Marcel Pierre Vialet
Marcel Pierre Viallet | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 August 1887 Lyon, France |
| Died | 21 September 1925 |
| Allegiance | France |
| Service/ | Cavalry; aviation |
| Rank | Sous lieutenant |
| Unit | 7e Regiment de Cuirassiers, Escadrille No. 53, Escadrille No. 67 |
| Awards | Legion d'Honneur, Medaille Militaire, Croix de Guerre |
Sous Lieutenant Marcel Pierre Viallet was a World War I flying ace credited with nine aerial victories.[1]
Viallet travelled in his youth, but returned home to France as World War I began. He immediately joined the cavalry, but was seriously wounded in late 1914. While in hospital, he applied for a transfer to aviation. On 23 February 1915, he started training; on 12 November, he received Military Pilot's Brevet No. 2533. He then served as a test pilot on Caudrons. From there, he was assigned to Escadrille 53, having already logged 376 flight hours. On 28 April 1916, he scored his first win, over a Fokker Eindekker.[2] Two days later, he flew a successful escort mission despite having his controls cut. A Medaille Militaire followed, on 22 May 1916.[3]
In June 1916, he was reassigned to a Nieuport unit, Escadrille 67. He would run up eight more victories there,[4] including one shared with Georges Flachaire.
Postwar, he remained in the military. He became ill during the Rif Campaign in Morocco, and died on 21 September 1925.[5]
Honors and awards
Médaille Militaire
"Marechal-des-Logis of the Escadrille C53. A pilot of great value who always shows his courage, audacity and sang-froid. On 28 April 1916, returning from a reconnaissance over German lines, from close in he attacked a German plane which was seen to fall disabled. On 30 April [1916] he resolutely attacked an enemy scout in order to ward it away from an airplane he was protecting. Having had his controls cut, he succeeded after a fall of 2,000 meters to stabilize his plane and save his observer."[6][7]
Légion d'Honneur
"Marechal-des-Logis pilot of Escadrille N67, wounded twice in the cavalry, requested a transfer to aviation where he has become a pilot of the highest order, of remarkable strength and exceptional audacity. Already has the Médaille Militaire for downing two enemy planes, under particularly difficult circumstances, in March and April 1916; on 6 August [1916] he succeeded during the course of the same flight to down two other German planes sequentially one behind our lines the other near the trenches."[8][9]
Sources of information
- ^ Nieuport Aces of World War 1. pp. 59–60.
- ^ Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918. p. 223.
- ^ Nieuport Aces of World War 1. pp. 59–60.
- ^ Nieuport Aces of World War 1. p. 60.
- ^ Nieuport Aces of World War 1. p. 60.
- ^ (Médaille Militaire citation, 22 May 1916) http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/france/viallet.php Retrieved on 28 March 2010.
- ^ Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918. p. 223.
- ^ (Légion d'Honneur citation, 29 August 1916) http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/france/viallet.php Retrieved on 28 March 2010.
- ^ Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918. p. 223.
References
- Nieuport Aces of World War 1. Norman Franks. Osprey Publishing, 2000. ISBN 1-85532-961-1, ISBN 978-1-85532-961-4.
- Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918 Norman L. R. Franks, Frank W. Bailey. Grub Street, 1992. ISBN 0-948817-54-2, ISBN 978-0-948817-54-0.