Billy Bishop VC Lone Wolf Hunter: The RAF Ace Re-Examined

William Avery Bishop is recognized as the British Empire’s highest-scoring WWI ace, credited with 72 combat victories, third-ranking behind von Richthofen and René Fonck. He scored many of his successes on his own, prevailing only by dint of personal courage, daring and superior marksmanship. This remarkable man’s story has been detailed in many books and articles, but renowned author Peter Kilduff is adamant that so far the full truth has not been told. Famed for his evenhanded, thorough, exhaustive and forensic research, Kilduff sets out to bring new light to missions and kills so far steeped in controversy. As so many of Bishop’s victories were achieved during solo combat, all will be examined and scrutinized, drawing on German, British and Canadian archival sources, Bishop’s private correspondence, and accounts by friends and foes. Such an approach provides as complete an account as possible which also serves as a valuable reference work containing many previously unpublished images.

REVIEWS

Peter Kilduff has done a superb job in slicing through the fog and controversy of nearly a century to produce a readable, objective account of Billy Bishop—the lone hunter
Barrett Tillman



This solidly constructed book by Peter Kilduff analyses the career of Canada's greatest ace. The author combines his work pouring over British and German records in addition to the many letters our hero wrote to his beloved wife and family....Peter Kilduff has done a very good job here... excellent photographs. Grub Street do these aviation histories very well and here’s hoping they continue.
War History Online


Any fair-minded reader will set Kilduff’s book down convinced that Billy Bishop was a genuine hero. All in all, he has produced an excellent work.
London Free Press


Comparing letters Billy wrote to his then fiancée Margaret to records of downed German aircraft, Kilduff found the dates and descriptions of Billy’s conquests matched German reports time after time, indicating Billy really was as good as his reputation. Kilduff found documented evidence the Germans knew who Billy was and they respected him for his talent and skills even as they feared him. “I just kept digging, digging and digging. I found proof of Billy’s victories. Billy’s combat reports were sparse, but honest. He shot down 72 German planes. More than any other allied target,” said Kilduff. There were challenges when researching Billy Bishop. Not all German causalities were reported. He had to study the reporting policy on either side of the water. The author discovered the Germans didn’t want to admit they were defeated very early on in the war, so they minimized their casualty numbers for over two years to maintain the support of German citizens.
Canadian Military Family Magazine