Ahmet Ali Çelikten
in the official website of the Naval Air Base Command of the

Turkish Naval Forces The Turkish Naval Forces ( tr, ), or Turkish Navy ( tr, ) is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was establis ...

. Ajun Kurter, ''Türk Hava Kuvvetleri Tarihi'', Cilt 5, Hava Kuvvetleri Komutanlığı, 2009
p. 299.

, '' Posta'', 20 March 2011. (born İzmirli Alioğlu Ahmed; 1883 – 1969), also known as İzmirli Ahmet Ali (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: Ahmet Ali from Izmir), was a Turkish aviator, of

Afro-Turkish Afro-Turks ( tr, Afrikalı Türkler) are Turkish people of African Zanj ( Bantu) descent, who trace their origin to the Ottoman slave trade like the Afro-Abkhazians. Afro-Turk population is estimated to be between 5,000 and 20,000 people. Afr ...

ethnicity, regarded as the first

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

pilot in history. He was one of the first black males becoming a fighter pilot, receiving his “wings” in 1914. He was one of the few black pilots in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, like

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

Eugene Jacques Bullard (flying for France), William Robinson Clarke from

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

(flying for Britain),Royal Air Force Museum storyvault
/ref> Pierre Réjon from

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...

(flying for France)Une autre histoire
/ref> and from Eritrea (flying for Italy), first black pilot ever (he received his license by Fédération Aéronautique Internationale on February 20, 1914).Mauro Valeri, ''Il generale nero. Domenico Mondelli: bersagliere, aviatore e ardito'', Ed. Odradek, Roma, 2015. Ahmet's maternal grandmother was born in Bornu (now in

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

) and was brought to what is now Turkey as part of the Ottoman slave trade.DÜNYANIN İLK SİYAH PİLOTU: ARAP AHMET
, ''Havervitrin'', 8 March 2011.

Biography

Ahmet was born in 1883 in Izmir (ancient

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

), in the Aidin Vilayet of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

.Dünyanın ilk siyahi pilotu: ARAP AHMET -1
''Posta'', 20 March 2011. His mother, Zenciye Emine Hanım, was of Nigerian descent; his father, Ali Bey, was also

.Dünyanın ilk siyahi pilotu: ARAP AHMET -2
''Posta'', 20 March 2011. The Family flew from Cairo, Egypt to Crete because Egypt was occupied by the French in the Years 1798-1801, they moved from Crete to Izmir. He aimed to become a sailor and entered the Naval Technical School ''Haddehâne Mektebi'' (literally "School of the Blooming Mill") in 1904. In 1908, he graduated from this school as a

First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a ...

(''Mülâzım-ı evvel''). And then he went to aviation courses in the Naval Flight School (''Deniz Tayyare Mektebi''), formed on 25 June 1914 at

Yeşilköy (; meaning "Green Village"; prior to 1926, San Stefano or Santo Stefano el, Άγιος Στέφανος, Ágios Stéfanos, tr, Ayastefanos) is an affluent neighbourhood ( tr, mahalle) in the district of Bakırköy, Istanbul, Turkey, on the M ...

. He was then a member of the

Ottoman Air Force The Aviation Squadrons of the Ottoman Empire were military aviation units of the Ottoman Army and Navy.Edward J. Erickson, ''Ordered To Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', "Appendix D The Ottoman Aviation Inspectorate an ...

. During

, he married Hatice Hanım (1897–1991) who was a Turkish war immigrant from

Preveza Preveza ( el, Πρέβεζα, ) is a city in the region of Epirus, northwestern Greece, located on the northern peninsula at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. It is the capital of the regional unit of Preveza, which is part of the region of Epiru ...

. He became one of the first black military pilots in aviation history in 11.November 1916. on 14 February 1917, Ahmed Ali was made a Captain (''Yüzbaşı'') and sent to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

18.Dezember 1917 to complete aviation courses. Following the completion of these courses, he was assigned to the Izmir Naval Aircraft Company. His Code Name was "Celik Kara Kartal" - Black Eagle of Steel, derived from his name. Following the end of World War I, Ahmed Ali became involved with the

Turkish War of Independence The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...

and supported the

Turkish National Movement The Turkish National Movement ( tr, Türk Ulusal Hareketi) encompasses the political and military activities of the Turkish revolutionaries that resulted in the creation and shaping of the modern Republic of Turkey, as a consequence of the def ...

. He volunteered his services as a pilot at the Konya Military Air Base, in

Konya Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it ...

, Turkey. At this time, Turkish Nationalists enacted a plan to steal airplanes from Ottoman warehouses and bring them to

Amasra Amasra (from Greek Amastris Ἄμαστρις, ''gen''. Ἀμάστριδος) is a small Black Sea port town in the Bartın Province, Turkey, formerly known as Amastris. The town today is much appreciated for its beaches and natural setting, ...

, a port town on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

. Ahmed was sent to Amasra in 1922 in order to assist with this operation. Pilots utilized these airplanes to monitor the Black Sea and protect their naval operations. Upon the establishment of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, a division was created to move aviation operations from Konya to Izmir. Ahmed was assigned to this division and continued his service in Izmir. In 1928, he was appointed to the Air Undersecretariat, a division of the

Turkish Air Force The Turkish Air Force ( tr, ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Air Force can trace its origins back to June 1911 when it was founded by the Ottoman Empire, however, the air force as it is known to ...

which operated under the

Ministry of National Defense {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

. He was Honored by the "Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Istiklal Madalyasi" (Independence Medal) with the Nr: 480 in 1924 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - and Ismet Inönü for his bravery in the Türkish Independence War. Ahmed Ali retired in 1949 as Türk Hava Kuvvetleri Albayi (Colonel) the Turkish Air Force, after his pension he devoted his time to his family and led a secluded life. He died in 24. June 1969 in Izmir, Turkey. Ahmet Ali´s grandchildren are widely active in the Aviation Industry in Turkey, they live in Izmir.

Legacy

To quote David Nicolle's book, ''The Ottoman Army 1904–1918'', "Most Ottoman aircrew were recruited from the Turkish heartland ... others came from the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire as far south as Yemen, or even from neutral Iran. Captain Ahmet was a mix of Arab-African and Turkish origin and may have been the first 'Black' Air Force pilot in aviation history, having received his 'wings' in 1914-15." The book features a photo of Ahmet in front of a Bleriot XI-2 trainer at the Yeşilköy flying school. The same photo is featured in "Over the Front", Volume 9, No. 3, Fall 1994. Ahmet's "wings" would seem to have been earned prior to Bullard's earning his brevet No. 6259 on 20 July 1917, though Bullard is often cited as history's first black military aviator.

Gallery

File:Ahmet_Ali_Celikten_in_flight_suit.jpg, Ahmet Ali in flight suit with officers wearing a

fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

in the background. File:DenizTayyareMektebi.jpg, Ottoman naval aviators of the Naval Flight School (''Deniz Tayyare Mektebi'') at

; ''left to right'': pilot Ahmet Ali (Çelikten), Sami (Uçan), İhsan and observer Hüseyin Kâmil (Görgün). File:Ottoman Pilots.jpg, Ottoman pilots in 1914/1915 next to a Blériot XI-2

monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...

. Ahmet Ali Çelikten can be seen next to the propeller.''

References

External links

"Dünyanın ilk siyah pilotu: Arap Ahmet" (World's first Black pilot)
NTVMSNBC, 7 March 2011.
"Dünyanın ilk siyah pilotu: Arap Ahmet"
photo gallery in the website of ''

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory o ...

''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Celikten, Ahmet Ali 1883 births 1969 deaths People from İzmir People from Aidin vilayet Turkish people of Nigerian descent Aviators from the Ottoman Empire Aviation pioneers Turkish aviators Naval aviators Ottoman Navy officers Ottoman military personnel of World War I World War I pilots from the Ottoman Empire Military aviation in the Ottoman Empire Turkish military personnel of the Turkish War of Independence Turkish Navy officers Nigerian people of World War I Black aviators

Biography

Legacy

Gallery

References

Further reading

External links