioned in Despatches (4) Order of St. Anna, 2nd Class with Swords (Russia) Croix de guerre (France)
Relations	George Leonard Trapp (brother-in-law)

Air Vice Marshal Raymond Collishaw, CB, DSO & Bar, OBE, DSC, DFC (22 November 1893 – 28 September 1976) was a distinguished Canadian fighter pilot, squadron leader, and commanding officer who served in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) and later the Royal Air Force. He was the highest scoring RNAS flying ace and the second highest scoring Canadian pilot of the First World War. He was noted as a great leader in the air, leading many of his own formations into battle. As a member of the RAF during the Second World War, he commanded No. 204 Group (which later became the Desert Air Force) in North Africa.

Raymond Collishaw was born at Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada, on 22 November 1893. His father was John Edward Collishaw from Wrexham, Wales, and his mother Sarah "Sadie" Jones from Newport, Wales, but raised in Pantygog, Garw Valley.

At the age of 15, Collishaw joined the Canadian Fisheries Protection Services as a cabin boy. He was a lower class sailor on board the Alcedo when it sailed into the Arctic Circle in search of the Stefansson expedition. Unfortunately, it turned out that the expedition was too late to rescue the Karluk. He would continue working on ships and the coast for the next seven years. By 1915, he had worked his way up to first officer.