Lieutenant Harold Bolton Redler was a World War I flying ace

Flying ace

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...

 credited with ten aerial victories. His most notable triumph was over a leading German ace, Adolf von Tutschek

Adolf Ritter von Tutschek

Adolf, Ritter von Tutschek Pour le Mérite, Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Iron Cross, Military Order of Max Joseph, was a professional soldier turned aviator who became a leading fighter ace with 27 victories...

, whom he killed in action

Killed in action

Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...

.

Early life

Harold Redler Bolton was the eldest son born to Mr. and Mrs. D. B. Redler. He was born in West Honkton. His family relocated to South Africa, and were resident in Moorreesburg

Moorreesburg

Moorreesburg is a rural town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It falls within the Swartland Local Municipality, which is part of the West Coast District Municipality. It lies just off the N7 national road, about 90 kilometres north of Cape Town. The town was established in...

 at the time of his death.

World War I

On 9 April 1917, Redler was appointed a Flying Officer

Flying Officer

Flying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...

 with the rank of temporary second lieutenant

Second Lieutenant

Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...

. He was posted to 40 Squadron, and became a balloon buster

Balloon buster

Balloon busters were military pilots known for destroying enemy observation balloons. These pilots were noted for their fearlessness. Seventy-six fighter pilots in World War I were each credited with destroying five or more balloons, and thus were balloon aces....

 for his first win on 7 May 1917. He would score two more wins while with 40 Squadron.

He then transferred to 24 Squadron. He began his tenure with them with his greatest feat. On 15 March 1918, Redler was leading four other 24 Squadron pilots on patrol. He passed to the east of a westward bound patrol of six German craft–three Albatros fighters and three Fokker Triplanes. With the sun behind them, the British patrol dove upon a surprised sextet of Germans from Jasta 12. Redler fired at the highest flying of the Fokker Triplane

Fokker Dr.I

The Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918...

s, pressing his attack to a near-collision while pumping 40 rounds into its cockpit. The triplane stalled in flight, falling off to the right and spiraling down out of the dogfight into a forced landing. Redler claimed an "out of control" victory over it. However, Tutschek had apparently been rendered insensible during the fight, and was found dead in his landed airplane under puzzling circumstances. Redler had killed one of Germany's leading aces.

Redler ran off a string of six more victories by 20 April 1918. The following day, he was wounded in action. He was then relieved from his combat posting and returned to England.

On 21 June 1918, Redler was killed in a flying accident in Scotland. Ian Henderson

Ian Henderson (aviator)

Captain Ian Henry David Henderson MC was a World War I flying ace credited with seven aerial victories.After service with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Henderson transferred to the Royal Flying Corps....

 perished along with him. Redler's Military Cross was gazetted the next day:

List of aerial victories

No.	Date/time	Aircraft	Foe	Result	Location	Notes
1	7 May 1917 @ 0935 hours	Nieuport Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars.-Beginnings:...  serial number B1640	Observation balloon Observation balloon Observation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....	Destroyed	North of Henin-Lietard, France
2	7 June 1917 @ 1100 hours	Nieuport s/n B1558	Albatros D.III Albatros D.III The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service and the Austro-Hungarian Air Service during World War I. The D.III was flown by many top German aces, including Manfred von Richthofen, Ernst Udet, Erich Löwenhardt, Kurt Wolff, and Karl Emil Schäfer...  fighter	Driven down out of control	Northeast of Ypres Ypres Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, and Zuidschote... , Belgium
3	14 July 1917 @ 0650 hours	Nieuport s/n B1558	Albatros D.III fighter	Driven down out of control	East of Douai Douai -Main sights:Douai's ornate Gothic style belfry was begun in 1380, on the site of an earlier tower. The 80 m high structure includes an impressive carillon, consisting of 62 bells spanning 5 octaves. The originals, some dating from 1391 were removed in 1917 during World War I by the occupying... , France
4	15 March 1918 @ 1030 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n B79	Fokker Triplane Fokker Dr.I The Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918...  fighter	Driven down out of control	Premontre Prémontré Prémontré is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-Population:-Sights:The remains of Prémontré Abbey, the mother house of the Premonstratensian Order, are located in Prémontré.-References:*... , France	Adolf Ritter von Tutschek Adolf Ritter von Tutschek Adolf, Ritter von Tutschek Pour le Mérite, Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Iron Cross, Military Order of Max Joseph, was a professional soldier turned aviator who became a leading fighter ace with 27 victories...  killed in action Killed in action Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
5	18 March 1918 @ 1140 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n B7824	German reconnaissance plane	Driven down out of control	Villers le Sec, France	Victory shared with Bernard Beanlands
6	23 March 1918 @ 1650 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n B7824	German reconnaissance plane	Captured	South of Berlancourt Berlancourt Berlancourt may refer to the following places in France:* Berlancourt, Aisne, a commune in the department of Aisne* Berlancourt, Oise, a commune in the department of Oise... , France
7	24 March 1918 @ 1010 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n B7824	Rumpler Rumpler The Rumpler Tropfenwagen was a car developed by Austrian engineer Edmund Rumpler.Rumpler, born in Vienna, was a designer of aircraft when on the 1921's Berlin car show he introduced the Tropfenwagen. It was to be the first streamlined car . The Rumpler had a Cw-value of only 0.28...  reconnaissance plane	Destroyed	Pithon Pithon Pithon is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.... , France
8	26 March 1918 @ 0930 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n C1081	Rumpler recon plane	Destroyed by fire	Estrées Estrées Estrées is an old French family name and the name of two different communes in the north of France. The etymology of the name is from strata, after the stone-layered Roman roads in the area... -Barleux Barleux Barleux is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Situated from the A1 autoroute, at the junction of the D79 and D148 roads, about halfway between Amiens and Saint Quentin-Population:-External links:... , France
9	12 April 1918 @ 1615 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n D275	Albatros D.V Albatros D.V |-See also:-Bibliography:*Bennett, Leon. Gunning for the Red Baron. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2006. ISBN 1-58544-507-X....  fighter	Destroyed	Hangard Hangard Hangard is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Hangard is situated on the D76 road, some southeast of Abbeville.-Population:-History:... -Moreuil Moreuil Moreuil is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Moreuil is situated on the D920 and D935 crossroads, some southeast of Amiens, on the banks of the Avre River.-Population:-History:... , France
10	20 April 1918 @ 1015 hours	Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a fighter s/n D275	Pfalz D.III Pfalz D.III |-See also:-Bibliography:* Gray, Peter and Owen Thetford. German Aircraft of the First World War. London: Putnam, 1962. ISBN 0-93385-271-1.* Grosz, Peter M. Pfalz D.IIIa . Berkhamsted, Herts, UK: Albatros Publications, 1995. ISBN 0-94841-425-1.* Guttman, Jon. Balloon-Busting Aces of World War 1 ...  fighter	Driven down out of control	Bayonvillers Bayonvillers Bayonvillers is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Situated a mile from the A29 autoroute, at the junction of the D337 and D165 roads and east of Amiens.-Population:-External links:* * *... , France

Endnotes