Émile Eugène Aubrun (25 August 1881 – 14 November 1967) was a French aviator who received national attention for finishing second in the 1910

Circuit de l'Est The Circuit de l'Est was a six-stage air race organized by the newspaper ''Le Matin'', which took place in August 1910. General Foch, who had followed the race attentively, declared a few weeks later during the first aerial maneuvers in Picardy, ...

Early life

Émile Eugène Aubrun was born on 25 August 1881, in Brunoy, France. In 1909 he served an aviator apprenticeship while attending the Blériot school, in Pau, France. He graduated with a degree in engineering and he became interested in aviation. He received his pilot license from the Aéro-Club de France on 6 January 1910.

Career

In August 1910 he competed in the

and flew a Blériot XI monoplane aircraft with a 50 hp Gnome engine. The sixth stage of the race passed The Golden Virgin in Albert, Somme. Aubrun used the sculpture as a compass and it was referred to in news as the "famous golden virgin". He flew circles around the sculpture with his Blériot XI aircraft in order to get a closer look. When asked about his laps around the statue he said,

Not having occasion to see such a site every day, I made the best of it and examined the statue from near at hand making several circles round it.

Alfred Leblanc Alfred Leblanc (13 April 1869 – 22 November 1921) was a pioneer French aviator. Biography He was born on 13 April 1869 in Paris. In 1888, he became the technical director of the Victor Bidault metal foundry. A keen sportsman, he was an ener ...

won the race and Aubrun finished second. Thirty-five people had entered the race and Leblanc and Aubrun were the only two pilots to finish. The race finished at

Issy-les-Moulineaux Issy-les-Moulineaux () is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France, lying on the left bank of the river Seine. Its citizens are called ''Isséens'' in French. It is one of Paris' entrances and is located from Notre-Dame Cath ...

, and 200,000 spectators were gathered to see the finish. In 1910 he participated in the International Aviation Meet at Belmont Park: an event and the prizes were valued at US$72,300 (). In 1910 ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that Aubrun broke a record for flying 55.5 miles per hour over 180 miles. He finished in 3 hours 33 minutes and seven seconds. In 1911, he was director of the flying school established in

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

by Deperdussin. During the First World War he worked in aeronautical construction. After the war he served in the aircraft control office. It was there that he pioneered the use of airplanes to reveal submarines which were underwater, and the rescue of submarine crews. In 1912 he was involved with experiments regarding the use of airplanes to explore the sea.

Awards

Officer of the Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

Gallery

File:1910 Bleriot monoplane.png, 1910 Bleriot monoplane File:Bordeaux Beau-desert-Mérignac semaine d'aviation sept 1910 22a.jpg, Bordeaux Beau-desert-Mérignac aviation week September 1910 File:Circuit de l'est 1910 Charleville Mézières.JPG, Circuit de l'Est 1910 File:Tombe de Emile Aubrun (cimetière de Montmartre).JPG, Tombe de Emile Aubrun (cimetière de Montmartre) File:Émile Aubrun at the controls of a Deperdussin 1910.jpg, Émile Aubrun at the controls of a Deperdussin 1910

References

External links