Sous Lieutenant Fernand Henri Chavannes (1897-1985) was a French World War I

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 ...

credited with seven aerial victories.The Aerodrome websit

Retrieved on 29 April 2010.

Biography

Fernand Henri Chavannes was the son of renowned sinology, sinologist and Chinese scholar

Édouard Chavannes Émmanuel-Édouard Chavannes (5 October 1865 – 29 January 1918) was a French sinologist and expert on Chinese history and religion, and is best known for his translations of major segments of Sima Qian's ''Records of the Grand Historian' ...

. The younger Chavannes was born on 16 April 1897 in Paris. He began his military service on 12 January 1916; on 29 February, he went for pilot training. On 21 December 1916, he received Military Pilot's Brevet No. 5074. After advanced training, he was posted to ''Escadrille 112'' on 24 April 1917.''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'', pp. 132-133 Chavannes and his friend

Lionel de Marmier Lionel Alexandre Pierre de Marmier was a World War I flying ace credited with six confirmed aerial victories in World War I.The Aerodrome websitRetrieved on 29 April 2010. He remained involved in aviation postwar, setting flying records and serving ...

were chosen to share a new "cannon Spad", the

SPAD XII The SPAD S.XII or SPAD 12 was a French single-seat biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War developed from the successful SPAD VII by Louis Béchereau, chief designer of the Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD). Development ...

, when it came out in mid-1917. The letters "M" and "C", representing their last names, were intertwined in paint on the side of its fuselage. Chavannes's string of seven confirmed victories began on 8 February 1918. After his fifth victory, he was commissioned as a temporary ''

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 ...

'' on 1 April 1918. He ended the war with seven victories.

Honors and awards

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

"Pursuit pilot of exceptional audacity and skill. Entitled to eight citations and seven victories." Légion d'Honneur citation *

Médaille Militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' ( en, Military Medal) is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...

"First class pursuit pilot, courageous and with accomplished skill. He reported his fourth victory by attacking an enemy two-seater and forcing it to land behind our lines." Médaille Militaire citation, 13 April 1918 *Chavannes also won the ''

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

'' with seven ''palmes'' and an ''etoile de bronze''.

Sources of information

References

* ''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918.'' Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank. Grub Street Publishing, 1993. . * ''SPAD XII/XIII aces of World War I.'' Jon Guttman. Osprey Publishing, 2002. , 9781841763163. 1897 births 1985 deaths French World War I flying aces {{france-mil-bio-stub