John Pinder (RAF officer)


Captain John William Pinder DFC was a British First World War flying ace, who flew for the Royal Navy Air Service, and later the Royal Air Force.

Early life

John William Pinder was born on 14 February 1898 in Deal, Kent, England.

World War I service

Pinder joined military service for World War I when old enough. On 22 October 1916, he was appointed as a probationary flight officer in the Royal Naval Air Service and posted to its headquarters on HMS President. On 3 January 1917 he was riding in the rear seat of Curtiss JN4 serial number 8820 when it crashlanded at Redcar, tearing off the undercarriage and damaging the propeller.
After completion of training as a pilot, he was posted to No. 9 Squadron RNAS. During the unit's operations along the Belgian coast, he scored his first three aerial victories. He was subsequently appointed a flight commander and transferred to No. 13 Squadron RNAS. By 5 December 1917, his score had risen to six, and he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
On 17 January 1918, he was reported accidentally injured in Flight newsletter, though the date of injury was not reported. By the end of April 1918, he had amassed 166 combat flight hours. By this time, No. 13 Squadron RNAS had been incorporated into the nascent Royal Air Force. This incorporation may account for the fact that on 13 May 1918, Lieutenant Pinder was appointed as a temporary captain while employed as such, as flight commanders in the RAF were ranked as captains.
Pinder's Distinguished Flying Cross was finally gazetted on 3 June 1918. By the time Pinder left 213 Squadron at the end of August 1918 for an Air Ministry post with the Grand Fleet, his aerial victory score stood at 12. He would not remain at his new posting for long, as he joined No. 45 Squadron RAF of the Independent Air Force in October. He would score five more victories while serving in this squadron, bringing his total to 17.

List of aerial victories

See also Aerial victory standards of World War I
No.Date/timeAircraftFoeResultLocationNotes
15 June 1917 @ 1930 hoursSopwith Triplane serial number N5462Albatros D.IIIDriven down out of controlOstend, Belgium
27 July 1917 @ 1730 hoursSopwith Triplane s/n N6475Albatros D.IIIDriven down out of controlSouthwest of Haynecourt, FranceVictory shared with Arthur Whealy, three other RNAS pilots
325 July 1917 @ 1730 hoursSopwith Camel s/n B3870German two-seaterDriven down out of controlInto the English Channel off Westende, BelgiumVictory shared with Oliver Redgate, Fred Everest Banbury, two other RNAS pilots
417 October 1917 @ 0730 hoursSopwith Camel s/n N6439German seaplaneDestroyed3 miles north of Zeebrugge, Belgium
54 December 1917 @ 1535 hoursSopwith Camel s/n N6335Aviatik two-seaterDriven down out of controlBetween Houthulst and Zarren, BelgiumVictory shared with George Chisholm MacKay
65 December 1917 @ 1505 hoursSopwith Camel s/n N6357Albatros two-seaterDestroyedOver the English Channel 4 miles northwest of Wenduine, BelgiumVictory shared with John Paynter, Maurice Cooper, another RNAS pilot
719 May 1918 @ 1735 hoursSopwith Camel s/n C65Albatros D.VSet afire in midair; destroyed1 mile south of Woumen, BelgiumVictory shared with John Paynter, Maurice Cooper, another RNAS pilot
82 June 1918 @ 1935 hoursSopwith Camel s/n C65Pfalz D.IIIDriven down out of controlMoorslede, BelgiumVictory shared with William Gray
97 June 1918 @ 1805 hoursSopwith Camel s/n C65Albatros D.VDriven down out of control4 miles south of Dixmude, Belgium
1015 June 1918 @ 1745 hoursSopwith Camel s/n C65Hannover two-seaterDriven down out of controlPoperinghe, BelgiumVictory shared with two other pilots
1127 June 1918 @ 1020 hoursSopwith Camel s/n C65Fokker D.VIISet afire in midair; destroyedOver the English Channel offshore of Blankenberghe, Belgium
1230 July 1918 @ 1205 hoursSopwith Camel s/n D8216Albatros D.VDriven down out of control3 miles southwest of Ostend, Belgium
1319 October 1918 @ 1500 hoursSopwith Camel s/n D8240Rumpler two-seaterDriven down out of controlXaffévillers, France
1423 October 1918 @ 1220 hoursSopwith Camel s/n E7244Rumpler two-seaterDriven down out of controlSouth of Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, France
1523 October 1918 @ 1240 hoursSopwith Camel s/n E7244Rumpler two-seaterCapturedFruize
1628 October 1918 @ 1050 hoursSopwith Camel s/n E7244Rumpler two-seaterCapturedCorcieux, France
175 November 1918 @ 1550 hoursSopwith Camel s/n E7244Rumpler two-seaterDestroyedNorth of Parroy, France

Post World War I

After war's end, Pinder received some belated honours; on 3 June 1919 he was both Mentioned in Despatches and received a Bar in lieu of a second award of the Distinguished Flying Cross. On 17 June 1919, he was elected to Royal Aero Club membership.
He was granted a short service commission as a Flying Officer in the RAF on 24 October 1919, though this appointment was later cancelled. On 6 December 1919, he transferred to the unemployed list of the RAF.
After the war, Pinder was an aviation pioneer in South America. In August 1920, he was part of a group attempting the first flight between Brazil and Buenos Aires. Pinder teamed with Brazilian Lieutenant Aliatar Martins to make this flight in a Macchi M.9 flying boat. The aircraft disappeared. The bodies of Pinder and Martins were found on 27 August. Loss of a propeller had apparently crashed their aircraft.
Other accounts give more detail. They state that Pinder and Martins landed in the Lagoa dos Esteves, Içara to repair a propeller. After it was fixed, they tried to restart the airplane's engine. In the process, Martins was knocked into the lagoon by the propeller, and his arm was broken. Pinder dived in to save him, but both men drowned. After the drownings, a search party found the seaplane in the lagoon and threatened to kill all the local men in the vicinity because there was suspicion of foul play. There was a general exodus of these men into the woods to hide from suspicion. One courageous local man aided the ten-day search. Pinder and Martins were originally buried in the first graves of the local cemetery, but were removed several years later.

Endnotes