Capitaine Albert Victor Robert Auger (26 January 1889 – 28 July 1917) was a French

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

credited with seven confirmed aerial victories, and a further 14 unconfirmed.

Military service

Auger volunteered to join the ''11ème régiment d'infanterie'' on 24 October 1907 as a

reservist A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person ca ...

, and on the outbreak of World War I he was mobilized into the ''31ème régiment d'infanterie''. He was wounded in action on 31 August 1914, and was made a ''Chevalier'' of the ''

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

'' on 8 November. He transferred to flying service on 25 January 1915, receiving military pilot's certificate No. 928 at the military flying school at Pau on 11 May 1915. He was posted to ''Escadrille 11'' on 11 May 1915, only to be wounded again on 8 July. On 22 September 1915, he took command of '' Escadrille 31'', and was promoted to ''capitaine'' on 26 December 1915. He scored twice in this assignment, on 13 March and 2 April 1916. Auger was seriously injured in a crash on 16 April. He recovered, and flew with '' Escadrille 3'' to score again on 9 February 1917. A week later, he was wounded yet again, in a dogfight with four Germans. A month later, on 17 March 1917, Auger took command of ''Escadrille 3''. He scored four more times, including a win shared with

Joseph M. X. de Sévin Major General Joseph Marie Xavier de Sévin (10 March 1894 – 7 November 1963) began his military career as a World War I flying ace credited with twelve confirmed aerial victories,The Aerodrome websitRetrieved on 26 March 2010. as well as thirtee ...

, with his last being 28 June 1917. Auger then upgraded to a SPAD. On 28 July, he took his SPAD into a dogfight with five German aircraft, and was shot in the neck. Bleeding profusely, he somehow still managed to land behind friendly lines, but bled to death within a few minutes. ''

Jasta 8 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 8 was a fighter squadron of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. Although the ''Jasta'' went out of existence along with its parent units shortly after the Armistice endi ...

'' seems to have been his opponent. Its commanding officer, Gustav Stenzel, was killed in this fight, with no one claiming him.

Rudolf Francke Leutnant Rudolf Francke was a German World War I flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact nu ...

of ''Jasta 8'' posted a claim that went unconfirmed, but was probably Auger. He is buried in the

Passy Cemetery Passy Cemetery () is a small cemetery in Passy, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. History The current cemetery replaced the old cemetery (''l'ancien cimetière communal de Passy'', located on Rue Lekain), which was closed in 1802. ...

in Paris.

List of aerial victories

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Auger, Albert 1889 births 1917 deaths French World War I flying aces French military personnel killed in World War I Knights of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Burials at Passy Cemetery Deaths from bleeding French people of colonial Algeria