William_Bond_(aviator)
William Bond (RFC officer)
English Royal Flying Corps officer
Captain William Arthur Bond MC & Bar (27 June 1889 – 22 July 1917) was a First World War flying ace credited with five aerial victories.[1]
Bond was wounded[1] while serving in the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry[2] in the Dardanelles in 1916.[1] After transferring to the Royal Flying Corps, Bond was posted to fly Nieuport fighters in No. 40 Squadron in early 1917. He flew Nieuport No. B1545 to five victories in a month, beginning on 10 May and ending on 9 June 1917.[1][2]
He was appointed flight commander in July. On the 22nd, he was killed in action over Sallaumines while flying Nieuport No. B1688. Cause of his death is disputed; he is said to have either fallen to the guns of a two-seater observation plane from FA 235, or to anti-aircraft fire.[2]
After his death, his wife Aimee (later Aimée Stuart) wrote An Airman's Wife about him.[3]