Ernest Francis Hartley Davis became a fighter “ace” during World War I. Born on July 12, 1897, he was raised in Oxbow and enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force's 249th Battalion in 1916. He later trained as a pilot and was posted from October 31, 1917, until July 21, 1918, to No. 41 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps (renamed the Royal Air Force on April 1, 1918). He has been credited with seven victories while flying the SE.5A Scout in aerial combat, and was himself downed four times without serious injuries. He finished the war in Britain, test-flying new aircraft. Davis received Canadian commercial pilot's licence No. 405 on September 27, 1928, and the next spring helped found in Saskatoon the short-lived National Airways, which intended to market the American-built Monocoupe light aircraft.
Will Chabun