Name: Sumner Sewall Country: United States Rank: Captain Service: United States Air Service Squadrons: 95th Aero Victories: 7 Born: 17 June 1897 Place of Birth: Bath, Maine Died: 25 January 1965 Place of Death: Bath, Maine Notes Dropping out of Yale to join the United States Ambulance Service, Sewall served on the Western Front before joining the United States Air Service on 23 August 1917. In February 1918, he was assigned to the 95th Pursuit Squadron, eventually becoming a flight commander. Flying the SPAD S.XIII, he was credited with seven victories including two balloons. Two days before the Armistice was signed, a Fokker pilot became lost in the fog and landed at the 95th's aerodrome. With revolvers drawn, Sewall and two other pilots captured the German and his plane (Today, Fokker D.VII 4635/18 is in the Smithsonian Museum). After the war, Sewall graduated from Harvard in 1920 and entered politics. A state senator during the 1930's, he served as governor of Maine during World War II. Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) "Lt. Sewall fearlessly attacked a formation of five enemy planes (Fokker type) and separated one from the group, pursued it behind the enemy lines and sent it down in a crash, following it to within thirty meters of the ground in spite of severe fire from machine guns, rifles and anti-aircraft guns, bullets from which passed through his clothing." DFC citation, 10 December 1918 Croix de Guerre "A pilot eager to fight and devoted to duty. On 3 June 1918, he attacked with his patrol an enemy formation of six planes, pursued one of them to 200 meters above the ground and brought it down. During the operations between the Marne and Aisne Rivers, he spent his energy without restraint, brought down an enemy plane in flames and forced a second adversary to land." Croix de Guerre citation Aces ╖ Aircraft ╖ Books ╖ Chat ╖ Forum ╖ Guests ╖ Links ╖ Medals ╖ News ╖ Search ╖ Vote Copyright ⌐ 1997,1998 The Aerodrome Page revised on 18 Nov 1997