2007-06-06 14:26:51 -

LONDON (AP) - Wallace McIntosh, widely believed to be the British air force's most decorated gunner in World War II, has died, the Royal Air Force said. He was 87.

McIntosh died of lung cancer on Monday at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, RAF spokesman Michael Mulford said.

He flew 55 sorties as a rear gunner, and is believed to

hold the record for most enemy kills.

A Scotsman, McIntosh flew between February 1943 and June 1944, and military records show that he retired with a record of eight kills and one «probable» during bombing raids across Europe.

His greatest achievement came during the D-Day advance when he was credited with downing three German fighter planes during a single mission aboard his Lancaster bomber on June 7, 1944.

«We blazed away from about 750 yards, and Sutherland was getting great shots in off the beam as he came in and the fighter exploded almost beneath us, lifting our aircraft, which shuddered as the JU88 went down in flames,» he described one of those hits in a biography published in 2003.

For this he received the rare accolade of a telegram of congratulations from Air Chief Marshall Sir Arthur Harris. Only three such telegrams were ever sent out.

McIntosh was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal and twice received the Distinguished Flying Cross_ the RAF's most vaunted medal for bravery.

«When the nation needed heroes he didn't let us down,» Mulford said. «Anyone who flew in Lancasters during the bombings knew the odds were against them. Your life was on the line every moment. To do the job as well as he did was truly exceptional.»

Mulford said it was difficult to be sure that McIntosh was the force's greatest ever gunner, but «we certainly accept he's the number one man.»

Air crews operated in some of the most hazardous conditions of World War II. Around 1,000 men from McIntosh's squadron perished during the conflict.

McIntosh is survived by three children.