Harold Leslie Edwards DFC MM (28 April 1893 – 15 June 1951) was a Canadian World War I flying ace gunner, who in conjunction with his pilots, was officially credited with 21 victories. Early life Edwards was the son of Joseph Harold Edwards and Ellen Keays; he was born in Franktown, Ontario on 28 April 1893. When he enlisted in the 130th Battalion, CEF on 16 December 1915 at Perth, Ontario, he was five feet eleven inches tall, weighed 168 pounds, and was swarthy with dark blue eyes. He gave his profession as chauffeur and auto mechanic. As was customary for Canadians in those days, he swore allegiance to the King of England, and contracted to serve for the duration of the war. Infantry career He embarked to England on the troopship SS Lapland, arriving in October 1916, and serving with the 38th Battln. CEF and received a field promotion to corporal in November 1916, before being wounded on 8 April 1917. Edwards was transferred to No 3 Canadian General Hospital in Boulogne with what was reported as shrapnel or gunshot wounds to the leg and shoulder. He was evacuated to England and taken on strength at the Endell Street Military Hospital, Seaforth on 12 April 1917. Edwards was then transferred to the Canadian Convalescent Hospital at Bromley, Kent. He was awarded the Military Medal on 26 May 1917. Aviation career Discharged from the CEF in June 1918, Edwards enlisted in the RAF. He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant as an observer and joined No. 20 Squadron on 28 July 1918, flying in Bristol F.2 Fighters. Pilots Edwards flew in action with include aces Paul Iaccaci and Captain Horace Percy Lale, Lt. William McKenzie Thomson, and Capt. Geoffrey Hooper. He was wounded in the lung on 21 October 1918 and returned to Canada on the S.S. Minnedosa in January 1919 and spent considerable time in St. Andrews Military Hospital in Toronto. Of his total 21 claims, 19 were in one month (September 1918). He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His war time tally consisted of 18 enemy Fokker D.VII airplanes destroyed (including one shared victory), and 3 more Fokkers driven down out of control. Postwar Edwards went on the unemployed list of the RAF effective 1 June 1919. After the war, Edwards became a car salesman. He lived in the Toronto area for the rest of his life and