Doughboy MIA For June 2026: First Lieutenant Ernest Armond Giroux of the 103rd Aero Squadron.

First Lieutenant Ernest Armond Giroux was the only American aviator of World War I listed as Missing in Action to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

Born on December 4, 1895, in Roxbury, Massachusetts, Giroux was the second of three sons born to Ernest H. Giroux and Jessie F. Stuart. After his father’s death in 1911, the family moved to Somerville, Massachusetts, where Ernest attended Somerville High School, graduating in 1915. He later enrolled at Dartmouth College as a member of the Class of 1919. However, in March 1917, during his sophomore year, he left school to join other Americans supporting the war effort in France.

Giroux sailed for France on April 21, 1917, as a member of the American Field Service. Holding the rank of sergeant, he drove five-ton trucks for Transport Militaire Unit (TMU) 526B, transporting ammunition to the front lines. During this period, he applied to become an aviator in the Aeronautique Militaire (French Air Service) as part of the Lafayette Flying Corps. After being accepted, he trained at Avord, Tours, Issoudun, and Cazaux. Desperate for trained pilots, the United States granted Giroux a commission as a First Lieutenant in the United States Air Service (USAS) on November 20, 1917.

After completing his flight training, 1LT Giroux was temporarily assigned as a ferry pilot on April 7, 1918. This duty required pilots to deliver new replacement aircraft to forward combat squadrons and return worn, combat-exhausted aircraft to rear-area maintenance facilities. On April 26, 1918, Giroux received an assignment he considered especially fortunate: the newly formed 103rd Aero Squadron.

The 103rd Aero Squadron was a pursuit unit tasked with protecting Allied observation and bombing aircraft, engaging enemy aircraft in aerial combat, and conducting attacks against ground targets. The squadron had previously served in the French Aeronautique Militaire as Escadrille N124 and was more famously known as the elite Lafayette Escadrille.

1LT Giroux pilot photo, April 1918.

Now a fighter pilot, Giroux, entered combat service. The exact number of combat missions he flew with the 103rd Aero Squadron is unknown. New pilots typically spent a period familiarizing themselves with the area of operations while flying alongside experienced combat veterans. During these orientation flights, leaders generally avoided unnecessary engagements and kept enemy threats at a distance. Giroux’s flight leader was 1LT Paul F. Baer, an exceptional pilot and the first American in the USAS to achieve ace status by shooting down five enemy aircraft.

On May 22, 1918, just 26 days after joining the 103rd Aero Squadron, Giroux flew his final mission. At approximately 9:45 a.m., 1LT Baer led Giroux and three other pilots on a combat patrol near Laventie, France, when they encountered eight enemy fighters from Jasta 18. During the engagement, Baer shot down one enemy aircraft, earning his ninth aerial victory and becoming the leading American ace at the time. However, amid the fighting, no one observed what happened to either Baer or Giroux. The remaining three pilots returned safely to base, and both men were reported missing.

Lieutenant Baer had been severely wounded and was taken prisoner of war. He would survive the war and was repatriated in November of 1918. No witnesses could account for Lieutenant Giroux’s fate.

On June 5, 1918, the German-language French propaganda newspaper Gazette des Ardennes published an article reporting Giroux’s death: “Le 22 mai 1918: Le lieutenant Giroux, Ernest-Armand, aviateur section pilote américain, mort.” Despite this report, Giroux remained officially listed as Missing in Action until April 19, 1919, when all missing personnel of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) were administratively redesignated as Killed in Action.

Following the war, the American Graves Registration Service (GRS) searched for Giroux’s grave and the wreckage of his SPAD XIII. Unfortunately, their efforts yielded no results. German records provided to the GRS indicated that Giroux and his aircraft had crashed behind enemy lines near Laventie, between Lille and Armentières, and that he had been buried at Estaires. Search of the area revealed nothing.

To this day, First Lieutenant Ernest Armond Giroux remains one of more than 4,400 missing Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, and Airmen from World War I. For his bravery and sacrifice, Lieutenant Giroux was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) by General Pershing, and the French awarded him the Croix de Guerre with Palm.

The citation on his DSC states:

“For extraordinary heroism in action near Armeyeren, France, May 22, 1918. Lieut. Giroux, while on patrol with four other scout planes attacked an enemy formation of eight monoplace machines (single seat fighter aircraft). Two of Lieut. Giroux’s companions were forced to retire when their guns became jammed. Despite numerical superiority Lieut. Giroux continued the attack, endeavoring to protect his leader until finally forced down and killed.”

Doughboy MIA maintains a dedicated team focused on locating missing American servicemen from the First World War. Lieutenant Giroux’s case remains under active investigation, with the goal of locating and repatriating his remains. Until that mission is accomplished, First Lieutenant Ernest Armond Giroux is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing at Flanders Field American Cemetery in Waregem, West Flanders, Belgium.

Would you like to be involved with solving the case of First Lieutenant Ernest A. Giroux, and all the other Americans still in MIA status from World War I? You can! Click here to make a tax-deductible donation to our non-profit organization today, and help us bring them home! Help us do the best job possible and give today, with our thanks.  Remember: A man is only missing if he is forgotten.