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164:, France. His mother, Henriette Françoise Gilbert was the daughter of a public works contractor; his father is unknown. He became interested in flight in his teens and attempted to build his own version of a flying machine around 1909. The effort appears to have been unsuccessful. That same year he entered the Bleriot flight school in Étampes, gaining his pilot's license on 24 September 1910
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reported that flying over
Brioude, Gilbert was shot at by an eighty-three year old farmer who took him for "Baret Lou", a demonic bird of prey that casts a curse on crops. Gilbert responded by dropping pamphlets for an advertising campaign "Our future is in the Air" organized by the Michelin firm to
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In 1911 Gilbert was called up for military service and with only eight flying lessons made a corporal-aviator. He was forced to leave the army after six months of service following a serious accident during a maneuver, and launched himself at once in sporting competitions where he quickly
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and was attacked by an angry mother eagle defending her young and nest; to ward off the large bird, he simply fired pistol shots at it rather than kill it.
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217:, Gilbert was one of the first pilots to become an ace, an aviator who has shot down five or more enemy aircraft. On 27 June 1915 Gilbert was
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In 1912 Gilbert organized an aviation festival with Dr. Antoine Dorel, president of the
Automobile Club d'Auvergne. The newspaper
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promote the military use of aviation. These the farmer interpreted to be feathers of the bird raining down.
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On 24 April 1913 Gilbert made a record nonstop cross-country flight of 826 km (523 miles) from
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completing a 2,970 km (1,850 mi) circuit of France in 39h 35m including stoppages.
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281:"Eugene Gilbert, an Auvergne pilot in the Great War", Bibliothèque Clemont Universite
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credited with five aerial victories. He had also been a famous pioneer
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Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in France
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cover painting depicting
Gilbert's encounter with an eagle
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racing pilot, flying in many countries throughout Europe.
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Gilbert with Morane-Saulnier combat monoplane during WW1
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Painting of
Gilbert's 1911 encounter with an eagle over
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By 1915, Gilbert was in uniform as a combat pilot with
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Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France)
450:Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1918
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435:French military personnel killed in World War I
136:(19 July 1889 – 17 May 1918) was a World War I
128:Eugène Gilbert in the cockpit during WW1, 1915.
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225:fighter in Switzerland after bombing the
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160:Gilbert was born on 19 July 1889 in
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213:. Like fellow French pre-war pilot
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261:Sous Lieutenant Eugene Gilbert at
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168:distinguished himself, flying a
425:Knights of the Legion of Honour
440:French World War I flying aces
430:French aviation record holders
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338:"Performances de la Quinzaine"
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317:Chronicle of the 20th Century
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240:Tomb of Eugène Gilbert, Paris
177:1911 Paris to Madrid air race
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302:La Domenica del Corriere,
204:International Michelin Cup
179:, Gilbert flew across the
16:French aviator (1889–1918)
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221:after force landing his
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357:The End of M. Gilbert
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386:France, World War I
346:: 301. 1 July 1914.
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97:Médaille militaire
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389:Succeeded by
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223:Morane-Saulnier
211:Escadrille MS23
200:Vitoria-Gasteiz
188:Airline Journal
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101:Croix de Guerre
76:Military career
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60:(aged 28)
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23:Eugène Gilbert
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64:Villacoublay
58:(1918-05-17)
41:19 July 1889
415:1918 deaths
410:1889 births
364:23 May 1918
343:l'Aérophile
56:17 May 1918
404:Categories
245:References
170:Bleriot XI
138:flying ace
327:, p. 171.
229:sheds at
148:Biography
265:database
227:zeppelin
219:interned
181:Pyrenees
118:Pyrenees
66:, France
47:, France
175:In the
142:pre-war
361:Flight
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89:Awards
321:ISBN
162:Riom
81:Unit
53:Died
45:Riom
38:Born
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271:^
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99:,
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