Founded in 1934, the air force was none existent yet during the First World War.
The early airmen used to pilot very rustic machines
Pilots were drawn from officers and non-commissioned officers of the army based on their high level of education and physical fitness, especially with regards to sight. They were trained by the aircraft manufacturers and assigned to the various types of aircrafts available according to their ages; the younger ones piloted fighter aircrafts while the older ones occupied the cockpits of reconnaissance aircrafts and bombers.
Georges Guynemer, Charles Nungesser and René Fonck, were some of the outstanding pilots in those days, not forgetting Jean Navarre, "the Verdun guard". They were like part of their machines, piloting with “their buttocks” since the cloth-lined structures did not allow for much piloting finesse. At that time, the cockpits of aircrafts were open-air, and the pilots used to dress in an ample fur-covered flying suit and put on a goggles-equipped helmet. Besides serving as a windshield, the goggles protected the eyes from hot oil particles emanating from the engine. The fighting technique used by the pilots then was known as the “dog fight”, whereby a pilot made a direct top approach, unleashed a burst of fire and returned in a half-roll. To emerge victorious in these rather slow air battles, a pilot had to outdo his opponent in speed and altitude, and sometimes by taking his opponent off guard.
Some famous Allied pilots worth mentioning include: Francesco Baracca (Italian), credited with 34 victories (after the war, a boy by name Enzo Ferrari obtained permission from Baracca’s mother to adopt her son’s emblem, which became the rearing horse logo of Ferrari cars), Mick Mannock (English), Edward Rickenbacker (American) and Billy Bishop (Canadian). Like these Allied sky champs, a few German pilots also became quite famous, prominent among them was Rittmeister Manfred von Richthofen, "the Red Baron", who before being shot down in April 1918 had scored 80 victories with his Fokker triplane.
These men of hardened-character, who all alone in the sky had to confront their enemies in unusual deadly air battles, were all chivalrous souls and real gentlemen. Several Allied pilots attended Von Richthofen funeral.
The aircraft engines and weaponry underwent rapid evolution
Of all fighters sent to the front by France, the SPAD SVII designed by Louis Bechereau was the most outstanding. The SH 1 powered by a V8, 150 HP Hispano Suiza engine, made its maiden flight in April 1916. As early as May 10, the company had already received orders for 268 aircrafts of the same model under the name SPA VII C1 (single-seater fighter). Later versions of this plane were equipped with an even more powerful engine, 180 HP.
This robust machine with extraordinary flight characteristics was armed with one or two 7.7 mm Vickers machineguns equipped with the Birkigt synchronized firing mechanism. It soon became known as the "flying machinegun" of the French champ Guynemer. With its 212 km/h speed at an altitude of 2000 metres, this aircraft was finally able to rival the German Halberstadt which had a better soaring capability that granted it considerable superiority. Worth mentioning also is the Nieuport 17, which made its debut at the front in 1917, but had a speed of only 175 km/h.
Just no space in their flight logs
The Nieuport 17, the favourite plane of the French champs mentioned earlier, was already equipped with Le Prieur rockets. These devices, invented by Lieutenant Le Prieur, were designed to bring down German reconnaissance airships and balloons. Used for the first time in 1916, this Le Prieur rocket, which used to be mounted in eights per plane, immediately proved to be an efficient weapon. However, lack of an empennage, this rocket, which is the indisputable forerunner of today’s modern rockets, used to take some funny trajectories when launched.
Une position française appuyée par l'aviation Musée du Bourget. FNCV
There was hardly any space in the flight logs of our military pilots. Their missions of airspace protection above French lines, chasing German planes and carrying out incursions across enemy lines were compounded by those of machine-gunning soldier columns heading towards the front and paying "home visits" to the Germans on their airfields...