John Shepherd (RAF officer)

John Shepherd, DFC & Two Bars (20 July 1919 – 22 January 1946) was a British flying ace who served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. He was credited with having shot down at least thirteen aircraft as well as seven V-1 flying bombs.

From Edinburgh, Shepherd was served as ground crew in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force before training as a pilot in April 1939. He was called up for service with the RAF just before the outbreak of the Second World War and in September 1940 was posted to No. 234 Squadron, serving with it during the final stages of the Battle of Britain. He achieved his first aerial victories during the Circus offensive of 1941. Early the following year, he was posted to No. 118 Squadron, serving with this unit for nearly two years before being rested, having been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice during this time. He returned to operations with No. 610 Squadron in mid-1944, and over the next several weeks destroyed a number of V-1 flying bombs during Operation Diver. He briefly commanded the squadron until it was disbanded in March 1945. He was then appointed commander of No. 41 Squadron which he led until the end of the war. In the immediate postwar period he was awarded the DFC for the third time. Still commanding No. 41 Squadron, he was killed in a flying accident on 22 January 1946.