Osprey Aviation Elite 17 : Spa.124 Lafayette Escadrille : American Volunteer Airmen in World War 1

One of World War I's most famous squadrons is Spa.124 Lafayette Escadrille - the only French squadron made up entirely of American volunteers (save for the commander and executive officer). Organised in April 1916, the group was successively dubbed the Escadrille Americaine, Escadrille des Volontaires and finally the Escadrille Lafayette. Its achievements were modest, but it included several colourful characters who captured the public imagination and played a major role in gaining American sympathy for the Allied cause. When the United States finally entered the war, many Lafayette veterans helped prepare US Army Air Service and Navy pilots for combat, although a few chose to stay on with the French. Text by Jon Guttman with illustrations by Harry Dempsey.

Contents

• Origins of N.124 : Formation and Early Operations
• Verdun and the Somme : Major Actions and the Adoption of the Sobriquet 'Lafayette'
• Lafayette becomes Famous : Spad VIIs and Operations Through February 18, 1918
• Split Metamorphosis : Summaries of the 103rd Aero Squadron and Spa.124
• Escadrilles and Commanders of GC.12