Talk:Lafayette Escadrille
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The current entry (read on July 8, 2005) is partially misleading, repeating a frequent confusion of the Lafayette Escadrille with the Lafayette Flying Corps. The Lafayette Escadrille was the all-American squadron formed in April, 1916, and its total roster of American pilots from 1916 until its transformation into the US 103rd two years later, was 38. The officers of the squadron were French. Other American pilots who flew for the French in French squadrons were loosely termed the Lafayette Flying Corps. For example, Eugene Bullard never flew for the Lafayette Escadrille but instead was a member of a French squadron and thus as an American flying for France could be termed a member of the Lafayette Flying Corps. This confusion led to the assertion by many descendents of American pilots that their relative had flown for the Lafayette Escadrille, a famous squadron in its day, when in fact the pilot had had nothing to do with the Lafayette Escadrille. The last of the 38 Lafayette Escadrille pilots, Charles "Carl" Dolan, died in Hawaii in 1984. He was a Sperry Company engineer from Boston, in France to install gyroscopes, who was recruited by pilots of the Escadrille in order to provide better maintenance for the squadron's planes. Another member of the Lafayette Escadrille, later famous as a writer, was James Norman Hall, co-author of Mutiny on the Bounty. To become French pilots, the Americans had to join the French Foreign Legion before undergoing pilot training. They were ranked as enlisted men, not officers, as they fought for France before the US entered the war.
[edit] Flyboys(movie) tie-in?
Trailers for a movie titled Flyboys have been released in North American theaters recently. From what can be gleaned by the trailer, the movie focuses on what closely appears to be the Lafayette Escadrille (or the Flying Corps), going so far to include a charcter who appears to be Eugene Bullard (or based on thereof). Of course, my words are highly specualtive. Does anyone have any firmer information on the movie, and would it be worth mentioning it in this article?
[edit] OMG, has anyone done any fact checking?
I will fix this article with correct information when I have the time. The original "historians" who wrote the article don't know the difference between the Lafayette Escadrille, the Lafayette Flying Corps and the French Infantry (see Eugene Bullard). —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Escadrille Americaine (talk • contribs) 18:53, 31 March 2007 (UTC).
