Eduard Pulpe Lieutenant Eduard Martynovich Pulpe ( 22 June 1880 - 2 August 1916 ) was a World War I flying ace credited with five aerial victories . He was a schoolteacher engaged in post - graduate study in France when World War I broke out . As he already held a civil pilot ' s license , he volunteered to serve in French military aviation . His 1915 aerial victories were among the first ever recorded . After running his score to four , he managed to return home to Russia in May 1916 . He was assigned to the 10th " Aviatsionniy Otryad Istrebitlei " ( Fighter Aviation Detachment ) . After becoming an ace on 1 July 1916 , he was killed in action a month later . On 2 August 1916 , Eduard Pulpe ultimately lost a nearly hour - long air battle against three enemy aircraft . Biography . Eduard Martynovich Pulpe was born into a farming family on 22 June 1880 , at Riga , Latvia ; at that time , Latvia was part of the Russian Empire . Although his earlier education is unknown , he was one of the few that gained entry to college in Russia , attending the University of Moscow . He graduated in 1908 , and returned to Riga to become a teacher . Pulpe moved to France in 1912 with the dual aims of furthering his education and learning to fly . After obtaining his civilian pilot ' s brevet no . 1571 on 19 December 1913 , he volunteered for the French air service at the outbreak of war , despite being 34 years old . He furthered his training with the , being granted military license number 602 . Pulpe was posted to fly a Morane - Saulnier for " Escadrille 23 " on 1 May 1915 . His promotion to " Sergente " came through on the 21st . The " escadrille " was stationed in Champagne when he joined it ; shortly thereafter , it moved to the Somme . When the squadron left the Somme in August 1915 , it bounced around a bit before being assigned to the building Battle of Verdun . Though little information survives , Pulpe ' s two victories while flying a Morane - Saulnier L over Verdun were among some of the first aerial victories in history . He was awarded both the " Croix de guerre " and the " Medaille Militare " on 29 October 1915 . The citation for the latter referred to " air combats " , though with no specific mention of his two victories . The " Croix de guerre " seemed to have been awarded for completing a bombing run while under attack from an enemy fighter . In the meantime , on 20 September , " Escadrille 23 " began re - equipping with a melange of early Nieuport 10 s , Nieuport 11 s , and Nieuport 12 s . As ground combat escalated into the Battle of Verdun during February 1916 , the corresponding aviation activity became intense . Pulpe , newly promoted to Adjutant , scored a third victory on 20 March 1916 . Eleven days later , he brought down another German . In April 1916 , he was promoted yet again , to " Sous lieutenant " . It was during this time that he was dubbed " the pilot with a volcano in his heart " . This was also the month Pulpe transferred home to Russia . On 30 April 1916 , the French Aeronautic Mission to Russia gathered in Lyons ; Pulpe was included . Once in Murmansk he was assigned to the 10th " Aviatsionniy Otryad Istrebitlei " ( Fighter Aviation Detachment ) of the Imperial Russian Air Service in Galicia . Using a Nieuport 11 , he shot down an enemy plane on 1 July 1916 to become an ace . On 2 August , Pulpe fell under the guns of Erwin Böhme and his gunner to begin Böhme ' s victory string . Witnesses on the ground watched Pulpe fight three German fighters for almost an hour before the Russian ace ' s bullet - riddled aircraft fell spinning to 1 , 000 feet altitude , recovering briefly , then plunging to earth because its left aileron was ruined . The impact imbedded the aero engine in the earth on the banks of the Styr River near Rogistche . The dying ace , when pulled from the wreckage , could only gasp , " Water " . Then he expired from the bullet through the left side of his back . The Order of St . George Fourth Class was awarded posthumously to Pulpe , as well as a French award of a palm for his previously awarded " Croix de guerre " . An unmailed letter in Pulpe ' s effects read : " . . . I have only one desire — that is the victory over our everlasting enemy . I will die like anyone else . My thoughts will always be about you , my Motherland , Russia and my cradle , Latvia . " One of Pulpe ' s squadronmates spoke these few words over his grave : " Pulpe was brave , modest as well as courageous , hiding his exploits rather than boasting about them . " List of aerial victories . See also Aerial victory standards of World War I for French victory standards , and List of World War I flying aces from the Russian Empire for list of Russian aces Confirmed victories are numbered and listed chronologically .