Alfred Heurtaux
Encyclopedia
Alfred Marie-Joseph Heurtaux (20 May 1893 – 30 December 1985) was a French
World War I
fighter ace
credited with 21 victories. Later in his life, he joined the French Resistance
during World War II
, and survived imprisonment in Buchenwald death camp to become a brigadier general in the post war Armée de l'Air.
, France
, Alfred Heurtaux was the son of an artillery officer. He began his military career with his entry into officer training in 1912. In October, 1912, he began an obligatory preliminary year in the ranks of the 4e Regiment d'Hussards. In October 1913, he entered the military academy at Saint Cyr
as an officer cadet (aspirant). On 4 August 1914, following the outbreak of World War I
, he was commissioned as a sous-lieutenant
in the 9e Regiment d'Hussards. In the next three months, he was cited for valor three times. On 6 December 1914, he transferred to aerial service.
s. He then passed through pilot's training, being brevetted a pilot on 29 May 1915. He was assigned to MS38, another Morane-Saulnier squadron. He was promoted to lieutenant on Christmas Day, 1915. On 5 June 1916, he transferred to a fighter squadron, N3, to fly Nieuport
s. Later, he assumed command of the unit. One of his duties would be coaching Russian ace Ivan Orlov
in fighter tactics. Another would entail merging his escadrille with three others to form the world's first fighter wing, Groupe de Combat 12 on 16 October 1916. GC 12 would be better known by its nickname, Les Cigognes (the Storks) for the bird portrayed on their planes.
He scored for the first time on 9 July 1916. Following victories on 16 July, 2 and 3 August, he was awarded the Légion d'Honneur on 4 August.
He was flying a new Spad S.VII
when he downed his fifth victim on 17 August 1916. Later that month, on the 25th, he shot down another pioneer ace, Kurt Wintgens
, the very first fighter pilot to ever score a victory with a synchronized machine-gun armed aircraft, for victory number eight. He continued to accumulate victories steadily over the next eight months, reaching 21 on 4 May 1917. On 5 May 1917, he was seriously wounded by Ernst Udet
. In a dogfight with nine Albatros D.III
s, he was hit through both cheeks and both thighs, as well as his head being grazed by a near-miss.
He eventually returned to duty, but did not score again. A second serious wounding in September 1917 sidelined him for the remainder of the war. Indeed, he was fortunate to survive a bullet through his femoral artery. An ordinary bullet would have proved fatal, but the incendiary round that hit him cauterized the wound. He struggled back to Allied lines, and lived. When he recovered, he toured the United States of America lecturing on fighter tactics.
Besides his 21 credited wins, he had 13 unconfirmed or probables. He was raised from Chevalier in the Légion d'Honneur to Officer. He also had fifteen palms and two bronze stars to his Croix de Guerre. He attended the awards ceremony on canes.
Heurtaux resigned his commission in October 1919.
He was elected Deputy for Seine-et-Oise
aged 26, in 1919. From there, he moved into the automobile industry, holding a management position with the Ford Motor Company
in its American operations. While Heurtaux was in Dearborn with Ford, an autobiographical article under his byline ran in Henry Ford
's Dearborn Independent Magazine.
His next job was with General Motors
in Europe, and then finally with Renault
.
His employment did not hinder his patriotic activities. He was active in the Association of the Reserve Officers of the Air Force, being its president from 1934 to 1937. He was also appointed a lieutenant colonel in the reserves on 25 June 1935. He was reinstated on active duty a few months later, as Inspector of Fighter Aviation.
. The Legion of Affairs was formed in August 1940, and he was appointed its vice-president. He used the freedom of movement afforded by this appointment to pass military intelligence
to his old Saint Cyr classmate, Colonel Groussard, and to recruit fellow veterans into espionage. The Hector network that resulted was an important constituent of the Resistance in northern France.
Colonel Hertaux's son was arrested just before he himself was taken into custody in March 1941. The Gestapo
let him go that time, then rearrested him on 3 November. He would spend over three years in a succession of German jails in Düsseldorf
, Bielefeld
, Hannover, Berlin
, and Potsdam
. On 13 March 1945, he was shipped off to Buchenwald; on 11 April, he was liberated when friendly forces captured the camp.
He had been promoted to full colonel in 1942, while he was in custody. On 5 July 1945, he was appointed to the military mission for German business. In December 1945, he was promoted to brigadier general.
He ended his career working as a consulting engineer. He died 30 December 1985, at Chantilly, Oise
and was buried in Paris
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
fighter ace
Fighter Ace
Fighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...
credited with 21 victories. Later in his life, he joined the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and survived imprisonment in Buchenwald death camp to become a brigadier general in the post war Armée de l'Air.
Early military service
Born on 20 May 1893 in NantesNantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Alfred Heurtaux was the son of an artillery officer. He began his military career with his entry into officer training in 1912. In October, 1912, he began an obligatory preliminary year in the ranks of the 4e Regiment d'Hussards. In October 1913, he entered the military academy at Saint Cyr
École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr
The École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr is the foremost French military academy. Its official name is . It is often referred to as Saint-Cyr . Its motto is "Ils s'instruisent pour vaincre": literally "They study to vanquish" or "Training for victory"...
as an officer cadet (aspirant). On 4 August 1914, following the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he was commissioned as a sous-lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in the 9e Regiment d'Hussards. In the next three months, he was cited for valor three times. On 6 December 1914, he transferred to aerial service.
Aerial service
He served in MS26 as an observer in Morane-SaulnierMorane-Saulnier
Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier is a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Leon and Robert...
s. He then passed through pilot's training, being brevetted a pilot on 29 May 1915. He was assigned to MS38, another Morane-Saulnier squadron. He was promoted to lieutenant on Christmas Day, 1915. On 5 June 1916, he transferred to a fighter squadron, N3, to fly Nieuport
Nieuport
Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars.-Beginnings:...
s. Later, he assumed command of the unit. One of his duties would be coaching Russian ace Ivan Orlov
Ivan Orlov (aviator)
Podporuchik Ivan Alexandrovich Orlov was a World War I flying ace credited with five aerial victories.Orlov built gliders while he was young; he worked his way up to constructing his own monoplane in 1913. He earned his Russian flying license in June 1914, just before the war began...
in fighter tactics. Another would entail merging his escadrille with three others to form the world's first fighter wing, Groupe de Combat 12 on 16 October 1916. GC 12 would be better known by its nickname, Les Cigognes (the Storks) for the bird portrayed on their planes.
He scored for the first time on 9 July 1916. Following victories on 16 July, 2 and 3 August, he was awarded the Légion d'Honneur on 4 August.
He was flying a new Spad S.VII
SPAD S.VII
The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rugged aircraft with good climbing and diving characteristics...
when he downed his fifth victim on 17 August 1916. Later that month, on the 25th, he shot down another pioneer ace, Kurt Wintgens
Kurt Wintgens
Leutnant Kurt Wintgens was a German World War I fighter ace. He was the first military fighter pilot to score a victory over an opposing aircraft in an aircraft armed with a synchronized machine gun. Wintgens was the recipient of the Iron Cross and the Blue Max.-Background:Wintgens was born into a...
, the very first fighter pilot to ever score a victory with a synchronized machine-gun armed aircraft, for victory number eight. He continued to accumulate victories steadily over the next eight months, reaching 21 on 4 May 1917. On 5 May 1917, he was seriously wounded by Ernst Udet
Ernst Udet
Colonel General Ernst Udet was the second-highest scoring German flying ace of World War I. He was one of the youngest aces and was the highest scoring German ace to survive the war . His 62 victories were second only to Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus...
. In a dogfight with nine Albatros D.III
Albatros D.III
The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service and the Austro-Hungarian Air Service during World War I. The D.III was flown by many top German aces, including Manfred von Richthofen, Ernst Udet, Erich Löwenhardt, Kurt Wolff, and Karl Emil Schäfer...
s, he was hit through both cheeks and both thighs, as well as his head being grazed by a near-miss.
He eventually returned to duty, but did not score again. A second serious wounding in September 1917 sidelined him for the remainder of the war. Indeed, he was fortunate to survive a bullet through his femoral artery. An ordinary bullet would have proved fatal, but the incendiary round that hit him cauterized the wound. He struggled back to Allied lines, and lived. When he recovered, he toured the United States of America lecturing on fighter tactics.
Besides his 21 credited wins, he had 13 unconfirmed or probables. He was raised from Chevalier in the Légion d'Honneur to Officer. He also had fifteen palms and two bronze stars to his Croix de Guerre. He attended the awards ceremony on canes.
Heurtaux resigned his commission in October 1919.
Between the world wars
He later became President of the France Fighter Aces Association.He was elected Deputy for Seine-et-Oise
Seine-et-Oise
Seine-et-Oise was a département of France encompassing the western, northern, and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris. Its préfecture was Versailles and its official number was 78. Seine-et-Oise was abolished in 1968....
aged 26, in 1919. From there, he moved into the automobile industry, holding a management position with the Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
in its American operations. While Heurtaux was in Dearborn with Ford, an autobiographical article under his byline ran in Henry Ford
Henry Ford
Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry...
's Dearborn Independent Magazine.
His next job was with General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
in Europe, and then finally with Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
.
His employment did not hinder his patriotic activities. He was active in the Association of the Reserve Officers of the Air Force, being its president from 1934 to 1937. He was also appointed a lieutenant colonel in the reserves on 25 June 1935. He was reinstated on active duty a few months later, as Inspector of Fighter Aviation.
World War II and beyond
In the early days of World War II, Heurtaux was still the Inspector of Fighter Aviation for the French air forces. After the fall of France to the Germans, he joined the French ResistanceFrench Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
. The Legion of Affairs was formed in August 1940, and he was appointed its vice-president. He used the freedom of movement afforded by this appointment to pass military intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
to his old Saint Cyr classmate, Colonel Groussard, and to recruit fellow veterans into espionage. The Hector network that resulted was an important constituent of the Resistance in northern France.
Colonel Hertaux's son was arrested just before he himself was taken into custody in March 1941. The Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
let him go that time, then rearrested him on 3 November. He would spend over three years in a succession of German jails in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
, Bielefeld
Bielefeld
Bielefeld is an independent city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 323,000, it is also the most populous city in the Regierungsbezirk Detmold...
, Hannover, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, and Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
. On 13 March 1945, he was shipped off to Buchenwald; on 11 April, he was liberated when friendly forces captured the camp.
He had been promoted to full colonel in 1942, while he was in custody. On 5 July 1945, he was appointed to the military mission for German business. In December 1945, he was promoted to brigadier general.
He ended his career working as a consulting engineer. He died 30 December 1985, at Chantilly, Oise
Chantilly, Oise
Chantilly is a small city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune in the department of Oise.It is in the metropolitan area of Paris 38.4 km...
and was buried in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.