Alberto Salinas Carranza (November 15, 1892 – October 31, 1970) was a Mexican aviator who participated in the Mexican Revolution. Carranza was born in

Cuatro Ciénegas Cuatro Ciénegas () is a city in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. It stands at , at an average elevation of above sea level. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. It is located in the ...

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

on November 15, 1892, the oldest of 3 children of Jose Maria Salinas Balmaceda and Mary Garza Carranza. He married Peruvian Delfina Duque, who died young in 1936. In 1938 he married Sara Berta Stephens. Carranza went to the U.S. to study mechanical engineering at

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute () (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York, with an additional campus in Hartford, Connecticut. A third campus in Groton, Connecticut closed in 2018. RPI was established in 1824 by Stephen Van ...

. He returned to Mexico during the government of

Francisco I. Madero Francisco Ignacio Madero González (; 30 October 1873 – 22 February 1913) was a Mexican businessman, revolutionary, writer and Public figure, statesman, who became the 37th president of Mexico from 1911 until he was deposed in Ten Tragic Da ...

, and he studied at the Moissant School of Aviation, along with his cousin Gustavo Salinas, and graduated in 1912.Elizabeth Borja
Early Mexican Aviators at the Moisant Aviation School
Oct 14, 2021. U.S.

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...

web site After the usurpation of

Victoriano Huerta José Victoriano Huerta Márquez (; 22 December 1854 – 13 January 1916) was a general in the Mexican Federal Army and 39th President of Mexico, who came to power by coup against the democratically elected government of Francisco I. Madero wit ...

in February 1913 he joined the constitutionalist movement led by his uncle, who was commissioned to organize an air fleet of three aircraft, which participated in several battles. In 1915 Carranza participated in the Battle of El Ébano, San Luis Potosí, against

Villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...

's forces, and helped Yucatán campaign led by

Salvador Alvarado Salvador Alvarado Rubio (September 16, 1880 – June 10, 1924) served in the Mexican military during the Mexican Revolution and as a statesman. He was a general of the Constitutionalist Army under the orders of Venustiano Carranza. Alvarado was t ...

. He organized the Department of Aviation, with its aeronautical workshops and a school for training military pilots. He was also the head of a cartridge factory. After the war Carranza was exiled in

Lima, Peru Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

, and then in the United States. He returned to be a Senator of the Mexican Republic in the XXXVII Legislature. In June 1942 he was conferred the rank of General, and in January 1951 reached the rank of Brigadier General. He was a military air attache at the embassies in Washington, Paris, Rome and Belgrade. In the early 1960s he worked as a counselor in the presidency. He led the Veterans of the Revolution and was a board member of the Mexican Legion of Honor. He wrote several works including ''The Punitive Expedition''. He died in Mexico City on October 31, 1970.

References

Mexican aviators Institutional Revolutionary Party politicians Members of the Early Birds of Aviation People from Cuatro Ciénegas 1892 births 1970 deaths Mexican expatriates in the United States Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni {{Mexico-politician-InstitutionalRevolutionary-stub