Arthur Stanley Gould Lee

Name:

Country:

England

Rank:

Captain

Service:

Royal Flying Corps
Royal Air Force

Units:

Victories:

Born:

31 August 1894

Place of Birth:

Boston, Lincolnshire, England

Died:

21 May 1975

Place of Death:

London, England

Thanks to a broken leg during flight school, Arthur Stanley Gould Lee, the son of Clara Emily Lee, gained additional time flying trainers before he was posted to France. In November 1917, during low level bombing and strafing attacks, he was shot down three times by ground fire. During his eight months at the front, Lee accumulated 222 hours of flight time during 118 patrols. In that time, he was engaged in combat 56 times. An Air Vice-Marshal and author of three books, he retired from the Royal Air Force in 1946.

"There were few flyers with any experience of air fighting who were not obsessed to some degree, though usually secretly, with the thought of being shot down in flames." Arthur Gould Lee

Military Cross (MC)

T./2nd Lt. (T./Capt.) Arthur Stanley Lee, Notts. & Derby. R. and R.F.C.
For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. He bombed an enemy battery and fired on the gunners with his machine gun, and then attacked and drove off three enemy machines. While flying in very low clouds he lost his way, and could not steady his compass, and after flying for some distance, in what he believed to be the direction of our lines, he landed in open country, and was at once attacked and fired on by enemy cavalry. He had kept his engine running and succeeded in getting off, and, having fired on the enemy, found his position and returned to our lines. On another occasion he made a flight in a very thick mist, drove down an enemy machine, bombed an enemy position, and assisted the infantry to repel an enemy attack. He showed splendid courage and initiative.

Supplement to the London Gazette, 5 July 1918 (30780/7913)

Victories

	Date	Time	Unit	Aircraft	Opponent	Location
1	04 Sep 1917	1700	46	Sopwith Pup (B1777)	Albatros D.V (OOC)	NE of Polygon Wood
2	11 Sep 1917	1055	46	Sopwith Pup (B1777)	C (OOC) ¹	S of Scarpe River
3	21 Sep 1917	0820	46	Sopwith Pup (B1777)	C (OOC) ²	S of Scarpe River
4	22 Sep 1917	1030	46	Sopwith Pup (B1777)	Albatros D.V (OOC)	Sailly-en-Ostrevent
5	30 Sep 1917	1635	46	Sopwith Pup (B1777)	DFW C (OOC)	Vitry
6	30 Nov 1917	0900	46	Sopwith Camel (B2501)	DFW C (DES)	Havrincourt-Flesquires
7	30 Nov 1917	1500	46	Sopwith Camel (B2501)	Albatros D.V (DES)	W of Bourlon

1	Shared with Capt Maurice Scott (B1843), Lt Eric Hughes, Lt E Armitage
2	Shared with Capt Maurice Scott (B2191), Lt Eric Hughes (A6188)

Books

No Parachute: A fighting pilot in World War I: Letters written in 1917 by A. S. G. Lee; Arthur Stanley Gould Lee / Hardcover / Harpercollins 1970
Open Cockpit: A Pilot of the Royal Flying Corps; Arthur Stanley Gould Lee / Unknown Binding / Jerrolds Pub

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