I would be inclined to disagree with you there Kev. The ‘Ace’ fighter pilot can be traced back to the First World War, and in that particular conflict they were definitely ‘on their own’ as such – the RFC fighter pilots were about the only numerous ‘command’ (correct me if I’m wrong please). Different war though. At that time ALL of aviation was a thing of awe-inspiring wonder. All pilots were held in some kind of appealing esteem. This, and the ‘cleanliness’ and chivalry of their fight is what I think Moggy is meaning, and is certainly a contributing factor in the later war.
‘Cobber’ Kain was the first one to get elevated into the public spotlight in World War 2 during the Battle of France. This, and the subsequent events of the Battle of Britain (where many of the legends were born) pre-date Bomber Commands big raids / big losses by a substantial amount. By the time the Ruhr was being hit hard and the bombers were going down in large numbers (large enough to become public knowledge – I am not forgetting the earlier courage of the Fairey Battles in France, or the Blenheims, Wellingtons and Hampdens of previous years, losses of which were certainly heavy, though not ‘large scale’ in the same degree.) Adding to this, we have the ‘Never before’ speech by Churchill and that best-selling account of the Battle of France, ‘Fighter Pilot’ by Paul Richey, amongst other things, yet the butchery that was happening high up was over another country, out of sight, at night, and probably largely withheld for morale. Also, by this time, the fighter pilots were back on more level ground. The days of defence were over, and the offensive had begun. By 1941 the Spitfires were sweeping over France, continuing through 1942, and by 1943 they, with Typhoons, were doing that and counterring the tip-and-run raiders. Again, out of sight (largely) and out of mind. The ‘kills’ weren’t what they had been in that first summer. By 1944, the fighter pilots star was largely on the wane. The Typhoons had gone over to ground attack roles for the main part, the Spits too, the Hurricane in Europe was largely out of the front line, and Fighter Command was being incorporated into Tactical Air Forces with other operational requirements and commitments. Meanwhile, Harris still had a great deal of autonomy inasmuch as his job was still the same, albeit on a grander scale, and the force he commanded had grown ever-larger in both materiel and crews.
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Great quote Manonthefence – that goes totally with much of what I have read in the past from accounts by those who were there.
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