Gotha Bomber Shot Down, 1917

The shooting down of one of Germany’s large bombers was a rare event. One of the select band of pilots to have accomplished the feat was ex-Burton Bank pupil Owen Scholte. Captain Owen Scholte MC, pictured below right, who had raced motorcycles before The Great War, was a brave and able fighter ace. He died tragically in France when the car driven by his old friend Billy Crowe was involved in an accident.

Cyril Marconi Crowe – or ‘Billy’ (as he was always known) – is pictured below left at Hendon Aerodrome in 1914 on the day he was awarded his Royal Aeronautical Club Certificate. Crowe went on to become a highly decorated fighter ace during The Great War.