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Everything changed at the beginning of September – No.41 Squadron was rotated down to the south as part of a wave of replacements to relieve the battered and fatigued veterans of the summer fighting. Now stationed at RAF Hornchurch, Lock was in the very midst of the fighting. Two days after arriving, Lock shot down two German bombers in a single engagement before being attacked by an escorting Bf109. Lock turned to engage the German fighter and after a brief dogfight shot it down. By the end of his first week in 11 Group, Lock was credited with nine aerial victories and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Incredibly, he received a bar to his DFC only 3 weeks later after shooting down 15 German aircraft in 19 days.

A road which was named after Lock in commemoration for his service

On November 17th, Lock scrambled to intercept a formation of enemy aircraft near Clacton – in the ensuing engagement he shot down two Bf109Es of JG54 but was hit by another German fighter. Bullets and cannon shells smashed through the Spitfire’s cockpit, impacting Lock in both legs and his right arm as well as forcing his aircraft’s throttle fully open. He managed to fly his crippled Spitfire back towards his airbase, descending from 20,000 to 2000 feet before cutting his engine to carry out a glide landing at Martlesham Heath. Lock was trapped in the cockpit for some two hours before he was rescued and then carried two miles by soldiers who made a stretcher out of their rifles and coats. He would remain in hospital until May 1941, requiring fifteen separate operations to recover.

To this point, Lock had been credited with 23 confirmed kills and 8 probables. Even though his squadron’s entry into the Battle of Britain came relatively late, Eric Lock is widely acknowledged as being the highest scoring allied fighter pilot of the entire campaign, although some sources credit this accolade to Czech pilot Josef František. Lock was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his contribution to his nation’s defense. In June 1941 Lock returned to the cockpit for a refresher course before being posted to No.611 Squadron, flying Spitfire Mk.Vs from RAF Hornchurch. Now promoted to Flight Lieutenant, Lock was a Flight Commander for offensive sorties as the RAF stepped out for operations over occupied France.

Lock had not lost his touch – he shot down three Bf109s in his first few weeks back in action. On August 3rd he led his flight over France during an offensive fighter sweep. Whilst returning to England he called his flight to let them know he had sighted a concentration of enemy soldiers on a road near Calais. The last time Lock was ever seen was as he dropped a wing to break formation and dive down to attack. His comrades lost sight of his Spitfire – he did not rejoin formation or respond to radio calls. No wreckage or body was ever found.

A charismatic flyer, Lock flew with a ‘V’ for Victory painted on his Spitfire and wore a captured German life jacket in combat; a fellow wounded pilot remembered him for his flirtatious nature with nurses during his time in hospital. Few have equaled Lock’s outstanding success in combat in such a short period of time. Today, Shropshire Aero Club at Sleap airfield has named its bar in honour of their local hero: the various pictures of Flight Lieutenant Eric Lock now look over the aerodrome which is used almost daily by neighboring RAF Shawbury to train helicopter pilots of another generation of the RAF, Fleet Air Arm and British Army Air Corps.

About The Author

Mark Barber, War Thunder Historical Consultant Mark Barber is a pilot in the British Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. His first book was published by Osprey Publishing in 2008; subsequently, he has written several more titles for Osprey and has also published articles for several magazines, including the UK's top selling aviation magazine 'FlyPast'. His main areas of interest are British Naval Aviation in the First and Second World Wars and RAF Fighter Command in the Second World War. He currently works with Gaijin Entertainment as a Historical Consultant, helping to run the Historical Section of the War Thunder forums and heading up the Ace of the Month series.

The War Thunder Team