Marcel Albert (25 November 1917 – 23 August 2010) was a French

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

who flew for the air forces of the Vichy government and the Free French forces, and also for the

Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...

and the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

. He was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

Background

Albert grew up in a working-class family. He became a mechanic, building gearboxes for

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...

, and was accepted for pilot training in the French Armée de l'Air in May 1938. After primary and advanced training, he was posted at the fighter training center in Chartres, where he flew

Bloch Bloch is a surname of German origin. Notable people with this surname include: A–F * (1859-1914), French rabbi * Adele Bloch-Bauer (1881-1925), Austrian entrepreneur * Albert Bloch (1882–1961), American painter * (born 1972), German motor jour ...

152 Year 152 ( CLII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Glabrio and Homullus (or, less frequently, year 905 ''Ab urbe condita'' ...

Morane-Saulnier Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier was a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier (1881–1964) and the Morane brothers, Léon (1885–1918) and Robert (1886–1968). The company was taken over and diversified ...

MS.406 and

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fighters.

World War II

In February 1940 Albert was assigned to

Groupe de Chasse I/3 A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation. Air and aviation groups The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches o ...

, a unit operating France's top fighter, the

Dewoitine D.520 The Dewoitine D.520 was a French fighter aircraft that entered service in early 1940, shortly after the beginning of the Second World War. The D.520 was designed in response to a 1936 requirement from the French Air Force for a fast, modern fi ...

. When

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troops invaded France in May 1940, his squadron was redeployed to the

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded ...

airfield. On 14 May 1940, Albert shot down a Do 17 bomber and later that day, a Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter, although this victory was not confirmed. He also earned a probable victory over a

Heinkel He 111 The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a " wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after t ...

bomber before the armistice. Under the

Vichy government Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...

, his squadron was redeployed to

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

where Albert flew a few missions against the

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forces in Gibraltar. On 14 October he and two other pilots

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and surrendered their airplanes to the British. Having reached England, Albert joined the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

and flew 47 missions in

Spitfires The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...

with 340 Squadron. In late 1942, Albert joined the Normandie fighter group, a Free French fighter unit that was being sent to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

to help fight the Germans. The Normandie group entered the fight in April 1943, flying Russian-built Yak-1 fighters, and later Yak-9s and Yak-3s. Albert quickly proved to be one of Normandie's best pilots. His first kill was over a

Focke-Wulf Fw 189 The Focke-Wulf Fw 189 ''Uhu'' ("Eagle Owl") is a German twin-engine, twin-boom, three-seat tactical reconnaissance and army cooperation aircraft. It first flew in 1938 (Fw 189 V1), entered service in 1940 and was produced until mid-1944. In add ...

on 16 June 1943. In July he claimed 3 more, and he was given command of the 1st ''escadrille'' on 4 September 1943. During the offensive against Eastern Prussia in October 1944, he scored 7 victories. His score totaled 23 victories (including 15 shared) in 262 combat missions, making him the second highest-scoring French ace of

. On 27 November 1944 he was awarded the Soviet Union's highest decoration, the Gold Star and title of "

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

" — an award rarely issued to foreigners.

Postwar

After the war Albert flew as a test pilot in 1946 and was later sent to

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

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, where he met his future wife, an employee at the American embassy. In 1948, he left the military and moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

with his wife, and lived in

Chipley, Florida Chipley is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Florida, United States, located between Tallahassee and Pensacola. Its population was 3,605 in the 2010 U.S. Census. The area is served by Chipley High School. Originally called ...

, then his last two years in Harlingen, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley. Albert died there on 23 August 2010.

Awards

*Grand'Croix de la

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

Journal Officiel de la République française
dated 14 April 2010) *Compagnon de la

Libération ''Libération'' (), popularly known as ''Libé'' (), is a daily newspaper in France, founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. Initially positioned on the far-left of France ...

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

1939–1945 with 15 palms and 3 silver gilt stars *

Médaille de la Résistance The Resistance Medal (french: Médaille de la Résistance) was a decoration bestowed by the French Committee of National Liberation, based in the United Kingdom, during World War II. It was established by a decree of General Charles de Gaulle on ...

with rosette *

(27 November 1944) *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

(27 November 1944) *

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of th ...

* Czechoslovak War Cross *

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War (russian: Орден Отечественной войны, Orden Otechestvennoy voiny) is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisa ...

1st class (11 March 1985)

List of credited aerial victories

References

External links

"French fighter pilots 1939–1945." Aerostories''Interview with Marcel Albert at simulation-france-magazine.com (French language)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Albert, Marcel 1917 births 2010 deaths French World War II flying aces French Royal Air Force pilots of World War II French emigrants to the United States Free French Air Forces officers Foreign Heroes of the Soviet Union Companions of the Liberation Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Resistance Medal Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Czechoslovak War Cross French expatriates in the Soviet Union Heroes of the Soviet Union Military personnel from Paris People from Harlingen, Texas People from Chipley, Florida Air attachés French Air Force personnel of World War II