1.
Morane-Saulnier
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Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier is a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Leon and Robert. The company was taken over and diversified in the 1960s, morane-Saulniers first product was the Model A, a development of a monoplane design produced by the Morane company. Using a wing-warping mechanism for control, this was the type in which Jules Védrines won the Paris-Madrid race on May 26,1911, morane-Saulniers first commercially successful design was the Morane-Saulnier G, a wire-braced shoulder-wing monoplane with wing warping. This led to the development of a series of aircraft and was successful in racing and setting records. The Type G was a 2-seater, and was reduced slightly in size to produce the Morane-Saulnier H, a single-seater, the Morane-Saulnier H was modified so that its wings were mounted parasol fashion, above the fuselage to afford the observer a better view, creating the Morane-Saulnier L. The Type N was developed into the larger and more powerful Morane-Saulnier I and the very similar Morane-Saulnier V, the V was then redesigned to create the Morane-Saulnier AC which substituted ailerons for wing warping and had a strut-braced wing. The AI lost out in the competition to the SPAD XIII but was built in limited numbers in case there was a problem with the SPAD, in parallel to the L the Morane-Saulnier BB was developed for the RFC, which was a Type P built as a biplane. Because the type BB when pronounced in French sounds like Bebe, most of these types had no fixed fin, or horizontal stabilizer, with the result that they were not only very sensitive on the controls, but also could not even be flown hands off. One early pilot noted that if one left the aircraft to its own devices it would end up going upside down in the opposite direction. Despite this, many were used as trainers, including a great many that had their wings stripped so they couldnt fly and this was flown with success by Roland Garros, who would later be considered to be the first French Ace. A similar system was fitted to the Type N pending the arrival of machine guns. While flying his modified Type L, Garros crashed on the German side of the lines, after the war, Morane-Saulnier produced a number of designs for training and general aviation, but with the threat of war in the late thirties it once again turned to military aircraft. During the late 1920s and early 1930s, it produced a number of parasol wing fighters including the M. S.230 and M. S.315, but all were of limited performance and were relegated to training duties. Moraine-Saulnier had much success with its dramatically modernized M. S.406. Unfortunately, the 406 was advanced only for its introduction in 1935, during World War II, Morane-Saulnier was operated under German control and built a number of German types including the Fieseler Storch, known after the war as the Morane-Saulnier MS.500 Criquet. Morane-Saulnier also produced a number of trainer and civilian aircraft models, Morane-Saulnier was purchased by Potez on January 7,1962 and became SEEMS, the Societe dExploitation des Etablissements Morane-Saulnier. In 1966 its civilian models were spun off to form SOCATA, the Societe de Construction dAvions de Tourisme et dAffaires, the company and Saulnier himself had a significant role in the development of the concept of synchronising machine gun fire through an aircrafts propeller. Morane-Saulnier MS.317 vintage aeroplane is for sale, in UK
2.
Morane-Saulnier L
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The Morane-Saulnier L, also known as the Morane-Saulnier Type L was a French parasol wing one or two-seat scout aeroplane of the First World War. Its immediate effectiveness in this role launched a race in fighter development. The original Type L used wing warping for control, but a later version designated Type LA was fitted with ailerons. Built by Morane-Saulnier, large numbers of the Type L were ordered by the French Aviation Militaire at the outbreak of the war, being designated the MS.3. In total about 600 Type Ls were built and, in addition to the French air force, they served with the Royal Flying Corps, Royal Naval Air Service and the Imperial Russian Air Service. The type was produced under licence in Germany by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke as the unarmed A. I and A. II scouts. About 60 were built for Bavarian air service, a few were later modified as the E. III fighters. A few Type Ls captured by Germany were fitted with a single German Spandau LMG08 machine gun and these captured and converted aircraft are often mistaken for Pfalz E. IIIs. About 450 aircraft were licence-built in Russia by Duks and Lebed works, the Morane-Saulnier L was also built under licence in Sweden as the Thulin D. However the firing rate fluctuated too much for the synchronizer to function properly, as an interim measure, they then designed a safety backup in the form of braced deflectors fitted to the rear surfaces of the propeller blades at the points where they could be struck by a bullet. Garros took his Type L fighter into combat with the deflectors in March 1915 and achieved immediate success, the copper and brass-jacketed bullets that the French used were not likely to damage the harder steel of the wedges themselves. On 18 April 1915, Garros deflector-equipped Type L force-landed behind German lines and was captured before he could burn it, ironically, three two-seat Morane Type L aircraft were also the first victims of a production fighter. Leutnant Kurt Wintgens, flying the Parabellum machine gun-armed Fokker Eindecker M. 5K/MG production prototype E, about 50 Type Ls were delivered to Britains Royal Flying Corps, which used them as reconnaissance aircraft during 1915, with a further 25 being operated by the Royal Naval Air Service. Warneford received the Victoria Cross for this achievement, L basic model LA improved L with faired fuselage A. I with Oberursel U.0 engine A. II with Oberursel U. I engine E. III - A Pfalz A. II aircraft. Ukraine Ukrainian Air Force - Three aircraft, Soviet Union Soviet Air Force - ex-Imperial Russian Air Service aircraft
3.
Royal Flying Corps
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The Royal Flying Corps was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War, until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC supported the British Army by artillery co-operation, at the start of World War I the RFC, commanded by Brigadier-General Sir David Henderson, consisted of five squadrons – one observation balloon squadron and four aeroplane squadrons. These were first used for spotting on 13 September 1914. Aerial photography was attempted during 1914, but again only became effective the next year, by 1918, photographic images could be taken from 15,000 feet and were interpreted by over 3,000 personnel. By this time parachutes had been used by balloonists for three years, on 17 August 1917, South African General Jan Smuts presented a report to the War Council on the future of air power. On 1 April 1918, the RFC and the RNAS were amalgamated to form a new service, after starting in 1914 with some 2,073 personnel, by the start of 1919 the RAF had 4,000 combat aircraft and 114,000 personnel in some 150 squadrons. The recommendations of the committee were accepted and on 13 April 1912 King George V signed a royal warrant establishing the Royal Flying Corps, the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers became the Military Wing of the Royal Flying Corps a month later on 13 May. The Flying Corps initial allowed strength was 133 officers, and by the end of year it had 12 manned balloons and 36 aeroplanes. The RFC originally came under the responsibility of Brigadier-General Henderson, the Director of Military Training, and had branches for the Army. Major Sykes commanded the Military Wing and Commander C R Samson commanded the Naval Wing, the RFCs motto was Per ardua ad astra. This remains the motto of the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces, the RFCs first fatal crash was on 5 July 1912 near Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain. Loraine and his observer, Staff Sergeant R. H. V, an order was issued after the crash stating Flying will continue this evening as usual, thus beginning a tradition. Four months later on 11 December 1912 Parke was killed when the Handley Page monoplane in which he was flying from Hendon to Oxford crashed. The Naval Wing, with pilots and aircraft than the Military Wing. In November 1914 the Royal Flying Corps, even taking the loss of the Naval Wing into account, had expanded sufficiently to warrant the creation of wings consisting of two or more squadrons and these wings were commanded by lieutenant-colonels. In October 1915 the Royal Flying Corps had undergone further expansion which justified the creation of brigades, further expansion led to the creation of divisions, with the Training Division being established in August 1917 and RFC Middle East, being raised to divisional status in December 1917. Finally, the air raids on London and the south-east of England led to the creation of the London Air Defence Area in August 1917 under the command of Ashmore who was promoted to major-general. Two of the first three RFC squadrons were formed from the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers, No.1 Company becoming No.1 Squadron, RFC, a second heavier-than-air squadron, No.2 Squadron, RFC, was also formed on the same day
4.
Wiener Neustadt
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Wiener Neustadt is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in north-east Austria. It is a city and the seat of the district administration of Wiener Neustadt-Land. The area once belonged to the County of Pitten, which had inherited by Margrave Ottokar III of Styria in 1158. After the dynasty of the Otakars became extinct with the death of his son Ottokar IV, in 1241, a small Mongol squadron raided Neustadt during the Mongol invasion of Europe but was later repulsed by Duke Friederich and his knights. Wiener Neustadt, meaning more or less New Vienna, gained important privileges given to the city in order to enable it to prosper. It remained a part of Styria, which after the 1278 Battle on the Marchfeld fell to the House of Habsburg and in 1379 became a constituent duchy of Inner Austria. In the 15th century, Wiener Neustadt experienced a population boom and his wife, Eleanor of Portugal, died in Wiener Neustadt in 1467. The Wappenwand at the castle displays the coats of arms of his possessions in the middle. His son Maximilian I maintained his court in Wiener Neustadt and is buried here at St. Georges Cathedral. The town then also had a significant Jewish commune with Rabbi Israel Isserlin as its most notable member, habsburgs long-time rival King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary conquered the city in August 1487 after having laid siege to it for two years. According to legend he dedicated the magnificent Corvinus Cup to the inhabitants after his victory, Maximilian I managed to reconquer his native city in 1490. During the 16th century, Wiener Neustadt lost its status as imperial residence, however, it still fulfilled its function as bulwark against the Turks and the Kuruc. In 1751 the city received attention when Empress Maria Theresa of Austria decided to dedicate the First Military Academy. In 1752, the Theresian Military Academy took up its operations, in 1768, Wiener Neustadt was destroyed by an earthquake that damaged the castle, which was rebuilt using plans made by the architect Nicolò Pacassi. In 1785, Emperor Joseph II of Habsburg transferred the see of the Wiener Neustadt diocese to Sankt Pölten, in the 19th century the city became an industrial town, especially after the opening of the Austrian Southern Railway in 1841. In 1909, the first official Austrian airfield was inaugurated north of the city and it served as a training ground for the flight pioneers Igo Etrich, Karl Illner and Adolf Warchalowski, who conducted their tests there. Bombing operations such as Operation Pointblank left only 18 of 4,000 buildings undamaged, the average monthly temperatures are generally cool, with summer months reaching 21–26 °C and winter months reaching a few degrees above freezing in the daytime. The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785, the choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century
5.
Mediterranean Sea
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The sea is sometimes considered a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a separate body of water. The name Mediterranean is derived from the Latin mediterraneus, meaning inland or in the middle of land and it covers an approximate area of 2.5 million km2, but its connection to the Atlantic is only 14 km wide. The Strait of Gibraltar is a strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Gibraltar. In oceanography, it is called the Eurafrican Mediterranean Sea or the European Mediterranean Sea to distinguish it from mediterranean seas elsewhere. The Mediterranean Sea has a depth of 1,500 m. The sea is bordered on the north by Europe, the east by Asia and it is located between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 6° W and 36° E. Its west-east length, from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Gulf of Iskenderun, the seas average north-south length, from Croatia’s southern shore to Libya, is approximately 800 km. The Mediterranean Sea, including the Sea of Marmara, has an area of approximately 2,510,000 square km. The sea was an important route for merchants and travelers of ancient times that allowed for trade, the history of the Mediterranean region is crucial to understanding the origins and development of many modern societies. In addition, the Gaza Strip and the British Overseas Territories of Gibraltar and Akrotiri, the term Mediterranean derives from the Latin word mediterraneus, meaning amid the earth or between land, as it is between the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe. The Ancient Greek name Mesogeios, is similarly from μέσο, between + γη, land, earth) and it can be compared with the Ancient Greek name Mesopotamia, meaning between rivers. The Mediterranean Sea has historically had several names, for example, the Carthaginians called it the Syrian Sea and latter Romans commonly called it Mare Nostrum, and occasionally Mare Internum. Another name was the Sea of the Philistines, from the people inhabiting a large portion of its shores near the Israelites, the sea is also called the Great Sea in the General Prologue by Geoffrey Chaucer. In Ottoman Turkish, it has also been called Bahr-i Sefid, in Modern Hebrew, it has been called HaYam HaTikhon, the Middle Sea, reflecting the Seas name in ancient Greek, Latin, and modern languages in both Europe and the Middle East. Similarly, in Modern Arabic, it is known as al-Baḥr al-Mutawassiṭ, in Turkish, it is known as Akdeniz, the White Sea since among Turks the white colour represents the west. Several ancient civilisations were located around the Mediterranean shores, and were influenced by their proximity to the sea. It provided routes for trade, colonisation, and war, as well as food for numerous communities throughout the ages, due to the shared climate, geology, and access to the sea, cultures centered on the Mediterranean tended to have some extent of intertwined culture and history. Two of the most notable Mediterranean civilisations in classical antiquity were the Greek city states, later, when Augustus founded the Roman Empire, the Romans referred to the Mediterranean as Mare Nostrum
6.
Bizerte
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Located 65 km north of the capital Tunis, the city had 142,966 inhabitants in 2014. Bizerte is known as the oldest and most European city in Tunisia and it was founded around 1100 BC by Semitic Phoenicians from Tyre. It is also known as the last town to remain under French control after the rest of the country won its independence from France, the city has several very different names in ancient authors. Scylax of Caryanda, who first mentioned the names Hippo Acra and Hippo Polis, the name of Hippo is certainly derived from a Phoenician word and not Ancient Greek, found in simple or compound state across North Africa to Spain. According to Polybius, the ancient Greeks added to Hippo, the nickname Diarrhytos, during the periods of the Romans, the Vandals and the Byzantine Empire, the city kept its names Hippo Diarrhytus and Hippo Zarytus. Its current Arabic name, drift of a transformation of its antique name. Initially a small Phoenician harbor for maritime trading in the western Mediterranean, located 30 kmin the north of Utica and 50 km of Carthage, other cities founded by Phoenicians. The town is shown on the Peutinger Map from around this time, from 534 AD to 642 AD, the city returned to eastern Romans under the Byzantine Empire, after a defeat of the vandals in 534, and they build the Fort of Bizerte. The city then became a harbour and struggled against the French. With the occupation of Tunisia in 1881, France gained control of Bizerte, the ships were never moved from the port and finally were sold there as scrap metal. In March 1939, towards the end of the Spanish Civil War, three cruisers, eight destroyers and two submarines left Cartagena harbor and reached Bizerte where they were impounded by the French authorities. During the Second World War, the German and Italian Army occupied Bizerte until Allied troops defeated them on 7 May 1943, during the fighting between the Allied forces and the German Army, many of the city inhabitants fled to the countryside or Tunis. The city had suffered significant damage during the battle, due to Bizertes strategic location on the Mediterranean, France retained control of the city and her naval base after Tunisian independence in 1956. In 1961 Tunisian forces blockaded the Area of Bizerte and demanded French withdrawal, the face off turned nasty when a French helicopter took off and drew fire. The French brought in reinforcements, when these were fired upon, using state of the art weapons and decisive force the French took Bizerte and Menzel Bourguiba. During the three days,700 Tunisians died, the French lost 24 dead, meetings at the UN security council, and other international pressure moved France to agreement, the French military finally abandoned Bizerte on 15 October 1963. Bizerte has to the west coastal hills forming an outcrop of the Tell Atlas with well-conserved woods and its associated beaches include Sidi Salem, La Grotte, Rasenjela, and Al Rimel. It is on a section of Mediterranean climate coastline, close to Sardinia and Sicily, North are Sidi Salam and Corniche
7.
Tunisia
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Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia is the northernmost country in Africa, covering 165,000 square kilometres. Its northernmost point, Cape Angela, is the northernmost point on the African continent and it is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisias population was estimated to be just under 11 million in 2014, Tunisias name is derived from its capital city, Tunis, which is located on Tunisias northeast coast. Geographically, Tunisia contains the end of the Atlas Mountains. Much of the rest of the land is fertile soil. Tunisia is a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic and it is considered to be the only full democracy in the Arab World. It has a human development index. In addition, Tunisia is also a state of the United Nations. Close relations with Europe – in particular with France and with Italy – have been forged through economic cooperation, privatisation, in ancient times, Tunisia was primarily inhabited by Berbers. Phoenician immigration began in the 12th century BC, these immigrants founded Carthage, a major mercantile power and a military rival of the Roman Republic, Carthage was defeated by the Romans in 146 BC. The Romans, who would occupy Tunisia for most of the eight hundred years, introduced Christianity. After several attempts starting in 647, the Arabs conquered the whole of Tunisia by 697, the Ottomans held sway for over three hundred years. The French colonization of Tunisia occurred in 1881, Tunisia gained independence with Habib Bourguiba and declared the Tunisian Republic in 1957. In 2011, the Tunisian Revolution resulted in the overthrow of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the country voted for parliament again on 26 October 2014, and for President on 23 November 2014. The word Tunisia is derived from Tunis, an urban hub. The present form of the name, with its Latinate suffix -ia, the French derivative Tunisie was adopted in some European languages with slight modifications, introducing a distinctive name to designate the country. Other languages remained untouched, such as the Russian Туни́с and Spanish Túnez, in this case, the same name is used for both country and city, as with the Arabic تونس, and only by context can one tell the difference. The name Tunis can be attributed to different origins and it is generally associated with the Berber root ⵜⵏⵙ, transcribed tns, which means to lay down or encampment
8.
Pfalz Flugzeugwerke
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Pfalz Flugzeugwerke was a World War I German aircraft manufacturer, located at the Speyer airfield in the Palatinate. They are best known for their series of fighters, notably the Pfalz D. III, the company went bankrupt after the Armistice, when the French occupation forces confiscated all of the equipment, but the factory was re-used by various other companies until re-forming in 1997. Today they are a parts manufacturer referred to as PFW, Pfalz was the brainchild of Alfred Eversbusch, son of a foundry owner in Neustadt an der Weinstraße. It appears that he had built his own aircraft between 1912 and 1913, although the origin of the design is unclear. They initially proposed to build designs from Albatros, but their attempts at a deal amounted to nothing and their next deal was with Gustav Otto Flugzeugwerke, building examples of his pusher-propeller biplane design. The original example was sent to Africa on a tour, the company had always planned to set up shop at the new airfield in Speyer, but they initially had problems securing land for a factory. The Gustav designs were built in the Speyer Festival Hall. It was not until February 6,1914, that the city agreed to sell Pfalz 7,000 m² to build their factory, construction was completed in July, only one month before the start of World War I. By this point, the company had arranged a license to produce Morane-Saulnier monoplanes, when these became uncompetitive on the Western Front, Pfalz shifted production to the LFG Roland D. I and D. II. The D. II was produced into late 1916, by which point it too was no longer competitive. III engine to create the Pfalz D. III. About 600 D. IIIs and slightly modified D. IIIas were built between its introduction in August and its replacement a year later, many were still in service at that time, about 450. Adaptations of the D. III with the new Siemens-Halske Sh. III rotary resulted in the Pfalz D. VIII, III proved to be rather unreliable due to the ersatz engine oil available, and only a small number of D. VIIIs were built. These did see use by Jasta 2 at least, although it is unclear how many were built in total. The D. VIII was also adapted to triplane configuration as the Pfalz Dr. I for entry in the First Fighter Competition at Adlershof in January 1918, like the D. VIII, it was powered by the Sh. III, and therefore completely outpowered its Oberursel UR. II powered contemporaries, is were built and used operationally for some time. It entered the Second Fighter Competition in June 1918 against the famous Fokker E. V monoplane, although generally similar to the Fokker D. VII in looks and performance, the D. XII was widely considered to be inferior in handling characteristics and difficult to land. Nevertheless the D. XII was ordered into production, and about 800 were produced before the Armistice, many of these survived the war and were taken as booty by the Allies. A few aircraft were featured in various movies, notably Hells Angels
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