Beginning, end

[ww1 ace]

Did anyone that enlisted in 1914 ever make it through the wholle war without getting killed?

[TomVrille]

There were a number of 1914 enlistees who survived the war, but most spent time in the ground contingent prior to their involvement with flying. Some of the well-known 1914 enlistees who survived the war include Ernst Udet, who began service as a motorcycle courier, William Barker who entered service with the Canadian Mounted Rifles, and Bill Thaw whose introduction to military life was the Foreign Legion, even though he was already a qualified pilot.

[ww1 ace]

Isn't Bill Thaw also known as William Thaw?

[mikec]

Originally Posted by ww1 ace

Did anyone that enlisted in 1914 ever make it through the wholle war without getting killed?

I wasn't previously aware that it would have been a sufficiently rare event to have been worthy of note.

Does anyone have either the actual figures, [say as a percentage], or at least a best guess as to how many personnel this would have applied to?

Mike.

[BTW: total includes Fritz Beckhardt].

[De Petrowski Alexander]

Several of the Belgian Aces survived the entire war as airman, men such as Jan Olieslagers and Fernand Jacquet, both active as airmen on the 4th of august 1914, Willy Coppens joined the Air Service in 1914 but did not reach the front as an airmen until 1916.

[gregoire]

I can add a few french pilot like vedrine that was a pre war pilot or Navarre that joined the army as a pilot

[Executioner128]

Originally Posted by ww1 ace

Isn't Bill Thaw also known as William Thaw?

Bill was his nickname, William Thaw his real name. Probably nicknamed Bill because of his American nationality. He died of pneumonia in 1934.
He was more known as a leader , than as an ace, really, as you can see, "only" 5 victories, and still, he became very well-known

[GrzeM]

In my beloved Austro-Hungarian Empire there were several aces who survived the whole war, from 1914 till 1918 as active pilots.
G.

[Graeme]

One RFC non-ace and one RNAS ace:

"Stuffy" Dowding, appointed to the Royal Flying Corps Reserve in April 1914; not sure what happened to him after WWI

Christopher Draper (the "Mad Major") - appointed a Flight Sub-Lieutenant in July 1914 and made it through to the end of the war, claiming nine victories and picking up a Distinguished Service Cross and a French Croix de Guerre avec Palme.

Graeme

[brewdog]

Originally Posted by Graeme

One RFC non-ace and one RNAS ace:

"Stuffy" Dowding, appointed to the Royal Flying Corps Reserve in April 1914; not sure what happened to him after WWI

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Dowding