''Escadrille Spa.153'' (originally ''Escadrille N.153'') was a French fighter squadron active from 1 July 1917 to war's end. It was

Mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for its proficiency. By the Armistice, the squadron was credited with 10 German airplanes and three

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 ...

s destroyed.

History

''Escadrille Spa.153'' was established at Étampes-Montdesir, France on 1 July 1917 with

Nieuport 24 The Nieuport 24 (or Nieuport XXIV C.1 in contemporary sources) was a World War I French sesquiplane fighter aircraft designed by Gustave Delage as a development of the successful Nieuport 17. The Nieuport 24 had the misfortune to be the penul ...

fighters; it was then dubbed ''Escadrille N.153''. A week after its founding, it was assigned to a provisional ''Group de Combat'' to support a French field army, ''III Armee''. In November 1917, the squadron was reinforced by improved Nieuport 24bis fighters, even as it began to receive

SPAD VII The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and r ...

s and

SPAD XIII The SPAD S.XIII is a French biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War, developed by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) from the earlier and highly successful SPAD S.VII. During early 1917, the French designer Louis Béc ...

s. After its refitting with the SPADs, it became known as ''Escadrille Spa.153''.''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'', p. 105 On 20 January 1918, ''Escadrille Spa.153'' was posted to ''Groupe de Combat 18''. The squadron served with this ''Groupe'' through moves to fight for a number of French field armies. On 9 September, it began fighting for the American 1st Army at the

Battle of Saint-Mihiel The Battle of Saint-Mihiel was a major World War I battle fought from 12–15 September 1918, involving the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) and 110,000 French troops under the command of General John J. Pershing of the United States against ...

. It was withdrawn to ''IV Armee'' on the 24th, and served there until war's end. On 4 October 1918, it was

. The squadron was credited with downing 10 German aircraft and three

Commanding officers

* Lieutenant Jean Gigadot: 1 July 1917 - 21 September 1918 * Lieutenant Yvan Viguier: 21 September 1918 - war's end

Notable members

Sous lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 19 ...

Andre Barcat *

Adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

Georges Halberger

Aircraft

: 1 July 1917 * Nieuport 24bis: November 1917 *

: November 1917 *

: November 1917

End notes

References

* * Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank (1993). ''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'' London, UK: Grub Street Publishing. . Fighter squadrons of the French Air and Space Force Military units and formations established in 1917 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918 Military units and formations of France in World War I Military aviation units and formations in World War I {{France-mil-unit-stub