Henri Hay De Slade
Encyclopedia
Capitaine Henri Joseph Marie Hay de Slade was a World War I flying ace
credited with 19 aerial victories.
Hay de Slade came from a military family; his father was a naval officer who died in 1908. Hay de Slade began his own military career as a cadet at Saint Cyr
in 1913. He transferred to aviation on 13 May 1916, and received his pilot's certificate in August of that year. After further training, he was assigned to Escadrille 80 on 13 December 1916. It wasn't until his reassignment to Escadrille 86 and its Nieuport
fighters, on 16 April 1917, that he began to succeed as an aerial warrior. On 20 May, he scored his first victory. He closed out 1917 as an ace; on 5 December, he scored his fifth victory. He would score six more times with Escadrille 86, with his last one coming on 21 July 1918.
One week later, he was assigned to command Escadrille 159. It was an unenviable assignment; the squadron had lost 13 pilots, including its former commander, without scoring a single triumph in return. Hay de Slade took instant action. He painted bold red stripes around the fuselage of his Spad S.XIII
, and told his pilots to watch his tactics in dogfights. The squadron learned by watching him, and began to score. Hay de Slade, despite his new duties, scored two wins each in August and September, and closed out his victory roll with double triumphs on 1 and 10 October 1918. His final tally was 16 enemy aircraft and three observation balloons.
Hay de Slade remained in the Armee de l'Air, and eventually retired as a colonel.
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
credited with 19 aerial victories.
Hay de Slade came from a military family; his father was a naval officer who died in 1908. Hay de Slade began his own military career as a cadet 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"...
in 1913. He transferred to aviation on 13 May 1916, and received his pilot's certificate in August of that year. After further training, he was assigned to Escadrille 80 on 13 December 1916. It wasn't until his reassignment to Escadrille 86 and its 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:...
fighters, on 16 April 1917, that he began to succeed as an aerial warrior. On 20 May, he scored his first victory. He closed out 1917 as an ace; on 5 December, he scored his fifth victory. He would score six more times with Escadrille 86, with his last one coming on 21 July 1918.
One week later, he was assigned to command Escadrille 159. It was an unenviable assignment; the squadron had lost 13 pilots, including its former commander, without scoring a single triumph in return. Hay de Slade took instant action. He painted bold red stripes around the fuselage of his Spad S.XIII
SPAD S.XIII
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Bruce, J.M. The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps . London: Putnam, 1982. ISBN 0-370-30084-X.* Sharpe, Michael. Biplanes, Triplanes, and Seaplanes. London: Friedman/Fairfax Books, 2000. ISBN 1-58663-300-7....
, and told his pilots to watch his tactics in dogfights. The squadron learned by watching him, and began to score. Hay de Slade, despite his new duties, scored two wins each in August and September, and closed out his victory roll with double triumphs on 1 and 10 October 1918. His final tally was 16 enemy aircraft and three observation balloons.
Hay de Slade remained in the Armee de l'Air, and eventually retired as a colonel.