[2] Traill joined the Royal Navy as a midshipman on 2 August 1914, when he was just four days shy of his 15th birthday.

While in combat on 2 July 1918, Percy Griffith Jones called out a warning from the plane's rear seat and Traill ducked.

The German fighter behind them killed Jones and put a bullet through the cockpit and out the windscreen, missing Traill.

The resultant crashlanding hurled Burbidge onto his face, but left Traill uninjured and preserved the airplane.

[2][3] Traill's citation read An officer of marked skill and bravery, who has shot down three enemy machines and seriously damaged a fourth.

With great presence of mind Captain Traill ordered his observer to climb out and so directed him to balance the machine which enabled him to obtain partial control.

During this period he was sent off to join a barn-storming flying circus in the Mid West to raise funds for the Victory Liberty Loan.

This was run by the United States Army Air Service under the command of Major George Stratemeyer.

After that, he had various further domestic military assignments, as well as foreign service in Iraq, before he began attendance at the RAF Staff College on 23 January 1933.

[2] On 14 May 1940, Traill was appointed assistant senior air staff officer at Headquarters Bomber Command.

The following year would see him command RAF Middleton St. George before moving on to the post of senior air staff officer (SASO) at Headquarters, No.

[2] He was made of Officer of the American Legion of Merit on 11 April 1944,[9] and was again Mentioned in Despatches on 8 June 1944.