Rene Fonck

[saruffin]

I have read that René Fonck was a Nazi collaborator during WWII, and that he helped recruit French pilots to fly with the Germans against the Allies.

Can anyone verify or refute?

And, if it is true, why would he do this?

What, if any, criminal action was taken against him after the war? sar

[Michael]

According to this site he was arrested, but there is no information as to what happened. Probably charges were not pressed, but whether for lack of evidence, political pressure (unlikely given what happened to Petain), or if he was cleared, is unknown.

http://www.geocities.com/~orion47/FR...ch_Trials.html

In August 1940 Pierre Laval stated that Fonck had recruited 200 French airmen to fight England, but this may have been propaganda.

[Barrett]

I do not recall the source, but evidently Fonck became friendly with Goering between the wars, reportedly as a result of "old comrades" meetings. It's possible that the HG affiliation was held against Fonck, and in the liberation period a more specific charge was instigated.
But hell...Maurice Chevalier and Coco Chanel were friendly with the Germans. The extent of collaboration was massive, to the extent that RAF debriefs of escapers/evaders were still classified a few years ago (maybe still are.) The rationale: airmen Named Names of known collaborators.
Break-break
A flying bud of mine was shot down in his B-26 just after D-Day. The Germans nabbed him...lapse-dissolve, fade to day. In 1994 he returned to France and visited the village where his bird crashed. The locals were grandly hospitable and even dug up parts of the Marauder for him. One said that a jettisoned bomb fell on a house, killing the occupant. Walt was deeply remorseful but his guide said, "Not to worry m'seur. He was the leading collaborator in our town!"

You will find in a Time magazine from 1945, detailing the trials of Petain and Laval, this little nugget:

Question: what is the definition of a collaborator?

Answer: someone who collaborated more than you.

Captain "HUAC" Lewis

[Michael]

Certainly I have run across nothing about Armee de l'Air aircraft serving against Britain during the Battle of Britain, unlike the Italians. If such a plan ever existed it would have been shelved due to the high probability of mass defections once they crossed the Channel.

There were air combats both in Syria and during Operation Torch in North Africa. See the Osprey book on French Aces 1939-45.