Talk:Lafayette Escadrille

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Military history: Aviation Start‑class

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The current entry (read on July 8, 2005) is partially misleading, repeating a frequent confusion of the Lafayette Escadrille with the Lafayette Flying Corps. The Lafayette Escadrille was the all-American squadron formed in April, 1916, and its total roster of American pilots from 1916 until its transformation into the US 103rd two years later, was 38. The officers of the squadron were French. Other American pilots who flew for the French in French squadrons were loosely termed the Lafayette Flying Corps. For example, Eugene Bullard never flew for the Lafayette Escadrille but instead was a member of a French squadron and thus as an American flying for France could be termed a member of the Lafayette Flying Corps. This confusion led to the assertion by many descendents of American pilots that their relative had flown for the Lafayette Escadrille, a famous squadron in its day, when in fact the pilot had had nothing to do with the Lafayette Escadrille. The last of the 38 Lafayette Escadrille pilots, Charles "Carl" Dolan, died in Hawaii in 1984. He was a Sperry Company engineer from Boston, in France to install gyroscopes, who was recruited by pilots of the Escadrille in order to provide better maintenance for the squadron's planes. Another member of the Lafayette Escadrille, later famous as a writer, was James Norman Hall, co-author of Mutiny on the Bounty. To become French pilots, the Americans had to join the French Foreign Legion before undergoing pilot training. They were ranked as enlisted men, not officers, as they fought for France before the US entered the war.

Lafayette Escadrille vs. Lafayette Flying Corps

It is useful that the distinction is explained above between actual members of the Escadrille and other American pilots in the French forces. I think there's a place for that in the article. I myself added Bullard to the list of members, based on the apparently inaccurate information on his Wikipedia bio. When my edit was reversed, with no adequate explanation, it at first looked like a racist intervention.

There is also no (English, at least) Wikipedia article that brings together information on other American pilots flying for the French. Speed Demon (talk) 13:39, 12 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Flyboys(movie) tie-in?

Trailers for a movie titled Flyboys have been released in North American theaters recently. From what can be gleaned by the trailer, the movie focuses on what closely appears to be the Lafayette Escadrille (or the Flying Corps), going so far to include a charcter who appears to be Eugene Bullard (or based on thereof). Of course, my words are highly specualtive. Does anyone have any firmer information on the movie, and would it be worth mentioning it in this article?

Has anyone done any fact checking?

I will fix this article with correct information when I have the time. The original "historians" who wrote the article don't know the difference between the Lafayette Escadrille, the Lafayette Flying Corps and the French Infantry (see Eugene Bullard). —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Escadrille Americaine (talk • contribs) 18:53, 31 March 2007 (UTC).[reply]

I'd like to see some documentation on Nungesser...

I've looked everywhere through Nordhoff and Hall's "The Lafayette Flying Corps" and can't find Charles Nungesser as a member anywhere. The French officers (C.O. and X.O.s) were included in the book and it seems strange that the authors (who were there) would have left out such a colorful character. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Escadrille Americaine (talk • contribs) 20:02, 6 April 2007 (UTC).[reply]

Bullard vs. Revisionists (the supporters of racism)

The absence of Eugene Bullard in this article is not racism at work, it is the result of research.

The (abysmal) movie "Flyboys" notwithstanding, Eugene Bullard was never in the Lafayette Escadrille. He was, however, in the Lafayette Flying Corps. He was highly thought of by his comrades (Nordhoff and Hall, 1920) but was sent back to the infantry after conflicts with his French superiors.

I have given up logging on and documenting my corrections to the revisionists who believe that they are taking a stand against racism. However noble their intentions, the upshot is that they do the man (Bullard) a disservice by getting his story incorrect via glossing over the actual (and historic) case of racism.

Escadrille Americaine