World War I American aviators and pilots

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Eugene Bullard

A largely unsung and unknown hero of the Lafayette Flying Corps was the fascinating Eugene Jacques Bullard. He was an African-American from Columbus, Georgia who would become the first African-American pilot. The son of a freed slave, he left Columbus by himself to move to Atlanta while still in his teenage years. He had been told that the way to escape racial prejudice was to head to Europe, particularly France. A long time back, his father had pointed out to him that Bullard was a French name and that at least one ancestor had hailed from there. So from Atlanta, he moved to London and then soon after to Paris. There he became a boxer and did relatively well. France had been good to Bullard, and he had quickly fallen in love with the country. So when World War I broke out, Bullard signed up for the French Foreign Legion. He was assigned to the French army's 170th Infantry Regiment whose nicknames were the "Swallows of Death". He was wounded twice at Verdun and then sent to a Parisian hospital where he spent the next six months recuperating. His valor was recognized with a chest full of French military decorations including a Croix de Guerre.

While convalescing in Paris, his friend and fellow Southerner Jeff Davis Dickson bet Bullard $2,000 that he could not get into the French Air Force. Bullard asserted that he could, accepted the bet and on October 5, 1916 arrived at the French aerial gunnery school at Cazaux on the Atlantic. It was at Cazaux that he met Edmond Genet. He told Bullard about the Lafayette Escadrille which inspired him to realize that he wanted to be a pilot and not a back-seat gunner. In mid-November with Genet's help he transferred to the flight school at Tours for pilot training. The training took a few more months, but it was inevitable given Bullard's persistence that it would pay off. Bullard earned his pilot's license and the Dickson faithfully paid the $2,000. It was a considerable sum at that time, especially for a gentleman's bet. Dickson admitted that hated to lose the money, but was delighted that at least Bullard was from Dixie. But the result of the bet was to launch Eugene Bullard into history as the first ever African-American aviator.

He wanted to join the Lafayette Escadrille as one of its pilots, but was kept out of it because of the prejudice of Doctor Edmund L. Gros, the unit's most important organizer in France. The day he was officially rejected was August 23, 1917.

He reached the front lines on August 27th flying 20 patrols in a Spad VII for French Escadrille Spa.93. He then flew numerous patrols in a Spad with Escadrille Spa.85 from September 13th to November 11, 1917. His Spad had an insignia lettered "All Blood Runs Red" and his nickname became the Black Swallow of Death. By some accounts, Bullard shot down a Pfalz and a Dr.I. Other sources, like Craig Lloyd in his biography "Eugene Bullard: Black Expatriate in Jazz-Age Paris" state that none were ever confirmed. Later, possibly because of Dr. Gros' influence, he was bumped out of the French Air Force and then transferred back to the 170th Infantry Regiment of the French Army.

After the war, Bullard settled down, and in 1923 married a French woman from a wealthy family named Marcelle Straumann. They settled down and had two daughters Jacqueline and Lolita.

Post-war Bullard bought a bar named "Le Grand Duc" on the north side of Paris. In the late 30s, prior to the outbreak of World War II, he was recruited by French intelligence to spy on the Germans who would come by his bar.

When World War II broke out in 1939, Bullard was still living in Paris running his bar. He remained very devoted to France and tried to join the French army but was considered too old. In 1940, he managed to find a way out of German occupied France, biked all the way down to Portugal and returned to the United States via a Red Cross ship. He settled in New York. He was able to extricate his daughters soon, but Marcelle remained in France and eventually they divorced.

In 1954 he, along with two other French veterans, was invited by French President Charles de Gaulle to light the flame of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc of Triumph in Paris.

He died at the age of 66 on October 12, 1961, with his achievements all but forgotten.

While Eugene Bullard is not as famous as the Tuskegee Airmen or Benjamin O. Davis Jr., as an African-American aviator, he was before all of them. The Chicago Tribune heralded him "as probably the most unsung hero in the history of U.S. wartime aviation" and others noted that his single-handed accomplishment was the equivalent of what the Tuskegee Airmen had accomplished in World War II.

Much of the above are excerpts from my book "American Eagles". Please support this website and our efforts to recognize our first combat aviators by buying it.

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American Eagles - The Illustrated History of American Aviation in World War I
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Lafayette Escadrille: America's Most Famous Squadron
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"American Eagles - The Illustrated History of American Aviation in World War I" ($19.95, paperback, 400 pages, 8.5"x11", black and white, $5 for shipping and handling (US) or free download):

American Eagles is packed with 220 photos, new maps and beautiful artwork by Michael O'Neal. It is the story of American World War I combat aviation, the aviators, their planes, their aerodromes, their stories and what happened to them after the war. Read about the first American fighters, bombers and observation planes, the Lafayette Escadrille, United States Naval Aviation, United States Marine Aviation, the United States Air Service, now the USAF, and more.

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"Lafayette Escadrille: America's Most Famous Squadron" ($14.95, 204 pages, digest size, black and white, $5 for shipping and handling (US) or free download):

The Lafayette Escadrille is about the brave Americans who volunteered to fly for France and the United States 103rd Aero Squadron during World War I. Read about Raoul Lufbery, Bill Thaw, Kiffin Rockwell, Norman Prince, Charles Biddle and the early days of American World War I military aviation before it was known as the United States Air Force. These men flew Nieuports and Spads against Fokkers and Albatroses. This book has lots of new research and is thoroughly well-documented. 204 pages, 62 photos and maps.

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