New Lafayette Escadrille Book

[Gregvan]

Hi All,

Speaking of the Lafayette escadrille, you can now forget about bad Tab Hunter movies and read the real story. Many of you already know this, but Jon Guttman's book in Osprey's Aviation Elite series has just come out. I hope I do this right:

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/titl...hp/title=57522

I'm not an unbiased reviewer, since Jon is an old friend of mine and I also write for Osprey. However, being as objective as I can, this is a GREAT book. 128 pages, about 115 photos, 39 color profile augmented by 8 planforms, loads of appendices. Jon is a very entertaining writer, and the book is chock full of first-hand accounts and descriptions of all the unique characters of the Escadrille. It places these fascinating personalities in the context of their time and reveals the impact they had.

Many of the photos and color schemes were new to me.

All for about $22.

Greg VanWyngarden

[Shooter]

*pointing at Greg* What he says!


Shooter sends

[Yeoman]

Mine was on the mat waiting for me yesterday ( along with the companion JG Nr 1 volume)
Although I haven't seriously sat down to read it , I have browsed through it , and it looks very good indeed! These titles are just right for me as I also build up large units of aircraft for gaming!

Can't wait for JG2 and the 'Storks'!

[MikeW]

There is absolutely no criticism intended, but I fail to see how the Lafayette Escadrille relates to an Aviation Elite classification in the manner that units such as JG1 or the Storks quite obviously do.


By the way Greg, the link got to Osprey but to a "dead" page.

try this:

Lafayette


Mike

[Gregvan]

Hi Mike,

Yes, I think the "Aviation Elite" units classification is a pretty loose one, if you look at their WWII titles and others in the same series. To complement their "Men-At-Arms" series they first came up with an "Elite" military unit series, which were bigger books with more information and more info than the regulation "Men-At-Arms" series, for subjects that required more coverage than the usual MAA version. I think the Aviation Elite Series works on the same theory; the "Aircraft of the Aces" series are 96 pages each, and you can't really cover the history of any particular unit in them, as space and the format of the series doesn't permit it. So the "Elite" series (with 128 pages, and more room for larger photo reproduction and -sometimes-more color pages) was designed to cover Squadron histories, and not all are necessarily "elite" units in the usual sense.

Having said that, I'm sure that the Lafayette Escadrille was chosen for its high name recognition value and ready audience, just as 'Richthofen's Circus' was. And yes, while SPA124 was not very "elite" in terms of the number of victories attained (and Jon G admits this right off the bat) you could say it was elite in other ways. Many of its members came from the wealthiest and most respected families in the states, and some were millionaires' sons. One didn't HAVE to come from "old money" to get in the Lafayette, but it did help. Lufbery, the top scorer by far, was of course one of the exceptions! Troublemakers or ne'er do wells from the wrong side of the tracks, such as Bert Hall and Thomas "Horrible" Hewitt, were persuaded to leave the unit in one way or another if they didn't work out. That, and the fact that this unit was very famous in both France and America almost from its creation (in spite of its modest military accomplishments) adds weight to the 'elite' classification. Its propaganda value was immediately recognized, so it was very well-covered in the pressand efforts were made to keep the standard of conduct high in the unit.

So what other WWI units might actually fit better? Certainly 56 Squadron. The top scoring RFC/RAF unit was No 20 Sqn, right? I seem to recall they also had a VERY high casualty rate - were they 'elite' or not? How about 85 Squadron, or (dare I say it) 60 Squadron?

How about Naval 10? Nah, that's been done.

Jasta Boelcke and Jasta 5 certainly , which have both been subjects of recent books.

Any others?

Greg

[RAGIII]

I ordered mine from Wal Mart.Com. $13.85 ea! That being said, I am looking forward to both! I agree that in terms of Victories N./SPA. 124 was not very Elite. I do believe that the Influence of these Gallant Young Men in their Flying Machines Sparked Enough Interest in the American puplic to influence future American Aviation and Squadrons! These men,(those that survived long enough) went on to become Squadron, Flight, and Group Commanders! Also I think 19,and 43 Squadron could be included in this series(RAF that is).
RAGIII

[RAGIII]

I got my copy today. No time to read but the pictures and profile drawings are excellent. More photos of Aircraft than my expensive Lafayette Flying Corps book! I am very impressed. Need more Nieuport and SPAD models now!
RAGIII

[Barrett]

Concur w/Greg that the "elite" series involves some mighty "regular" organizations including a coupla WWDeuce fighter groups that simply did their job competently. But ya gotta remember that by definition, a series involves multiple volumes, and that often requires expanding coverage to available authors and data.

Ain't no way that N.124 was elite in the military sense, and evidently Jon G. acknowledges that fact in his text (IMO, 34 morts in two years flunks the elite title in WW I fershure.) But today, when the entire Army of One is called "elite," well, standards are bound to slacken with passage of time.

[Zeppelin]

IMHO, I think we can safely substitute "famous" for elite in this series. However, given the high spirits pf the men in this squadron, they probably would have considered themselves "elite." I just got the book and love it. Now I'm looking forward to other books in this series.

Best regards,
Zeppelin