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.
World War I Romanian aces
editDuring 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 |
World War I Romanian airmen who achieved at least 1 victory
editThe following list includes all Romanian airmen who achieved at least 1 victory, including shared, unconfirmed and those achieved in 1919.[a]
| 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 |
Other World War I aces born on the territory of modern-day Romania
editTwo 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 |
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ This list might not be complete.
- ^ a b Orzeață, Mihail; Avram, Valeriu (2018). "Romanian Aviation in the First World War" (PDF). Romanian Military Thinking (3/2018): 230.
- ^ Armă, Alexandru; Avram, Valeriu (2018). Aeronautica română în Războiul de Întregire națională 1916-1919 (PDF) (in Romanian). Editura Vremea. p. 51.
References
edit- Armă, Alexandru; Avram, Valeriu (2018). Aeronautica română în Războiul de Întregire națională 1916-1919 (in Romanian). Editura Vremea.
- Marius-Adrian Nicoară (2017). "Despre Așii Aviației Române în Războiul de Întregire națională" (PDF). Buletinul Arhivelor Militare Române (in Romanian). No. 78. pp. 9–17.
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