Historic aviation's book of the month: Massive work on French Aircraft

Massive work on French Aircraft

There is a fair amount of literature available on aircraft of the Great War with surprisingly detailed volumes on more arcane aircraft such as those operated by Russia and Austro-Hungary. However, French aircraft from the 1914-1918 time period suffer from a lack of coverage. One of the most creative countries when it came to early aviation, France built a huge variety of combat aircraft - many of them quite advanced. During the between the wars period, the French government produced a series of 150 books organized into a dozen tomes covering their military forces during the Great War. The 13th tome was to have been devoted to French military aviation, but the impending outbreak of the Second World War prevented that section from ever appearing. If this final tome was to have been as comprehensive as the preceding volumes, it is likely that it would have rivaled Britain's masterwork The War in the Air in detail and accuracy.

As German forces approached Paris, many of the major French aircraft manufacturers elected to destroy their records rather than let them fall into the hands of the Nazis. It has been reported that the records for Bleriot-SPAD were destroyed in a huge bonfire held on the company rounds. Other companies are believed to have tossed their records into the Seine river. The French military archives were seized by the Germans and were probably removed to Germany. While portions have been recovered, the French records for this period remain sadly incomplete.

Another factor to be remembered is that World War One resulted in huge losses and tremendous suffering for the French people. It is not surprising that the French had little enthusiasm for studying the recent conflict, and this may have contributed to the paucity of literature devoted to military aviation during this period.

Authors Dr. James J. Davilla and Arthur M. Soltan had a massive job in front of them when they decided they wanted to chronicle French aircraft from this important period. The authors have attempted to make extensive use of archival information. Approximately 60,000 pages of information were obtained on over 100 roles of microfilm. This information consists of official daily reports on aerial operations, decisions, aircraft losses, escadrille records, and contacts with foreign air services. Although this information was primarily operational in nature, there was also a significant amount of material on the aircraft themselves. This has enabled the authors to uncover previously unknown material on the various types of aircraft serving with operational units. Furthermore, it permitted them to provide a uniquely French perspective on their airplanes rather than having to depend exclusively on foreign sources. The microfilm rolls have since been donated to the Hoover Institute at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. Here they are available for anyone wishing to do further research.

The completed volume is French Aircraft of the First World War (Flying Machines Press, $125) and it is monumental. The aircraft are present in over 640 pages accompanied by more than 950 photographs, many of which have never been published. Making the volume even that more important is the inclusion of 130 drawings in 1/72nd scale and 50 drawings in 1/144th scale. Also there are 25 pages of exceptional color plates illustrating 61 aircraft. The book's 300,000 words of text include extensive operational details and order of battle information never before published. Highly recommended.

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Copyright Challenge Publications Inc. Jun 2002
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