| Romanian Air Force |
|---|
  |
| History |
| Aircraft |
| Structure |
| Personnel |
During the campaigns of 1916-1919, Romanian airmen achieved about 10,000 flight hours, had about 700 aerial fights and shot down some 51 [1] -91 [2] enemy aircraft, including observation balloons.
During the First World War, 4 airmen of the Romanian Air Corps earned more than 5 victories. However, by Romanian air victory standards (no shared victories counted), only one of them was considered an ace, Dumitru Bădulescu. As an air observer, he only shared victories with his pilot.
The following list includes all Romanian airmen who have achieved 5 or more victories, including shared and unconfirmed ones.
| Name | Brevet | Victories | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cpt. Gheorghe Mihăilescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 19/1 October 1913 | 8 | 4 shared [1] |
| Slt. Dumitru-Cicerone Bădulescu (observer) | Brevet no. 78/24 June 1917 | 8 | 3 unconfirmed Only ace by Romanian standards |
| Slt. Marin Popescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 44/3 June 1915 | 5 | 1 shared |
| Sgt. Nicolae Mănescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 109 bis/12 December 1916 | 5 | 4 shared |
The following list includes all Romanian airmen who achieved at least 1 victory, including shared, unconfirmed and those achieved in 1919. [lower-alpha 1]
| Name | Brevet | Victories | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petre Ioanin (pilot) | Brevet no. 74/14 December 1915 | 4 | shared with the observer |
| Egon Nasta (pilot) | Brevet no. 99/23 August 1916 | 4 | 1 shared |
| Vasile Craiu (pilot) | Brevet no. 59/13 August 1915 | 3 | 1 shared |
| Grigore Gafencu (observer) | Brevet no. 80/1 July 1917 | 3 | shared with the pilot |
| Ion Dragomirescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 108 bis/15 November 1916 | 3 | 2 achieved while flying for France 1 in 1919 |
| Stan Bucur (pilot) | Brevet no. 37/24 November 1914 | 3 | shared with the observer 1 in 1919 |
| Ioan Georgescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 42/3 June 1915 | 3 | 1 shared |
| Panait Cholet (pilot) | Brevet no. 31/18 July 1914 | 2 | shared with the observer |
| Dumitru Darian (observer) | Brevet no. 72/17 May 1917 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Ermil Gheorghiu (observer) | Brevet no. 19/4 September 1915 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Gheorghe Gheorghiu (pilot) | Brevet no. 98/29 August 1916 | 2 | 1 shared |
| Constantin Gonta (observer) | Brevet no. 74/8 June 1917 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Ioan Ralea Ioanid (observer) | Brevet no. 70/19 April 1917 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Marcel Drăgușanu (pilot) | Brevet from France | 2 | achieved in the same mission damaged a 3rd aircraft on the same mission |
| Carol Pauchert (pilot) | Brevet no. 78/3 March 1916 | 2 | 1 shared |
| Dumitru Crăsnaru (pilot) | Brevet no. 80/4 March 1915 | 2 | 1 shared with the observer |
| Nicolae "Nae" Cicei (pilot) | Brevet no. 60/13 August 1915 | 2 | shared with the observer |
| Ion Muntenescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 102/23 August 1916 | 2 | achieved in the same mission |
| Constantin Pârvulescu (observer) | Brevet no. 75/10 June 1917 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Ștefan Iliescu (observer) | Brevet no. 88/6 July 1916 | 2 | shared with the pilot |
| Gheorghe Negrescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 3/17 July 1911 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Vasile Alexăndreanu (pilot) | Brevet no. 28/10 July 1914 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Cicerone Olănescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 38/16 May 1915 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Ştefan Sănătescu (observer) | Brevet no. 73/1 June 1917 | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Aurel Constantinescu (observer) | Brevet from France | 1 | shared with the pilot in 1919 |
| Nicolae Drosso (pilot) | Brevet no. 151/11 April 1919 | 1 | shared with the observer in 1919 |
| Nistor Grecu (pilot) | Brevet no. 149 bis/14 March 1919 | 1 | shared with the observer in 1919 |
| Mihail Hurmuzescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 144/29 October 1918 | 1 | shared with the pilot (flew as an observer) in 1919 |
| Iosif Răcășanu (pilot) | Brevet no. 111/5 May 1917 | 1 | in 1919 |
| Ioan Sava (pilot) | Brevet no. 130/12 July 1918 | 1 | shared with the observer in 1919 ex-Austro-Hungarian pilot |
| Dumitru Sfetescu (observer) | 1 | shared with the pilot in 1919 | |
| Alexandru Vasilescu (observer) | Brevet no. 87/26 August 1917 | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Mihai Vitzu (balloon observer) | Brevet no. 5/1 June 1917 | 1 | while in the basket of his balloon |
| Ioan Vlad (observer) | possibly a foreign brevet | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Ion Barzon (pilot and observer) | Brevet no. 83/7 August 1917 (observer) Brevet no. 141/29 October 1918 (pilot) | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Ioan Dumitrescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 32/18 July 1914 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Paul Magâlea (pilot) | Brevet no. 43/3 June 1915 | 1 | |
| Gheorghe Stâlpeanu (pilot) | Brevet no. 123/31 May 1918 | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Ioan Gruia (observer) | Brevet no. 50/5 June 1915 | 1 | shared with the pilot |
| Dumitru Naidinescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 84 /22 March 1916 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Nicolae Tănase (pilot) | Brevet no. 35/6 October 1914 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Anghel Gănțoiu (pilot) | Brevet no. 40/16 May 1915 | 1 | unconfirmed |
| Nae "Mitralieră" Iliescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 93/6 July 1916 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Andrei Șișu (pilot) | Brevet no. 41/16 May 1915 | 1 | shared with the observer |
| Dumitru Teodorescu (pilot) | Brevet no. 49/5 June 1915 | 1 | shared with the observer |
Two other aces of the war were born on the territory of present-day Romania. Both serving in the K.u.K. Luftfahrtruppen.
| Name | Victories | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Rudolf Weber | 6 | born in Sighișoara, Transylvania in 1890 |
| Karl Patzelt | 5 (2 shared) | born in Craiova, Romania in 1893 |
Romania has a rich tradition in aviation. At the beginning of the 20th century, pioneers such as Henri Coandă, Aurel Vlaicu, Traian Vuia and George Valentin Bibescu made important contributions to early aviation history, building revolutionary airplanes and contributing to the international scene.
The Nieuport 11, nicknamed the Bébé, is a French World War I single seat sesquiplane fighter aircraft, designed by Gustave Delage. It was the primary aircraft that ended the Fokker Scourge in 1916. The type saw service with several of France's allies, and gave rise to the series of "vee-strut" Nieuport fighters that remained in service into the 1920s.
The Hansa-Brandenburg C.I, also known as Type LDD, was a 2-seater armed single-engine reconnaissance biplane designed by Ernst Heinkel, who worked at that time for the parent company in Germany. The C.I had similarities with the earlier B.I, including inward-sloping interplane bracing struts. Like other early-war Austro-Hungarian reconnaissance aircraft, such as C-types of Lloyd or Lohner, the Type LDD had a communal cockpit for its crew.
The air commanders of World War I were army or navy officers who came to command air services during the first major conflict in which air power played a significant role.
Friedrich Hefty, also referred to as Frigyes Hefty, was a World War I Austro-Hungarian flying ace credited with five confirmed and five unconfirmed aerial victories. His early interest in aviation led him to drop out of school in 1913 and become a glider pilot. When World War I began, he served first as an aerial observer, then as a pilot. He scored his first aerial victory as an observer, on 7 October 1915. Once he became a pilot, he claimed nine other victories, four of which were verified. On 22 August 1918, he became one of the first combat pilots to bail out using a parachute. Hefty ended the war with ten awards of the Medal for Bravery.
Augustin Novák, sometimes referred to as Novak or Nowak was an Austro-Hungarian World War I flying ace credited with five or seven aerial victories. A prewar soldier, who had joined the horse artillery in 1911, he participated in the early Battle of Krasnik against the Russians, winning a Silver Medal for Bravery. After transferring to aviation service in January 1916, he became a two-seater pilot on the Russian, Romanian, and Italian Fronts. His aerial victories earned him two more awards of the Medal for Bravery, both First Class. He was then removed from combat to become an instructor in January 1918.
Adjutant Charles Alfred Revol-Tissot was a French World War I flying ace credited with five aerial victories.
The Romanian Air Corps or Aviation Corps (RAC) was the air arm of the Romanian army until the formation of the Romanian Air Force. It was established on 1 April 1913 as the Military Aeronautics Service and subordinated to the Engineer Inspectorate, being organized in two branches – the aviation and the balloon branch. On 23 August 1915, the RAC was formed as an independent military arm and operated until 1 January 1924 when it became an equal to the Army and Navy, being redesignated as the Royal Romanian Air Force.
The French Military Mission to Romania was a mission led by General Berthelot, and sent from France to help Romania during World War I. French officers, aviators and medical staff trained and supported the Romanian Army. As the Bolsheviks took power in Russia and began negotiations for ending hostilities, Romania signed an armistice in December 1917 and the military mission had to be sent back to France.
The UFAG C.I was a military reconnaissance aircraft produced in the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I, by the Ungarische Flugzeugfabrik Abteil Gesellschaft (UFAG). It was introduced in April 1918, and was widely used on the Italian Front in the final months of World War I.
Rezerva generală a aviației (RGA) or the General Aviation Reserve in English was a Romanian aircraft factory founded during the First World War. It operated between 1916 and 1919 in Iași. After the war it was transferred to Bucharest and renamed to Arsenalul Aeronautic. The maintenance, repair, and assembly of the aircraft and aircraft engines received by Romania during the war took place here.
Ștefan Protopopescu was a Romanian officer and aviation pioneer, he held the no. 1 pilot license in Romania, being the first licensed pilot in Romania and the first pilot of the Romanian Army.
Grupul 2 Aeronautic, also known as Grupul 2 Aviație was one of the three groups of the Romanian Air Corps created following the aviation reorganization in the winter of 1916/1917. In the 1920s, it was transformed into the 2nd Bombardment Group, then into the 1st Fighter Flotilla in 1937.
Grupul 1 Aeronautic, also known as Grupul 1 Aviație was one of the three groups of the Romanian Air Corps created following the aviation reorganization in the winter of 1916/1917. After the war, the Group was eventually transformed into the 1st Reconnaissance Group, then into the 1st Aviation Flotilla in 1929.
Dumitru-Cicerone Bădulescu was Romania's only World War I ace. Born in Pitești into a family of career soldiers, after graduating from high school he attended the Military School for Infantry Officers and was awarded the rank of Sublocotenent. Like many of the young Romanian officers, Bădulescu felt drawn towards the then-fledgling Aviation Corps and applied for transfer. He got his wish in September 1916, when he was assigned to Grupul 2 Escadrile as an observer.
Gheorghe Mihăilescu was a Romanian World War I pilot, credited with 4 victories by Romanian standards, but with a total of 8 victories, including shared ones.
The 2nd Guard Aviation Flotilla, also known as Flotila 2 Aeronautică de Gardă was an Aviation Flotilla of the Royal Romanian Air Force formed in 1929 following the general restructuring of the Air Force. In 1930, it became patroned by King Carol II, being designated as a Guard unit a year later.
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)