These are photographs of my 1st cousin (three generations removed), 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗺 𝗥𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 (𝗮𝗸𝗮 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱). He was among the first combat aviators in American history during the earliest days of aerial warfare. He flew with the 𝟵𝟲𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗻 as a captain and was involved in many dogfights with German aces during the 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗪𝗮𝗿. The third and fourth images are group photos where he is pictured in the back row, third from the right, with his biplane, number 22, in the background. I reviewed his military records on Fold3, including itineraries and detailed logs of his service in the 96th Aero Squadron during 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗮𝗿. The first image is a portrait that a fourth cousin shared with me and the other three photographs I found by searching the US National Archives.

By 1917, Germany was close to winning 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗪𝗮𝗿 𝗜. After defeating Russia on the Eastern Front, Germany would redirect all of its resources to the Western Front. On March 15, 1917, 𝗖𝘇𝗮𝗿 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗮𝘀 𝗜𝗜 abdicated the Russian throne. After the Russian Empire had collapsed, a ceasefire with Germany was negotiated, and an armistice was signed by Russia later that year.

Germany had gained air supremacy with the introduction of the 𝗙𝗼𝗸𝗸𝗲𝗿 monoplane. These German engineered warplanes were the first to be fitted with synchronization gear enabling the pilot to fire a machine gun through the propeller without striking the blades. This technological innovation gave Germany the advantage over the Allied air forces.

On July 1, 1915, the Fokker entered service and scored its first victory by shooting down a French aeroplane. The next seven months were a period where Germany dominated the skies, commonly known as the “𝘍𝘰𝘬𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘚𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘦”. Meanwhile, Allied planes and their hapless crews had become known as “𝘍𝘰𝘬𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘍𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘳”. The British alone lost 120 aircraft just in the second half of 1915.

Germany reinforced its air superiority in September 1916 while, at the same time, a 23-year-old former cavalry officer entered combat for the first time as a fighter pilot in the 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗶𝗿 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲. His name was Manfred von Richthofen, better known as the 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗼𝗻. His first confirmed victory came on September 17, 1916 when he shot down a British aeroplane in the skies over France. In January 1917, he was promoted to commander of his own squadron after 𝗞𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗜𝗜 awarded him the highest military honor for downing eighteen Allied planes in aerial combat. His squadron became the deadliest flying unit of WWI.

The first half of 1917 marked a period of German aerial dominance that culminated in the rout of April 1917, known as “𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘈𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘭”. The Red Baron led his squadron to unparalleled success. He himself shot down twenty-two British aircraft during the month of April alone, including four in a single day. In the span of only five days, the British lost seventy-five planes and over ninety men to the German aces. His squadron scored eighty-nine victories that month. After scoring his 50th kill in the air on April 29, the Kaiser sent the Red Baron a telegram to congratulate him.

Three months earlier, Germany devised a plan to resume unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic with hopes of bringing a quicker end to the war. The most formidable naval weapon in the German war machine was the U-boat, a submarine far more sophisticated than those built by other nations at the time. German U-boats up to this point had sunk more than 2,500 ships. On February 1, 1917, Germany adopted a policy of ruthlessly attacking any and all ships, regardless of neutrality, including merchant ships and passenger liners with civilians aboard.

On February 3, 1917, the American steamship Housatonic, on a voyage from Galveston to Liverpool with a cargo of grain and flour, was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat. In response to this violation of the Sussex pledge, the United States immediately broke off diplomatic relations with Germany. Between February and April 1917, U-boats sank more than 500 ships including five more American ships in the month of March. German U-Boats came close to winning WWI but Germany had vastly underestimated the United States and it would prove to be a big mistake.

On the night of April 1, 1917, the American steamship Aztec was torpedoed without warning off the northwest coast of France by a German U-boat, killing 28 American passengers. At eight o’clock the next morning, 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗼𝗱𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝘀𝗼𝗻 appeared before a joint session of Congress and called for a declaration of war. After remaining neutral for nearly the first three years of WWI, the United States formally declared war against Germany on April 6.

Upon entering the war, the United States did not have an independent air force. The 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 of the United States Armed Forces was still new and experimental at this stage. The United States began WWI with only 35 pilots on its rosters. My cousin 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 enlisted in the First Officers Training Camp at Fort Snelling, Minnesota on May 12, 1917. He was commissioned and called into active service as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Signal Officers Reserve Corp on August 15, 1917. After his promotion to the 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 of the Signal Officers Reserve Corps, he received flight training while he was stationed at Kelly Field, Texas.

The 𝟵𝟲𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗻 was formed at Kelly Field, Texas on August 20, 1917. It consisted of an “elite group” of eighty men. The 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 was undergoing a rapid expansion as part of the buildup for the war but was up against a formidable adversary. Germany had much more advanced aviation capabilities. On August 28, 1917, Germany launched its new Fokker triplane, a highly maneuverable, agile, and fast-climbing fighter plane.

The 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗼𝗻 flew the 𝗙𝗼𝗸𝗸𝗲𝗿 triplane for the first time on September 1, 1917. He painted his aircraft bright red and earned his name and reputation in this iconic plane. He commanded his own fighter wing of four squadrons, a murderer’s row of German aces. By 1918, the Red Baron had achieved legendary status. 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴 once remarked that he was worth at least one full division. By April 20, 1918, the Red Baron was estimated to have shot down over 100 Allied planes. History remembers him as one of the greatest fighter pilots of all-time, the ace-of-aces.

The 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗶𝗿 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 was established by the executive order of 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗼𝗱𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝘀𝗼𝗻 on May 24, 1918, replacing the 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 as the nation’s air force. The 𝟵𝟲𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗻 had arrived at the Western Front a week earlier. Before embarking on their first mission, the squadron decided upon its insignia: a triangle with the profile of a red devil holding a bomb. (You can see the insignia if you look closely although somewhat hard to make out in these black and white photos.) The 96th would have the coveted honor of being the first squadron of the American Air Service to carry bombs over the front lines, and for months the only squadron in active operations against the German enemy.

The squadron’s first mission was an event which excited great interest. In the late afternoon of June 12, 1918, eight planes were loaded with bombs and ready for the long anticipated raid on Dommary-Baroncourt. The squadron entered combat without any precedent. At 4:20pm, the planes took off from the airfield at Amanty Airdrome. Their baptism of anti-aircraft fire was received over Etain. The formation was attacked on the return flight by enemy fighter planes but arrived back safely at 8:00pm. That night the entire squadron celebrated the success of the first American bombing raid in history.

The 96th sustained its first big loss on July 10 during a raid on Koblenz. A formation of six planes led by squadron commander, Major Harry M. Brown left the airdrome at 6:05pm on a mission to bomb the railroad station and yards at Conflans but never returned. At 4:00pm the next day, a German message was intercepted: “𝘖𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘥𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘪𝘹 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘒𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘻 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘸𝘴.” The sixth plane was captured the following day. After this disaster had all but wiped out the only American bombing squadron, Air Service headquarters received a message from the Germans: “𝘞𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘶𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘫𝘰𝘳?” 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗼𝗶𝘀 sent telegrams urgently requesting new planes as well as pilots to replace the 12 airmen who were taken as prisoners of war. For the next three weeks, the operation was at a standstill with no planes and few officers.

During the second week of July, 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 was called up and deployed overseas to the Western Front. He was outfitted for duty and departed from Hoboken on the S.S. France. His voyage took about two weeks and he arrived during the fourth week of July. In the previous week, eleven new Bréguet bombers, with photographic equipment, were delivered to the squadron. Replacements of airmen had also arrived so that the squadron had 16 teams of two crewmen each available for duty. The first raid with the new equipment was carried out on August 1 when 8 planes, in a double V formation, bombed the warehouses and the railroad yards at Conflans.

The squadron suffered its first serious casualties on September 4. A formation of eight bombers was attacked by ten enemy fighter planes from a much dreaded squadron of German aces whose markings were a red nose, white tails and mottled brown fuselage. Four airmen were wounded but the squadron escaped with no fatalities.

On September 12, the 96th Aero Squadron formed part of the 𝟭𝘀𝘁 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗕𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 during the 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁-𝗠𝗶𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗹. The four-day battle ended in victory for the Allies but the 96th lost sixteen airmen and fourteen planes to Germany’s ace squadrons. 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 was assigned to the 96th Aero Squadron on September 18. The Meuse-Argonne Offensive began eight days later.

The 𝗠𝗲𝘂𝘀𝗲-𝗔𝗿𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 was the deadliest campaign American forces have ever fought. Otherwise known as the 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁, it is still the largest and bloodiest battle in American history by a wide margin. Over one million American soldiers were involved and more than 26,000 were killed in action. This battle resulted in over 350,000 total casualties. 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 entered combat during the second phase of the Meuse-Argonne battle.

He flew the 𝗕𝗿𝗲́𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘁 𝗫𝗜𝗩, a biplane armed with a single 7.7mm forward-fixed Lewis machine gun and an additional defensive set of 7.7mm Lewis machine guns on a mounting in the rear cockpit. It was among the first aircraft to be made mostly of duralumin rather than wood or steel in its structure. This allowed it to be lighter and stronger, making it fast and agile so it was able to outrun enemy fighter planes.

On his first mission on October 27, 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 left the airfield at 1:50pm in a formation of ten planes. They spotted ten enemy Fokker planes and were attacked by six of them. The 96th suffered two casualties during the dogfight and at least one plane crashed. Two days later, he left the airfield again at 1:50pm in a formation of ten planes. Thirty enemy Fokker planes were spotted and the dogfight between sixteen of them was intense. Bill Maynard was “𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘵, 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺 𝘍𝘰𝘬𝘬𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘝𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘶𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘋𝘢𝘮𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘵 3600 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦, 𝘰𝘯 𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 29, 1918 𝘢𝘵 15:20 𝘰’𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬.” They suffered two casualties and one Bréguet was shot down over Verdun at 3:40pm as they were returning back to the airdrome.

He completed several more combat missions but his last mission on November 4 proved to be the hottest of many encounters with enemy warplanes. A formation of 5 American planes was successful in bombing Montmedy but were attacked by 15 very aggressive enemy fighter planes. Despite being outnumbered, they shot down two enemy planes during the fierce dogfight, one of which went down in flames in the region of Montmedy.

On November 11, 1918, the armistice was signed, ending 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗪𝗮𝗿 𝗜. The fourth image is a group photo taken on that day where he is pictured in the back row, third from the right. The words typed on the photograph read: “𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘭 𝘰𝘧 96𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘦𝘳𝘰 𝘚𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘥𝘳𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘥.” The 96th Aero Squadron pioneered American aerial bombardment and earned a reputation as a hard fighting unit. They were one of the most heavily engaged and successful Air Service squadrons but also suffered the highest casualty rate of any American squadron in World War I.

In total, the squadron lost 40 planes and suffered 47 casualties in 63 missions conducted during that 5 month span. While more than 116,000 American soldiers were killed during WWI, 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗱 survived the war and returned home. On July 19, 1919, he departed France aboard the S.S. Zeppelin and arrived back on American soil ten days later. On September 18, 1920, he was discharged from the 96th Aero Squadron as a captain. According to census records, he lived at Kelly Field, Texas before moving to Florida in 1922.