Paul Marcel Teste (2 October 1892 – 13 June 1925) was a French Navy officer aviator, notable for the first aeronaval landing of the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

aboard the ''Béarn''.

Life

Teste was born at

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

, into a naval family, and entered the

École Navale École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

in 1909, aged 17. He was made a midshipman in 1911, and was promoted to ''enseigne de vaisseau 2e classe'' in 1912. Teste joined the Aviation Navale in 1917. He was shot down on the 26 May and was taken prisoner in Karlsruhe. After a first unsuccessful escape attempt, he managed to rejoin France in January 1918. PA Bearn

At the end of the war, Teste was appointed to lead efforts to constitute a carrier-based air force, the ''Aviation d'Escadre'' ("Squadron aviation"). Promoted to ''capitaine de corvette'' in 1923, he pioneered the French efforts to design aircraft carriers. In 1924, Teste flew an FBA 17 across France to chart waterplans usable as emergency landing spots for flying boats in distress. Teste was killed at Villacoublay, on an

Amiot 120 The Amiot 120 was a family of single-engine biplane bomber aircraft designed and produced by the France, French aircraft manufacturer Avions Amiot, SECM-Amiot. The Amiot 120 was designed during the early to mid-1920s. As a result of a design to ...

, in a training flight for an attempt at crossing the Atlantic.

Honours

* The seaplane tender '' Commandant Teste'' was named in his honour. *

Legion of Honour 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 ...

Croix de Guerre The (, ''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 awarded during World ...

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

at the Order of the Army

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Teste 1892 births 1925 deaths French Navy officers French aviators Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in France French World War I pilots Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1925