James Leathart

James Leathart
Portrait of James Leathart, sitting in the cockpit of a Supermarine Spitfire fighter, painted by John Mansbridge in 1940
Nickname(s)	'Prof'
Born	(1915-01-05)5 January 1915 London
Died	18 November 1998(1998-11-18) (aged 83)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Air Force
Years of service	1937–1962
Rank	Air Commodore
Commands held	North Coates station Air Defence Operations Centre No. 148 Wing No. 89 Squadron No. 54 Squadron
Battles/wars	Second World War Battle of France Battle of Britain Invasion of Normandy
Awards	Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order Mention in Despatches (2)

James Leathart, CB, DSO (5 January 1915 – 18 November 1998) was a British flying ace who served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. He was credited with having shot down at least eight aircraft.

Leathart joined the RAF in 1937, having already served in the Auxiliary Air Force for a time. Once his training was completed, he was posted to No. 54 Squadron. He flew Supermarine Spitfire fighters during the Battle of France but used a training aircraft to rescue a downed RAF pilot from Calais in France during a mission for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. He led No. 54 Squadron during its participation in the Battle of Britain and achieved further aerial victories to add to those claimed during the fighting in France. His later war service included periods in the Middle East and he participated in the D-Day landings at Normandy on 6 June 1944. After the war, he remained in the RAF, holding a series of staff postings for most of the remainder of his career in the military. Appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1960, he retired from the RAF two years later and spend the remainder of his life in Gloucestershire.