Sous Lieutenant Ernest Joseph Jules Maunoury was a French
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
during World War I. He was credited with eleven confirmed aerial victories. He survived the war, only to die in a flying accident on 21 September 1921.
Early life
Ernest Joseph Jules Maunoury was born in
Saint-Clair-de-Halouze
Saint-Clair-de-Halouze () is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France. It is situated midway between Domfront and Flers. It was originally a centre for ferrous mining and the little community, the minehead and the railway line, ...
on 29 November 1894.
World War I
Manoury joined the French military on 7 September 1914, being assigned to the 24e Regiment d'Infanterie. On 19 February 1915, he was promoted to
Sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
; not quite a year later, on 16 February 1916, he was mentioned in his brigade's orders. He was seriously wounded in action and offered the opportunity to transfer out of combat; however, he elected to volunteer for aviation duty. On 2 June 1916, he transferred to flying service. His first assignment was to Escadrille 64 as a gunner/observer. On 26 September 1916, he downed a
Fokker
Fokker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer named after its founder, Anthony Fokker. The company operated under several different names. It was founded in 1912 in Berlin, Germany, and became famous for its fighter aircraft in World War I. In 1919 ...
; this initial victory gained him another mention in dispatches, on 7 October.
On 27 January 1917, he was transferred to Escadrille 16. He began pilot's training at
Dijon
Dijon (, , ) (dated)
* it, Digione
* la, Diviō or
* lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920.
The earlies ...
on 20 March 1917, and was granted his
Military Pilot's Brevet
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
on 7 June 1917. He then joined a brand new squadron, Escadrille 152, as a
Spad pilot. On 30 June 1918, he scored his second victory, destroying a German
observation balloon
An observation balloon is a type of balloon that is employed as an aerial platform for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Use of observation balloons began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War ...
. On 20 July, he shared a double win with
Del Vial. Then he began a string of seven consecutive victories shared with premium
balloon buster
Balloon busters were military pilots known for destroying enemy observation balloons. These pilots were noted for their fearlessness, as balloons were stationary targets able to receive heavy defenses, from the ground and the air. Seventy-seven fl ...
Léon Bourjade
Léon Bourjade (25 May 1889 – 22 October 1924), born Jean-Pierre Léon Bourjade, was a leading French fighter pilot in World War I, notable for being his country's leading balloon-busting ace. He interrupted his theological studies to fight in ...
. Double victories on 15 September and 1 October 1918 brought his tally to eight enemy observation balloons destroyed, along with two German reconnaissance planes and a Fokker.
Postwar
He lost a wing while flying over
Cazaux
Cazaux () is a commune of the Ariège department in southwestern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in t ...
on 21 September 1921. The subsequent impact was fatal.
Honors and awards
''Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur''
"Officer of high moral values. Severely wounded in the infantry where he was remarkable because of his audacity. He refused an assignment to auxiliary service and entered aviation at his request as an observer. After having downed one enemy plane he was transferred to pursuit aviation where he has never ceased to demonstrate the noble qualities of spirit, energy and bravery. On 15 September 1918, in the course of a patrol, he flamed two enemy observation balloons. Two wounds, three enemy planes and six balloons downed. Four citations." ''Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur'' citation, 9 October 1918.
[The Aerodrome websit]
Retrieved 21 August 2020.
Endnotes
References
* ''Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918'' (1992). Norman L. R. Franks, Frank W. Bailey. Grub Street. , .
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maunoury, Ernest
1894 births
1921 deaths
French World War I flying aces