''Escadrille Spa.87'' (also known as ''Escadrille N.87'') was a French fighter squadron active during the First World War, from March 1917 to the Armistice. They were credited with 28 confirmed victories over enemy aircraft,

History

''Escadrille Spa.87'' was founded at Lyon-Bron, France on 8 March 1917 as 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 ...

fighter squadron called ''Escadrille N.87''. It was attached to a French field army, ''VIII Armee'', until 1 July 1918.''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'', p. 99 The squadron re-equipped with SPAD S.7 and SPAD S.13 fighters on 4 May 1918, and was renamed ''Escadrille Spa.87''. By the Armistice, the fighter squadron had been credited with destroying 28 enemy aircraft.

Commanding officers

* Unknown: 8 March 1917 - 1 January 1918 * ''Capitaine'' Pierre Azire: 1 January 1918 - 30 June 1918 * Lieutenant Joseph Jochaud du Plessis: 30 June 1918 - war's end

Notable members

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 ...

Laurent B. Ruamps * Adjutant Lucien Gasser

Aircraft

* March 1918 inventory: ** Four

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 ...

s ** Three

Nieuport 27 The Nieuport 27 (or Nieuport XXVII C.1 in contemporary sources) was a World War I French sesquiplane fighter aircraft designed by Gustave Delage. The 27 was the last of the line of Nieuport "V-strut" single seat fighters that began with the Ni ...

s ** Two SPAD S.7s * 4 May 1918 refitting: ** SPAD S.7The Aerodrome website page on the SPAD S.

Retrieved 1 September 2020 ** SPAD S.13The Aerodrome website page on the SPAD S.1

Retrieved 1 September 2020

End notes

Reference

* Norman Franks, 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