''Escadrille Spa.561'' (also variously known as ''Escadrille N.92'', ''Escadrille N.392'', ''Escadrille N.561'') was a French First World War fighter squadron dedicated to defending

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, Italy from aerial attack. Stemming from a six plane detachment assigned to Venice's defense on 15 August 1915, after its foundation in June 1916, ''Escadrille Spa. 561'' would defend Venice until 1 January 1918. Detached then to support the French X Armee during its sojourn in Italy, the squadron remained on the peninsula after the ''X Armee'' had returned to France. By war's end, ''Escadrille Spa.561'' was credited with destroying 12 enemy aircraft and four

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 ...

History

''Escadrille Spa.561'' stemmed from an aviation detachment posted at

Mestre Mestre () is a borough of the ''comune'' (municipality) of Venice, on the mainland opposite the historical island city in the region of Veneto, Italy. Administratively, Mestre forms (together with the nearby Carpenedo) the ''Municipalità di ...

, Italy on 15 August 1915 for the defense of

. Its original inventory was six aircraft. In December 1915, the unit relocated to

Lido Lido may refer to: Geography Africa * Lido, a district in the city of Fez, Morocco Asia * Lido, an area in Chaoyang District, Beijing * Lido, a cinema theater in Siam Square shopping area in Bangkok * Lido City, a resort in West Java owned by MN ...

; moving nearer Venice made it easier to defend it. In June 1916, the squadron's name was dubbed ''Escadrille N.92''; the unit's designation denotes a

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

airplane inventory. Then, for no discernible reason, it was redesignated as '' Escadrille N.392''.''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'', p. 109 By the beginning of 1917, the ''escadrille'' had 18 airplanes on hand. On 1 July 1917, the squadron was renumbered ''Escadrille N.561''. On 1 January 1918, the squadron was attached to '' X Armee'' for their Italian operations. After ''X Armee'' returned to France, ''Escadrille N.561'' remained in Italy, though at reduced strength. In April 1918, it had 10 Nieuports. It can be inferred that by some date after April 1918, the squadron had re-equipped with SPADs, as it ended the war as ''Escadrille Spa.561''. Whatever the unit's name or aircraft, by war's' end it was credited with destruction of 12 enemy aircraft, as well as four

s shot down.

Commanding officers

* ''Capitaine'' de Challeronge: 15 August 1915 - war's end

Notable members

* Sergeant André Robert Lévy

Aircraft

s?: 15 August 1915 * Nieuports: June 1916 * Early 1917 inventory: ** Sixteen Nieuports ** One SPAD ** One Sopwith * Ten Nieuports: April 1918 * SPADs: After April 1918

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. . Squadrons of the French Service Aéronautique in World War I Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918 {{France-mil-unit-stub