ACE

Military aviator who by skill and daring has destroyed five or more enemy aircraft. The word came into use in World War I. American aces in that war numbered 63, of whom the most famous was Capt. Edward V. Rickenbacker with 26 victories. The best-known British-forces ace was a Canadian, William A. Bishop, who destroyed 72 aircraft before he was withdrawn from combat. The famous French ace Georges M. Guynemer, who destroyed 53 aircraft, and the German Baron Manfred von Richtofen, with a record of 80, were both killed in action. There were many aces in World War II, but with advances in air warfare less notice was given to individuals.