Michael Moutoussis ( el, Μιχαήλ Μουτούσης, 1885 – 16 March 1956) was a

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the ...

officer and pioneer of

military aviation Military aviation comprises military aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling aerial warfare, including national airlift ( air cargo) capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a war the ...

. Together with

Aristeidis Moraitinis Aristeidis Moraitinis (Greek: Αριστείδης Μωραïτίνης; 1806–1875) was born in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire (now İzmir, Turkey). He was educated in France, but during the reign of King Otto, he was a staunch member of the French ...

, he performed the first naval air mission in history during the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

Early career

Moutoussis, originally an Engineers officer, became one of the first six Greek officers in 1912 that were selected to receive aviation training in France, in order to man the newly established aviation branch of the Hellenic Army. In the following

(1912–1913) he initially carried out bombing missions on Turkish positions. At the beginning of December 1912, he was positioned in the Epirus front, where he performed various scouting and bombing operations in the region around

Ioannina Ioannina ( el, Ιωάννινα ' ), often called Yannena ( ' ) within Greece, is the capital and largest city of the Ioannina regional unit and of Epirus, an administrative region in north-western Greece. According to the 2011 census, the c ...

. At the end of the month he was ordered to move to the Aegean front of the war, where he took part in the Battle of Lemnos.

Reconnaissance over the Dardanelles

On a few days after the Greek naval victory at Lemnos, First Lieutenant Moutoussis and Ensign

were ordered to spot the position of the retreated Ottoman fleet in the

Dardanelles The Dardanelles (; tr, Çanakkale Boğazı, lit=Strait of Çanakkale, el, Δαρδανέλλια, translit=Dardanéllia), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli from the Gallipoli peninsula or from Classical Antiquity as the Hellespont (; ...

with their seaplane, a converted Maurice Farman MF.7. When they reached the

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

naval base they noted down the Turkish ships and installations. Additionally, before they left the area they dropped four bombs, but without inflicting any serious damage or casualties. During the return flight an engine failure forced them down in the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek language, Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish language, Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It ...

and they were finally collected by the crew of the nearby . This operation is regarded as the first naval-air operation in military history and was widely commented upon in the press, both Greek and international. Velos- 24 January 1913

Moutoussis also participated in the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of German ...

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 ...

as well as in the

Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) The Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, ota, گرب جابهاسی, Garb Cebhesi) in Turkey, and the Asia Minor Campaign ( el, Μικρασιατική Εκστρατεία, Mikrasiatikí Ekstrateía) or the Asia Minor Catastrophe ( el, Μικ ...

, where he was positioned in Proussa Air Field."History of the Hellenic Air Force", Vol. II, 1919-1929
Hellenic Air Force Publications .

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moutoussis, Michael 1885 births 1956 deaths Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Greek military personnel of World War I Hellenic Army officers Greek aviators People from Achaea