King Albert of Belgium decorates Willy Coppens, Belgium's Ace of Aces. Coppens describes this June 30, 1918 ceremony, in which he was awarded the Ordre de la Couronne in his memoir Flying in Flanders.
Caption: Le Roi décore l'As Belge Coppens. - Le Roi le félicite. (The King [Albert] decorates the Belgian Ace Coppens. The King congratulates him.)Reverse:Carte PostaleService photographique de l'armée Belge.Phot. Belge, r. Ma Campagne, 30, BruxLogo PhoB
"I hereby desire to mention in Corps Orders, Captain Declercq and 1st Class Sergeant-Pilot Willy Coppens, for the coolness, courage, and skill shown by them in the course of a reconnaissance over the enemy's lines on the morning of May 1st. Attacked suddenly by four enemy scouts, they succeeded, after a prolonged and unequal fight, in bringing back their machine, badly damaged by the enemy's fire."
Entry from the Belgian Flying Corps Orders of May 2, 1917. Willy Coppens, who would become Belgium's leading ace with 37 victories, was in his first aerial combat the previous day, piloting a Sopwith One-and-a-Half Strutter two-seater. He had crossed the line at Ypres, flying at 10,000 feet, when he saw four German single-seat scouts climbing towards him. Watching them carefully, he missed the approach of four others. After four and a half minutes, the Germans inexplicably flew away. Coppens and his gunner/observer were uninjured, but 32 bullets had pierced their plane.
Flying in Flanders by Willy Coppens, page 79, publisher: Ace Books, publication date: 1971
1917-05-01, 1917-05-02, 1917, May, Willy Coppens, Coppens
