Images Dated 16th August 2006

Raoul Lufbery, French-American fighter pilot and flying ace of World War I, 1914-1918. Artist: Unknown

Raoul Lufbery, French-American fighter pilot and flying ace of World War I, 1918. Born in Clermont-Ferrand, Lufbery (1885-1918) moved to the United States when 6 years old. With the outbreak of the First World War he joined the French Foreign Legion before transferring to the French Air Service, then joining the US Air Service when America entered the war. Lufbery achieved his first kill over Verdun on 30 July 1916 and ended up with 17 victories before he was killed falling (possibly jumping) from his burning plane on 19 May 1918

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Lieutenant Georges Guynemer meeting French generals, 19 February 1917. Artist: Unknown

Lieutenant Georges Guynemer meeting French generals, 19 February 1917. Generals Foch, Gerard, Guillaumat, and Lyautey inspecting one of the aircraft of Guynemer's squadron, Groupe de Chasse No 12, known as 'The Storks'. Georges Guynemer, French fighter ace, c1916. Guynemer (1894-1917) became the first French ace to attain 50 victories, a mark he reached at the end of July 1917. As his tally grew, Guynemer was lionized by the French press and became a national hero, with his exploits going some way to taking the public's mind off the appalling losses being sustained in the trenches at the time. On 11 September 1917, with a total of 53 kills to his credit, Guynemer was apparently shot down after attacking a German observation plane. Neither his aeroplane nor his body were ever found

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German aviators shot down by French ace Jean Navarre, 1916. Artist: Unknown

German aviators shot down by French ace Jean Navarre, 1916. Jean Navarre (1895-1919) gained the distinction of being designated France's first air ace of the First World War. He gained the nickname the 'Sentinel of Verdun' for his exploits during the battle fought there in 1916 and downed 12 enemy aircraft before being shot down himself on 17 June suffering head injuries so severe that he spent the next two years in an asylum. Navarre never returned to aerial combat but, having been chosen to make a celebratory flight through the Arc de Triomphe in 1919, was killed when he crashed practicing for the event

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