Background
Born on June 1, 1899 in Gladstone, Manitoba, Claxton enlisted with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) in Canada upon his eighteenth birthday in 1917. After pilot's training at Camp Borden, he was assigned to No. 41 Squadron in France the following March flying S.E.5a aircraft. Claxton arrived on the Western Front late in the war but he had a run of victories that saw him emerge from the war as his squadron's most successful airman. He claimed 37 air victories in 79 days during the War's final year. This meteoric career was marked by several multiple victory days. His calmness under fire earned him the nickname "Dozy". It also led him into situations where his planes experienced battle damage. In June 1918 alone, he would crash-land once and bring home shotup planes twice.
Read more about this topic: William Gordon Claxton
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