Azrayen Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 Hi, Today is the centenary of the first aerial victory. On 5 October 1914 the Voisin III No. 89 of Squadron V24 took off Lhery airfield in the Marne, piloted by Sergeant Frantz and Cpl Quenault for a bombing/recce mission. After bombing the German positions with 6 modified 90mm shells (thrown by hand!) and assessing the results, the French crew noticed an enemy plane oncoming. It was a Aviatik BII, piloted by Sergeant Wilhelm Schlichting, with Oberleutnant Fritz von Zangen for observer. Sergeant Frantz decided to chase the German unit. This is not the first time that the duo he formed with Corporal Quenault will try to shoot down an enemy plane: he already gave it a shot at least 11 times before October 5. The French aircraft is equipped with a Hotchkiss machine gun, while German aircraft is armed only with a rifle. Despite evasive maneuvers by his opponent, the French pilot manages to put his plane into a shooting position. And when he gets the chance, Corporal Quenault opened fire on the Aviatik when it is ten meters away ... and the Hotchkiss jams. But the first bullets scored: The Aviatik rolled inverted, then dived and crashed 15 km from Reims. The German crew was killed. They will be buried with military honors rendered by French soldiers. This feat of arms is not trivial: Sergeant Frantz and Cpl Quenault just won the first aerial combat in the history of military aviation. Both Airmen are awarded the Legion of Honour and the Military Medal respectively. Az' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarge Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Pretty amazing to think how far aerial combat has come in the past 100 years. The night is dark and full of terrors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucien Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Imagine dropping these off of the side of the fuselage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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