Early life and training

Alan Arnett McLeod was born on 23 April 1899 in a little town called Stonewall, Manitoba. He determined at a very young age that he would one day join the military, even joining the local militia’s cavalry at the age of fourteen. World War I broke out in 1914 and McLeod, then a sixteen-year-old, immediately volunteered for service with the army, but his application was denied due to his young age. Having developed an interest in flying, McLeod then eagerly volunteered to serve with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), but he was told to wait until 1917, when he would turn eighteen. Finally, on his eighteenth birthday, McLeod’s application for pilot training with the RFC was approved.

McLeod was sent to Ontario, where he received flight instruction in a Curtiss JN4 biplane. During that time, McLeod frequently wrote letters to his parents, in which he described his experiences. “Well, I was flying for a while this morning again. It was great,” he wrote. “I took complete control of the machine. The lieutenant said that I did really well, so there is some chance that I will become an aviator. I feel as much at home in an aeroplane now as I do in a car.”

A few days later he wrote, “I did my solo flight yesterday. I made a bombing success of it and did really well, but I made up for that this morning. I thought I would try another solo, so I went down to the hangars and told the mechanics to pull out ‘162’, so I went off fine and flew around for a while, but it was so bumpy, I could not stay out. First the machine would dive and then it would nose up, so I thought I had better land. I was up at 3 000 feet and shut off the engine and began to glide for the aerodrome, but for some unknown reason, I misjudged the distance and landed behind the flag instead of in front. I struck hard ground and landed too suddenly. I smashed all the wires on the undercarriage and nearly broke the propeller, but the machine was repaired in about half an hour. Another fellow went up and smashed his machine up pretty well, but was unhurt. After we have completed our solo, we can take a machine and go up any time we like and we do not have to go up unless we want. They never say anything to you for smashing a machine. I guess I will try again this afternoon and make a good landing. This is Sunday, but we have to work all the same, but we never work very hard.”

On another occasion, he wrote about the instructors, saying, “They did not give some of us enough instruction and as a result we broke a few machines by making bad landings. I had a crash yesterday. I did not know the wind had changed and I came down with it, instead of against it and smashed the plane all up, but the commanding officer just laughed and said, ‘that was a fine landing’.”

By August 1917, McLeod had accumulated 43 hours of flying experience and was transferred to London, England, where he received operational training and learned to fly a variety of aircraft types.

Combat

In November 1917, McLeod was assigned to a squadron in France, which was equipped with Armstrong Whitworth FK.8 ‘Big Ack’ biplanes. These aircraft were primarily used for reconnaissance and ground attack missions. McLeod’s first sorties included reconnaissance flights, night bombing raids and artillery cooperation missions. Despite the fact that McLeod was not trained as a fighter pilot and the fact that his aircraft was by no means a fighter, he attacked a formation of eight German Albatros fighters in December that year. During that particular flight, McLeod’s observer shot down one of the enemy aircraft. Apparently he had unsuccessfully applied to be transferred to a fighter squadron, so he resorted to flying his lumbering ‘Big Ack’ bomber as if it were a fighter. Reginald Key, one of the observers who occasionally flew with McLeod, said, “Alan would take on anything and I was willing to go anywhere with him. I had absolute confidence in him. He was the finest pilot I have ever flown with, devoid of fear and always merry and bright. We were in many scraps together and often after getting out of a very tight corner by sheer piloting, with six or seven Huns on our tail, he would turn around to me and laugh out loud.”

During a ground attack mission in January 1918, McLeod flew his bomber in such a way that his observer was able to shoot down an observation balloon and an Albatros fighter. Two months later, during another ground attack mission, McLeod and his newly appointed observer, Arthur Hammond, were just about to drop their bombs, when they noticed an approaching Fokker triplane of the ‘Red Baron’ Manfred von Richthofen’s famous ‘Flying Circus’ squadron. McLeod immediately attacked the fighter, with his observer shooting it down. Suddenly, seven more fighters of the Red Baron’s elite squadron appeared. The astonishing events that happened next were best described in the citation of McLeod’s Victoria Cross, which he was subsequently awarded, “Whilst flying with his observer, attacking hostile formations by bombs and machine gun fire, he was assailed at a height of 5 000 feet by eight enemy triplanes, which dived at him from all directions, firing from their front guns. By skillful manoeuvring he enabled his observer to fire bursts at each machine in turn, shooting three of them down out of control. By this time Lieutenant McLeod had received five wounds and whilst continuing the engagement, a bullet penetrated his petrol tank and set the machine on fire. He then climbed out onto the left bottom plane, controlling his machine from the side of the fuselage and by side-slipping steeply kept the flames to one side, thus enabling the observer to continue firing until the ground was reached. The observer had been wounded six times when the machine crashed in ‘No Man's Land’ and 2nd Lieutenant McLeod, notwithstanding his own wounds, dragged him away from the burning wreckage at great personal risk from heavy machine-gun fire from the enemy's lines. This very gallant pilot was again wounded by a bomb whilst engaged in this act of rescue, but he persevered until he had placed Lieutenant Hammond in comparative safety, before falling himself from exhaustion and loss of blood.”

Britain’s Victoria Cross (VC) was and still is arguably the most difficult medal in the world to be awarded, requiring extreme bravery and selflessness. During World War I, for example, 166 VC recipients died as a result of their actions which led to them being awarded the medal. At the age of eighteen, McLeod was the youngest pilot in World War I to be awarded a VC. At the time, the average age of a VC recipient was 27.

In a letter to McLeod’s mother, observer Arthur Hammond described the event, “We were side slipping and Alan was standing up with one foot on the rudder bar and the other outside on the wing. I was standing on the bracing wires at the side of the fuselage as the bottom of my cockpit had fallen out. As we neared the ground I climbed out on the top wing, so that when we hit the ground I was thrown forward on the ground. I saw Alan jump out of the machine and look for me but he evidently thought that I had fallen out. He came to me and tried to pull me towards our lines.”
McLeod and Hammond were rescued by South African soldiers, who found McLeod unconscious, but with his hands still firmly grasping Hammond’s collar. The safety of his observer was clearly the last thought on McLeod’s mind before he lost consciousness. The South Africans protected the two men in the safety of a trench until nightfall, when they were withdrawn from the frontlines.

“We attended their wounds but could not safely get them away until dusk. Both were burnt and in a bad way,” one of the South Africans later remembered. “In trying to cheer McLeod, I said ‘You will be in Blighty in a few days.’” McLeod replied, “That is just the trouble. I would like to have a crack at that so-and-so that brought me down.”
Other than losing a leg, Hammond made a full recovery, whilst McLeod’s wounds took longer to heal. After being awarded a VC by King George V, McLeod returned to his home in Canada. Sadly, when at last it seemed that he was recovering from his wounds, McLeod contracted influenza and died on 6 November 1918, at the age of nineteen.

In April, the 5th edition of the biennial airshow, Feria Aeroespacial México (FAMEX, Mexico Aerospace Fair) was held. The location was the completely renovated and upgraded airbase of Santa Lucía, just north of Mexico City. It was organized by the Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SADENA, Secretariat of National Defence) through the Mexican Air Force. Its objective was to bring together the leaders of the civil, military, security and defence aeronautical fields to promote commercial exchange and boost the growth of the aerospace industry in Mexico. For this purpose, all kinds of business meetings and seminars were held, with over 700 exhibitors from over 40 countries. Next to the stands, there was a static display of aircraft as well as some demonstration flights. Unlike earlier editions, however, there was no large flypast during the official opening ceremony. This year, most flying activities were limited to the single public day, directly after the closing ceremony of the trade part of the show.

The Fuerza Aérea Mexicana (FAM, Mexican Air Force) was the organiser of the event, and as such they provided most of the participating aircraft. During the opening ceremony, two UH-60M Black Hawks did a flypast carrying the flags of Mexico and FAMEX.

Immediately after the flag display, six PC-7s and three T-6s performed a flypast trailing smoke in the Mexican colours. The Mexican Air Force used to be the world’s largest PC-7 operator, with no less than 88 of them in service. Although almost half of these are still operational, 62 T-6C+ Texan IIs have taken over a large part of their tasks since 2012.

The workhorse of the fixed wing transport fleet is the Airbus C.295M, of which the FAM have eight in two different versions. Here, one of them is seen during the flying display while dropping cargo as part of an air power demonstration.

If the text ‘Marina’ was not enough, the two anchors around the national roundel clearly indicate this Beechcraft T-6C+ Texan II is operated by the navy. Together with a second one, these were the only naval aircraft on show at FAMEX. Here is it seen arriving the day before the opening of the show, both aircraft were on static display only. Unlike the air force, the navy operates the T-6 in the interceptor role, with three squadrons covering all coast lines of Mexico.

Many examples of the Puma family are or were in use by the Mexican forces, including the SA.330 Puma, AS.332 Super Puma, AS.532 Cougar, EC.225/H.225 Super Puma and EC.725 Caracal. Although none of these types were on show at FAMEX, quite a few of them could be seen while conducting ferry flights with high-ranking officers and government officials. This is one of the EC.725s of the Santa Lucía based Escuadrón Aéreo 101, arriving just before the rehearsal of the opening ceremony.

To honour the rich history of the Mexican Air Force, an example of the FAM’s first jet aircraft was on show. This pristine looking De Havilland Vampire Mk.III was delivered to Mexico in 1961. It carries the markings of the Escuadron Aero Jet de Pelea 200 or Jet Fighter Squadron 200. After a relatively short career, safety concerns grounded the Mexican Vampire fleet in 1970, partly due to a lack of cartridges for ejection seats. After many years of storage most were scrapped, but three complete examples survived and have been restored. This one served as a gate guard for years before being restored to its full glory again.

From 1992, 25 examples of the McDonnell Douglas MD.530 Defender have been delivered. Today about a dozen of those are still operational. This little multipurpose helicopter is used for special operations, mainly counter-drug-trafficking related. It can fly reconnaissance, observation, attack and (combat) search and rescue missions. The combination of its small size and weight, and powerful engine, make it suitable for operations in the high and cold areas of Mexico. Quite a few have been lost due to the dangerous nature of its missions, but the survivors are still used frequently. Two of them were on static display during FAMEX while another three participated in the flypast on the public day.

Probably the oldest active aircraft type present at FAMEX was the venerable Northrop F-5 Tiger II. Out of the original 12 that were delivered, three are still operational. Two have been written off in accidents and one is in a museum, while the others are kept in storage. These two do look like they could take off at any moment, but are part of the stored aircraft. They could be made airworthy without too much effort though.

The Mexican colours were also displayed by a group of paratroopers that jumped from a C.295. Here, one of them is coming in for a perfect landing, right in front of the VIP stand, with the flag and his parachute in the red, white and green. To top it off, three of the nine jumpers had green suits and green smoke generators, three had white suits and smoke and the last three (including one female) wore red.

Clearly, one of the operational Tigers is this F-5F Tiger II. At the moment, it is the only operational twin seater; the second trainer is waiting for an inspection. The day before the opening of the show, it practised a flying display together with a single seater. On the opening day itself, however, only a short mission was flown very early in the morning, before the gates of the show area were opened for visitors.

Most aircraft and helicopters in use by the Mexican forces are made by Western companies, but the Russian built Mil Mi-17 ‘Hip’ helicopter is an exception. In the past, the air force used a dozen of its predecessor, the Mil Mi-8, and nowadays two dozen of the newer Mi-17 are flying with Escuadrón Aéreo 303 at Santa Lucia. Three of them showed their firefighting capabilities with ‘Bambi buckets’ filled with water, again in green, white and red colours, at their home base.

In Mexico, many different government organisations have their own aircraft and helicopters. These have a separate registration series, starting with XC. This Bell 412SP is operated by the Chiapas State Government and is mainly used for search and rescue, as is clearly visible from the ‘Rescate’ titles. The Chiapas State Government also brought a P.1002 Tecnam for static display.

On the far side of the airfield, away from the public area, no less than 21 Beechcraft T-6C+ Texan IIs were gathered. These would all be doing some display flying during the public day. Nine of them completed a flypast in this very neat ‘diamond nine’ formation.

When the current president came to power in 2018, he ordered a large reduction in VIP aircraft and helicopters, both in numbers and in flying hours. Many of those have since been withdrawn from use to reduce costs for maintenance and also operations. Some have been sold, some are kept in storage, and some have been pressed into service again for other duties. This H.225M is one in the last category, as it was transferred to the Fuerza Aeronaval or naval aviation. Ironically, it is seen here while transporting a VIP to FAMEX.

One of the few surviving VIP transport aircraft is this Gulfstream G.550 of the Unidad Especial de Transporte Aéreo del Alto Mando (UETAAM or Special Transport Unit of the Supreme Command). It is based at Mexico City-Benito Juárez de la Ciudad International Airport and is seen here leaving Santa Lucia after the formal opening ceremony of the show. The unit, that used to hold a few dozen aircraft and helicopters, now only has one Boeing 737, two Gulfstreams, one Challenger and two Black Hawks.

Another helicopter type that is heavily used by the different Mexican forces is the Black Hawk: the UH-60L/M and the S-70 version. Two UH-60Ms participated in the airpower demonstration, dropping off soldiers via fast-roping and also picking them up again after their mission. The air force has three squadrons with Black Hawks, but as the helicopters don’t wear squadron markings, it is impossible to tell which unit is the operator of the aircraft performing at FAMEX.

Helicopter manufacturer Bell delivered many examples of the famous Huey family to all Mexican forces over the years, including the UH-1, the Bell 212 and more recently the Bell 412EP. Eight of those last ones have been paid for by the Mérida Initiative, a security agreement between the United States of America and Mexico, and other Latin American countries. This is aimed at fighting international drug trafficking, money laundry and other organised crime. Here one of those aircraft is seen just after arrival when it was pushed to its position in the static display area.

Unfortunately, most aerial demonstrations were limited to the public day. This sextet of Beechcraft T-6C+ Texan IIs, however, did some impressive formation flying that day, with the smoke providing a good contrast against the blue sky.

The air force museum, which is also based at Santa Lucia, provided some historic aircraft for the static area. One of them was this colourful Pilatus PC-7 turbo trainer. The day before the opening, this aircraft was still in parts while being painted, but it was fully complete on the morning of the opening ceremony. As mentioned before, less than half the original amount of PC-7s is still operational. However, these are in a comparatively boring one-tone green colour scheme, compared with this camouflaged one with a fierce-looking shark mouth.

The only foreign participating aircraft came from Mexico’s northern neighbour, the United States of America. The US army showed two CH-47F Chinook helicopters, both on the ground and in the air, while the US Air Force sent a KC-135 Stratotanker and two Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons from Shaw Air Force Base. One of those was painted in the special colours of the Viper Demonstration Team.

During the opening ceremony, a few hundred soldiers of many different regiments participated in a large parade, which included some impressive choreography while juggling rifles with bayonets. As part of the ceremony, the national anthem was played and all participants sang along with maximum effort.