Eric Lock joined the RAF VR just before the war. On the outbreak of hostilities he was duly called up to complete his flying training. He joined 41 Squadron, based at Catterick in Yorkshire, flying Spitfires. His squadron was redeployed to the south of England to RAF Hornchurch. Here he was soon in the thick of the battle in which he shot down an extraordinary figure of 15 enemy aircraft, all in the space of 19 days. He was awarded the DFC when half way through this total and a Bar when he had completed the total of 15 victories.He was the highest scoring British fighter ace during the Battle of Britain. He went on to score a further clutch of kills reaching the total of 26 during the course of his involvement in the war. In one encounter, in November 1940, he was quite severely wounded, which kept him out of action for the next few months. However, he left his sick bed to attend an investiture at which he received the DSO.

He finally returned to operational flying in mid-summer 1941. On a fighter sweep across northern France on 3 August 1941, he went missing near Calais. Neither his aircraft nor his body has since been recovered.

Like Bob Doe, he was a quiet, unassuming and modest individual. He was known to his fellow pilots as “Sawn Off Lockie”, reflecting his very short stature.