Leslie Hamilton

Lieutenant Leslie Hamilton DFC was a World War I flying ace credited with six aerial victories. After a postwar spell of stunt flying as "The Flying Gypsy", he attempted the first nonstop east-west flight across the Atlantic Ocean. His Fokker F.VIIa name St. Raphael, was last seen in mid-Atlantic by USS Josiah Macy, a Standard Oil ship.

World War I service
Hamilton made his mark in Greece, flying a Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a. His first victory, scored while he was in 17 Squadron stationed in Salonika, was on 21 April 1918 and was shared with fellow ace Acheson Goulding. After 17 Squadron was consolidated with 47 Squadron, Hamilton scored five more wins for the resulting new squadron, No. 150. The four triumphs he notched between 4 May and 4 September were shared with other aces, such as Gerald Gibbs, Frederick Travers, and Gerald Gordon Bell. Hamilton's sixth and last win, on 18 September 1918, was a solo one.

Post war disappearance
Hamilton resigned his commission on 28 November 1919. He barnstormed a bit as "The Flying Gypsy". In 1927, he became involved in an attempt to set an aviation record by flying the Atlantic Ocean from east to west, from England to Canada. Princess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg financed the attempt and was a passenger on the Fokker F.VII chosen for the attempt. Colonel Frederick F. Minchin and Hamilton were the other participants. The Fokker, named St. Raphael, headed west from the coast of Ireland and was last seen, flying west over the mid-Atlantic, by the crew of the USS Josiah Macy.