| Juri Gilsher | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 November 1894 Moscow, Russian Empire |
| Died | 20 July 1917 (aged 22) near Tarnopol, Russian Empire (now Ternopil, Ukraine) |
| Buried at | Buchach, Ukraine |
| Allegiance | Russian Empire |
| Service/branch | Imperial Russian Army Imperial Russian Air Force |
| Years of service | c.1914–1917 |
| Rank | Cavalry Second Lieutenant |
| Unit | 4th Army Air Detachment 7th Fighter Detachment |
| Commands held | 7th Fighter Detachment |
| Awards | Order of St. George Order of St. Vladimir Order of Saint Stanislas Order of St. Anne |
Cavalry Second Lieutenant Juri Vladimirovich Gilsher (Russian: Юрий Владимирович Гилшер) (29 November 1894 – 20 July 1917)[1] was a Ukrainian Russian fighter ace of World War I. Initially a cavalryman, but then an airman, Gilsher scored five victories between April and July 1917 before being killed in action on 20 July, tied for twelfth on the list of Russia's highest-scoring aces of the war.[2]
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Gilsher was born in Moscow, then part of the Russian Empire, in 1894, to a noble family. He enrolled in university and studied civil engineering, however upon the outbreak of war he joined the Imperial Russian Army, training as a cavalryman at the Nikoliavsky Cavalry school, in which he enrolled on 13 December 1914, aged 20.[1][3]
After eight months as a cavalryman, Gilsher transferred to the Imperial Russian Air Force on 29 August 1915. He attended flight school at Gatchina before being posted to the 4th Army Air Detachment on 19 November 1915.[4] However, he was set back a few weeks later when his left hand was injured by a moving propeller.[3][4]
After recovering, he underwent advanced flight training in Odessa and returned to active service on 5 April 1916, posted to the 7th Fighter Detachment. He scored two victories in April 1917, both on 13 April, when he downed (along with Lieutenant Donat Makeenok and Ensign Vasili Yanchenko, the latter being Russia's second highest-scoring ace of the war[2]) two Hansa-Brandenburg C.I aircraft. However, within five weeks of returning to duty, he suffered another accident; on 9 May 1916 he crashed his Sikorsky S-16. This led to the amputation of his left leg.[3] Despite calls for him to step down from active duty he continued to fly with a prosthetic leg. Remarkably, only six days after the amputation of his leg, he scored a third victory, an Oeffag C.III near Boshovze.[1]
After the accident he was appointed temporary commander of the 7th Fighter Detachment. He transferred to a Nieuport 21, with a serial number of 1872, as opposed to the Sikorsky which he used to use. His final two victories came in July 1917 - firstly on 17 July near Posuchov. His final victory was on 20 July 1917 when he and Vasili Yanchenko shared a victory near Tarnopol, in modern-day Ukraine. However, Gilsher's Nieuport, in his combat with 15 Germans, was hit by enemy fire and it broke up, resulting in him falling to his death.[5]
He is buried near Buchach, in the Galicia region.
Nieuport Aces of World War I. Norman Franks. Osprey Publishing, 2000. ISBN 1855329611, 9781855329614.