Sous Lieutenant Jacques Louis Ehrlich (1893-1953) was a French World War I flying ace credited with 19 aerial victories; he was one of the leading balloon busters of the war.
Jacques Louis Ehrlich
Born
25 October 1893 Paris, France
Died
10 August 1953 (1953-08-11) (aged 59) Paris, France
Jacques Louis Ehrlich was born in Paris on 25 October 1893.[1]
He enlisted in the French army on 29 May 1913.[2] Three and a half years later, in December 1916, he transferred to aviation. In May 1917, he was brevetted a pilot. Two months later, he was badly wounded while on a trench-strafing mission. He returned to duty in November as a newly promoted sergeant.[3] Beginning on 30 June 1918, he was one of a "wolf pack" of his squadron's pilots dedicated to the highly hazardous pursuit of destroying German observation balloons.[2] From that first victory, through the next two and a half triumphant months, he shared in the destruction of 15 enemy balloons, and shot down three others solo. On 1 August and on 15 September, he was credited with three victories each; on 17 July, he had two. After the 15 September feat of downing three balloons in two minutes,[3] he was recommended for both the Légion d'honneur and the Médaille militaire.[4] Three days later, he was shot down and captured while scoring his last win. After scoring with three low-level gunnery runs, Ehrlich, Paul Petit, and another wingman ran into 11 Fokker D.VIIs;[2] in the ensuing melee, it was uncertain whether Ehrlich fell to a Fokker or to ground fire. The day after that, he began his captivity as a newly commissioned Sous lieutenant.[1]
His total of 18 balloons downed garnered him the sixth spot on the balloon busters list. He also shared a victory over an Albatros fighter.[3] This made him the highest scoring Allied Jewish ace of World War I,[5] one of five notable Jewish aces in France.[6] His score was matched by a Jewish-born German ace, Wilhelm Frankl, who had converted to Catholicism to marry his Austrian bride.[5]
Ehrlich died in his native Paris on 10 August 1953.[1]
Honors and awardsedit
Citation for Médaille militaire
"Remarkable pursuit pilot who has distinguished himself by his exceptional audacity and tenacity which have earned him twelve victories in one month. He flamed three balloons in a few minutes. One wound. Three citations." Médaille militaire citation, 10 September 1918[1]
Sources of informationedit
^ abcdOver the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918, pp. 157 - 158
^Les cahiers du judaïsme 21-22 Alliance israélite universelle – 2007"Cinq As juifs se distinguent dont Jacques-Louis Ehrlich – dix-neuf avions et Drachens abattus -, Eugène Weismann, ... Jacques-Louis Ehrlich de l'escadrille 154, quinzième As dans le palmarès des aviateurs, demeure très humble au sujet ..."
Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank. London, UK: Grub Street Publishing, (1993). ISBN978-0-948817-54-0.
SPAD XII/XIII Aces of World War 1 (Aircraft of the Aces), Jon Guttman. Oxford UK:Osprey Publishing, 2002. ISBN1-84176-316-0, ISBN978-1841763163
External linksedit
(fr) List of victories, color profile of his plane
December 15, 2023
jacques, ehrlich, sous, lieutenant, jacques, louis, ehrlich, 1893, 1953, french, world, flying, credited, with, aerial, victories, leading, balloon, busters, jacques, louis, ehrlichborn25, october, 1893paris, francedied10, august, 1953, 1953, aged, paris, fran. Sous Lieutenant Jacques Louis Ehrlich 1893 1953 was a French World War I flying ace credited with 19 aerial victories he was one of the leading balloon busters of the war Jacques Louis EhrlichBorn25 October 1893Paris FranceDied10 August 1953 1953 08 11 aged 59 Paris FranceAllegianceFranceService wbr branchInfantry aviationYears of service1913 1918RankSous lieutenantUnitEscadrille 154AwardsMedaille militaireCroix de GuerreMentioned in dispatches Contents 1 Biography 2 Honors and awards 3 Sources of information 4 References 5 External linksBiography editJacques Louis Ehrlich was born in Paris on 25 October 1893 1 He enlisted in the French army on 29 May 1913 2 Three and a half years later in December 1916 he transferred to aviation In May 1917 he was brevetted a pilot Two months later he was badly wounded while on a trench strafing mission He returned to duty in November as a newly promoted sergeant 3 Beginning on 30 June 1918 he was one of a wolf pack of his squadron s pilots dedicated to the highly hazardous pursuit of destroying German observation balloons 2 From that first victory through the next two and a half triumphant months he shared in the destruction of 15 enemy balloons and shot down three others solo On 1 August and on 15 September he was credited with three victories each on 17 July he had two After the 15 September feat of downing three balloons in two minutes 3 he was recommended for both the Legion d honneur and the Medaille militaire 4 Three days later he was shot down and captured while scoring his last win After scoring with three low level gunnery runs Ehrlich Paul Petit and another wingman ran into 11 Fokker D VIIs 2 in the ensuing melee it was uncertain whether Ehrlich fell to a Fokker or to ground fire The day after that he began his captivity as a newly commissioned Sous lieutenant 1 His total of 18 balloons downed garnered him the sixth spot on the balloon busters list He also shared a victory over an Albatros fighter 3 This made him the highest scoring Allied Jewish ace of World War I 5 one of five notable Jewish aces in France 6 His score was matched by a Jewish born German ace Wilhelm Frankl who had converted to Catholicism to marry his Austrian bride 5 Ehrlich died in his native Paris on 10 August 1953 1 Honors and awards editCitation for Medaille militaire Remarkable pursuit pilot who has distinguished himself by his exceptional audacity and tenacity which have earned him twelve victories in one month He flamed three balloons in a few minutes One wound Three citations Medaille militaire citation 10 September 1918 1 Sources of information edit a b c d Over the Front The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services 1914 1918 pp 157 158 a b c Balloon Busting Aces of World War 1 p 15 a b c The Aerodrome website 1 Accessed 19 December 2009 firstworldwar com website 2 Accessed 19 December 2009 a b SPAD XII XIII Aces of World War I p 60 Les cahiers du judaisme 21 22 Alliance israelite universelle 2007 Cinq As juifs se distinguent dont Jacques Louis Ehrlich dix neuf avions et Drachens abattus Eugene Weismann Jacques Louis Ehrlich de l escadrille 154 quinzieme As dans le palmares des aviateurs demeure tres humble au sujet References editBalloon Busting Aces of World War 1 Jon Guttman Oxford UK Osprey Publishing 2005 ISBN 1 84176 877 4 ISBN 978 1 84176 877 9 Over the Front The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services 1914 1918 Franks Norman Bailey Frank London UK Grub Street Publishing 1993 ISBN 978 0 948817 54 0 SPAD XII XIII Aces of World War 1 Aircraft of the Aces Jon Guttman Oxford UK Osprey Publishing 2002 ISBN 1 84176 316 0 ISBN 978 1841763163External links edit fr List of victories color profile of his plane Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Jacques Ehrlich amp oldid 1167827230, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
