Marcel-Georges Brindejonc des Moulinais was born on February 18, 1892, and died on August 18, 1916. He was a French pilot who became famous for flying long distances, including crossing the Baltic Sea. He also worked as a pilot who performed in shows and raced airplanes. During the Battle of the Marne, he flew secret missions to gather information for his country.

Early life

Brindejonc des Moulinais was born in Plérin, Côtes-d'Armor, the son of Jean-Georges Brindejonc des Moulinais and Blanche-Marie-Amélie Merlin. He attended the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and later studied at Saint-Servan College in Ille-et-Vilaine. From 1901 to 1912, he lived at "Le clos linden," located at 41 rue Saint-Guillaume in Pleurtuit. His summer vacations were mostly spent with his cousins at Pleurtuit Val, near the family's property called Pontouraude. In 1910, he attended the University of Rennes.

Aviation career

His interest in flying began in Dinan and Dinard during the summer of 1909. In December 1910, he purchased an aircraft from Alberto Santos-Dumont and then enrolled in a flying school in Pau. He earned his pilot's license (No. 448) on 13 March 1911. In June, he took part in an event at Abbeville in a Blériot monoplane. Later, he bought a Morane-Borel monoplane and began competing in flying contests, appearing at exhibitions in Pau, Toulouse, Carcassonne, Perpignan, and Foix. In July, he returned to Paris and was hired as a pilot by Morane. That same month, he was injured during a forced landing in a stoneyard at Billancourt. This accident kept him from joining the 1911 Daily Mail Circuit of Britain Air Race.

He soon became a well-known pilot, appearing at the Aude aviation meeting in February 1912. In June 1912, he competed for the grand prize of the Aero-Club de France, which required pilots to complete seven circuits between Angers, Cholet, and Saumur, a total of 1,1002 km. Three laps were to be completed on the first day, and the remaining four on the second day. Because of poor weather, few pilots took off on the first day. Garros was the only competitor to finish the three laps required. Brindejonc was the only other pilot to complete the second lap, but he arrived too late to qualify. On the second day, Garros completed the four laps needed to win the main prize, while a three-lap race was held for other pilots, in which Brindejonc finished third. On 8 August 1912, he tried to win the Pommery Cup with a flight from Paris to Berlin but was stopped by a mechanical failure in Westphalia.

1913 was his most successful year. He flew from Paris to London, Brussels, and back to Paris (1,040 km) in a Morane-Saulnier C monoplane, crossing the English Channel twice, between 25 and 27 February 1913. During a tour from Paris to Bordeaux, Burgos, Madrid, Barcelona, Perpignan, Lyon, and back to Paris from 24 March to 12 April 1913, he faced harsh weather. He wrote, "What a terrible trip! How I suffered! One cannot imagine!"

The Pommery Cup was awarded twice a year (on 30 April and 31 October) between 1909 and 1913 to the aviator who traveled the greatest distance in one day. Brindejonc des Moulinais made several unsuccessful attempts to win in 1912 and 1913: Paris–Berlin on 8 August 1912, Berlin–Villacoublay on 18 October 1912, attempted a flight after a blessing by the Bishop of Versailles on 22 October 1912, Paris–Münster on 29 April 1913, and Bremen–Brussels–London from 9 to 11 May 1913. His last attempt caused trouble because he flew over London on his approach to Hendon. As a result, he became the first person to be prosecuted under the 1913 Aerial Navigation Act.

Maurice Guillaux, a previous Pommery Cup winner, claimed to have flown 1,386 km on 23 August 1913, but this distance was not approved after Brindejonc des Moulinais challenged it. Guillaux was banned from flying in the competition for ten years. Marcel Brindejonc won the cup with a flight on 10 June 1913, covering 1,382 km in a Morane-Saulnier H monoplane. He left Paris–Villacoublay at 3:37 and arrived in Warsaw in 14 hours and 18 minutes. At the time, Poles admired France, and a large celebration honored the aviator. From Poland, he continued a tour of Northern European capitals, traveling over 4,800 km (3,000 mi) between 10 June and 2 July 1913: to Dwinsk on 15 June, Saint Petersburg on 17 June, Reval (23 June), Stockholm (25 June), Copenhagen (29 June), The Hague (1 July), and returning to Paris on 2 July. To cross the 300 km of the Baltic Sea, eight Russian navy destroyers were placed every 18 miles between the island and the Swedish capital. The reception was triumphant everywhere. He was welcomed at Paris City Hall and received praise from newspapers worldwide. Many letters of congratulations were sent to "Brindejonc des Moulinais, France."

In April 1914, he competed in the Monaco Aerial Rally, where participants had to complete any of seven approved 1,283 km (797 mi) routes to Monaco, each including a 200 km (120 mi) leg by floatplane between 1 and 15 April.

Awards

• Received the Legion of Honour on August 11, 1913, becoming the youngest person at age 21 to hold this honor.
• Received the gold medal from the Aero-Club de France on July 3, 1913.
• Received the Medal of the Academy of Sport on December 23, 1913.
• Received the Order of Sainte-Anne in Saint Petersburg, awarded by Grand Duke Alexander.
• Received the Order of Gustav Vasa in Stockholm.
• Received the Order of Daneborg in Copenhagen on June 30, awarded by the king of Denmark.

On July 20, 1913, he won a match against Mauritius and Edmond Audemars Guillaux in Juvisy-sur-Orge for the Essorprize, a speed climbing competition organized by the newspaper L'Auto. On August 12, 1913, he traveled safely 1,000 kilometers from Marseilles to Dinard, passing through Albi and Poitiers. On September 1, he flew from Dinard to Deauville and won competitions in Nantes, Royan, and Agen (845 kilometers). From September 27 to 29, 1913, during the Gordon-Bennett Trophy events in Reims, he finished second in the altitude competition with a passenger.

Military career

He joined the military on October 10, 1913, in the 1st Aviation Group at Versailles. On April 10, 1914, he was given the rank of corporal and assigned to the 2nd Aviation Group, which was based in Lyon. On August 4, 1914, he joined Squadron DO 22 at Stenay (Meuse), where he flew Dorand aircraft. Starting on August 11, he observed German armies advancing and saw villages behind them on fire. On the evening of September 2, he informed General Foch about the movement of the German Third Army under General von Hausen toward Reims. He continued to report details to General Foch in the following days. On September 9, during the First Battle of the Marne, he reported three times that there was a gap between the German armies and Camp de Mailly. Using this gap, the French launched a successful attack. Brindejonc de Moulinais was noted in official reports for his work.

He was promoted to sergeant on September 3, 1914, to second lieutenant on December 25, 1914, and to lieutenant on December 26, 1915. He received the Croix de Guerre on June 2, 1915.

After the Battle of Champagne, his health worsened, and he was sent to rest in Britain. On August 28, 1915, he became the chief pilot at the Morane-Saulnier flight school in Le Bourget. On May 30, 1916, he joined a squadron as a pilot.

Death

Shortly after returning, he and Maxime Lenoir were both shot down. He was shot down on 18 August 1916 over Vadelaincourt near Verdun and was buried in Souilly on 6 July 1922. Captain de Beauchamp, who was killed on 10 November 1916, honored him with these words: "Brindejonc is the man in the plume, the symbol of light, living, the beauty, honor passing very high, over life."