Percival Guy Haig Newton, DFC (29 September 1917 – 24 July 2018) was a flying ace of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) during the Second World War.

Born in Christchurch, Newton joined the Royal Air Force in 1939 but did his flying training in New Zealand with the RNZAF.

In July 1943 he became commanding officer of the squadron and served in the South West Pacific theatre for several months before returning to New Zealand.

[1] Subsequently Newton applied for a short service commission in the Royal Air Force (RAF).

His application was accepted and in April 1939 he began his flight training with the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF).

[2][3][4] Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Newton was transferred to the RNZAF on a short-service commission instead of proceeding to the United Kingdom to serve with the RAF.

The OTU was equipped with North American Harvard trainer aircraft when established but these were supplemented with P-40 Kittyhawk fighters when they became available to the RNZAF from May.

[4] In August, he married Majorie Hutton, a clerk in the Royal New Zealand Navy, at the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul.

[2] Equipped with Kittyhawks, the squadron trained in New Zealand for several months until, in July 1943, it deployed to the South West Pacific, initially based at Espiritu Santo.

[9][10] On 11 October 1943, flying south of Shortland Island while escorting American Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers that had attacked targets on Bougainville Island, Newton led his section in attacking some Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters that were harassing a lone Kittyhawk.

17 Squadron was escorting Dauntless bombers attacking Tobera Airfield on 9 January, Newton destroyed two Zeroes.

17 Squadron's second tour of operations completed prematurely at the end of January, owing to several casualties and a high sickness rate among its personnel.

[14] Newton was posted back to New Zealand to serve in the Directorate of Operations at the Air Department in Wellington.

[2] He and Geoffrey Fisken, who also destroyed five Japanese aircraft, were the most successful fighter pilots of the RNZAF in the Southwest Pacific area of operations.

He also held senior positions with Vauxhall Motors and the German company Adam Opel AG and was later president of GM France.