Just as planes were a new piece of equipment seen on battlefields in World War I, so were the men tasked with flying them. According to Tom Lamb, a specialist from Bonhams, a worldwide auction house, World War I pilots added a romantic flair to what was an otherwise gritty, ugly war.

"For the people on the ground, they were the knights in shining armor, fighting their dogfights in the air," Lamb told CNN. The pilots became well known in their home countries, with names like Rene Fonck, Billy Bishop, Eddie Mannock, and Eddie Rickenbacker becoming the best-known pilots from France, Canada, Britain, and the United States, respectively. On the other side of the equation was Germany's best-known pilot, who was, of course, Manfred von Richthofen, the Red Baron.

That prestige came at a price. According to Smithsonian Magazine, pilots didn't only face danger in dogfights — they were more likely to be killed in training or non-combat-related accidents.

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