Aeronáutica Militar Española

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Emblem of the Aeronáutica Militar Española 1913

The Aeronáutica Militar Española was the first name used by the Spanish Air Force from 1910 until the beginning of the Spanish Civil War . It was located within the land forces Ejército de Tierra . Aeronáutica Militar, together with Aeronáutica Naval , is considered to be the forerunner of today's Spanish Ejército del Aire .

history

On April 2, 1910, the Aeronáutica Militar was founded and began with free balloons for military reconnaissance and tethered balloons that were moored to the ground and supported the land forces. The birth of military aviation in Spain with fixed-wing aircraft was on February 2, 1911, when the first aircraft, a Farman MF7, flew for the first time at the Cuatro Vientos airfield in Madrid, and the training of military pilots at the newly established military flight school began. By a royal decree of February 28, 1913, the first Servicio de Aeronáutica Militar was created. Two departments were established with the balloon and aviation unit. On April 16, 1913, the emblem that is still in use today was introduced. Pedro Vives Vich (1858-1938) was the first commander of the Aeronáutica Militar Española.

Lohner 1913

In 1913, Aeronáutica Militar Española flew its first military mission in Tétouan in Morocco with aircraft from the Austrian aircraft manufacturer  Ludwig Lohner .

Under the direction of Pedro Vives Vich, the first military aircraft were built in Spain between 1916 and 1919. This was a series of single-engine biplanes built by the Spanish Sociedad Española de Construcciones Aeronáuticas y Similares  (SECAS) founded in 1915 .

During the Spanish Civil War , military aviation was divided into the Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española (FARE) and the Aviación Nacional (National Air Force), which fought on the side of the putschists under General Franco . After the death of Pedro Vives Vich in 1938, Alfredo Kindelán Duany became the commander of the Spanish Air Force, and on October 7, 1939, the Ejército del Aire received the official status of a military service .

literature

  • Emilio Herrera Alonso: "SANTANDER TUVO LA PRIMERA FÁBRICA DE AVIONES DE ESPAÑA". Cantabria Autónoma (nº 22), 1986, pp. 36-38

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