How did WWI aces become national heroes?

"In the early years of the First World War (1914-18), airplanes were used largely for patrols and reconnaissance, identifying the positions of enemy artillery and spotting large troop movements. As technology quickly developed, triplanes and biplanes became much faster, more manoeuvrable, and capable of climbing to higher altitudes. Machine guns were mounted at the front of the plane. These guns could be synchronised to fire through the propeller arc, and so the pilot could now attack enemy aircraft."

"The fighter plane was born, and a new form of warfare developed, where each side tried to destroy the fighters of the enemy, usually in one-on-one encounters known as 'dogfights'. The idea of this more individual form of combat captured the public's imagination, especially as it contrasted starkly with the mass and largely anonymous infantry charges that characterised the trench warfare of the Western Front."

Airplanes in the early First World War performed patrols and reconnaissance, locating artillery and troop movements. Rapid technological development produced triplanes and biplanes that were faster, more manoeuvrable, and could climb higher. Machine guns were mounted at the front and synchronised to fire through the propeller, enabling pilots to attack enemy aircraft. The fighter plane emerged and aerial combat evolved into one-on-one dogfights as each side sought to destroy enemy fighters. This individualised combat captured public imagination and contrasted with mass, anonymous infantry assaults in the trenches. Pilots became glamorous figures and 'aces' were defined after five victories.

Read at World History Encyclopedia