Who's Who - Donald MacLaren
Donald Roderick MacLaren
(1893-1989) was the most successful
fighter pilot
of World War One to fly the Sopwith Camel aircraft.
Born in Ottawa, Ontario on 28 May 1893 MacLaren was a fur trader prior to starting his service with the Royal Flying Corps in 1917. He proved a natural fighter pilot and had amassed an impressive 54 kills (the last on 9 October 1918, and 43 within the space of four and a half months) when his war career was brought to an abrupt end after he broke a leg while wrestling with a friend in October 1918.
The third most successful Canadian ace of the war - behind Billy Bishop and William Collishaw - MacLaren assisted in the creation of the Royal Canadian Air Force after the armistice, and thereafter embarked upon a career in civil aviation.
The recipient of the Military Cross with bar, Distinguished Flying Cross and the Distinguished Service Order, Donald MacLaren died on 4 July 1989 at the age of 94.
A "listening post" was an advanced post, usually in no-man's land, where soldiers tried to find out information about the enemy.
- Did you know?
