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139-595: The airfield was established in 1915. It was used by the Romanian Air Corps to continue the training of pilots who graduated from the Cotroceni Military Pilot School. In October 1919, a Zeppelin-Staaken R.XIVa which crash landed near Cristinești was brought to Pipera. The heavy bomber flew from Cristinești to the airfield with a stop in Adjud . It was used to train bomber pilots for several years. In

278-630: A blue-water navy was vital for global power projection; Tirpitz had his books translated into German, while Wilhelm made them required reading for his advisors and senior military personnel. However, it was also an emotional decision, driven by Wilhelm's simultaneous admiration for the Royal Navy and desire to surpass it. Bismarck thought that the British would not interfere in Europe, as long as its maritime supremacy remained secure, but his dismissal in 1890 led to

417-583: A grenade at the Archduke's car and injured two of his aides. The other assassins were also unsuccessful. An hour later, as Ferdinand was returning from visiting the injured officers in hospital, his car took a wrong turn into a street where Gavrilo Princip was standing. He fired two pistol shots, fatally wounding Ferdinand and his wife Sophie . According to historian Zbyněk Zeman , in Vienna "the event almost failed to make any impression whatsoever. On 28 and 29 June,

556-536: A guerrilla warfare campaign and only surrendered two weeks after the armistice took effect in Europe. Before the war, Germany had attempted to use Indian nationalism and pan-Islamism to its advantage, a policy continued post-1914 by instigating uprisings in India , while the Niedermayer–Hentig Expedition urged Afghanistan to join the war on the side of Central Powers. However, contrary to British fears of

695-717: A 70 hp engine. On 24 July, Captain (Cpt.) Constantin Fotescu and Cpt. observer Ioan H. Arion, executed the first combat mission, with a reconnaissance flight following the Vidin - Ferdinandovo road. The Blériot then turned north-west flying over the village of Rabisha where Bulgarian troops were stationed. Two cannon shots were fired on the airplane without effect. On 30 July, two Blériots from No. 1 Squadron, Section II took off. The aircraft were flown by: Lt. Nicolae Capșa with Cpt. observer Ioan H. Arion and Private (Pvt.) Poly Vacas with Cpt. observer Ioan Viieșeanu. The airmen carried out

834-454: A French engineer from Bucharest , took Majors (Maj.) Iacob Lahovary , Constantin Poenaru and Dumitrescu in flight over the city with his hydrogen balloon named "Mihai Bravul"  [ ro ] ( Michel-le-Brave ). The last flight of this balloon took place on 19 [ O.S. 7 July] 1874, Willemot flying together with Colonel (Col.) Nicolae Haralambie , Ion Ghica and

973-539: A Romanian aircraft flown by the French Lt. De Maille and by Lt. Eugeniu Iorgulescu executed a raid on Sofia. The raid was meant as a reply to the bombings of Bucharest. The Romanian crew dropped three 16 kg (35 lb) "Drosescu" bombs over the Royal Palace , which was hit and caught fire. The anti-aircraft artillery around the city managed to hit the airplane which was forced to land, the crew being taken prisoner. At

1112-408: A change in policy and an Anglo-German naval arms race began. Despite the vast sums spent by Tirpitz, the launch of HMS  Dreadnought in 1906 gave the British a technological advantage. Ultimately, the race diverted huge resources into creating a German navy large enough to antagonise Britain, but not defeat it; in 1911, Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg acknowledged defeat, leading to

1251-592: A direct threat. The 1908–1909 Bosnian Crisis began when Austria annexed the former Ottoman territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina , which it had occupied since 1878. Timed to coincide with the Bulgarian Declaration of Independence from the Ottoman Empire, this unilateral action was denounced by the European powers, but accepted as there was no consensus on how to resolve the situation. Some historians see this as

1390-583: A few thousands of "Gros" and "Michelin" type bombs and Le Prieur rockets. On 25 October 1916, 6 aircraft (including Farman HF 27 and Nieuport 12s ) of RNAS Wing 2 arrived in Romania from Imbros as part of the Romanian Flight mission. Another 3 aircraft arrived on 21 November. The airplanes were part of the contract signed by the Romanian representatives with their British counterparts. The British trained

1529-467: A gap between the German armies as they closed on Paris. The French army, reinforced by the British expeditionary corps, seized this opportunity to counter-attack and pushed the German army 40 to 80 km back. Both armies were then so exhausted that no decisive move could be implemented, so they settled in trenches, with the vain hope of breaking through as soon as they could build local superiority. In 1911,

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1668-540: A possibility. This was accentuated by British and Russian support for France against Germany during the 1911 Agadir Crisis . German economic and industrial strength continued to expand rapidly post-1871. Backed by Wilhelm II, Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz sought to use this growth to build an Imperial German Navy , that could compete with the British Royal Navy . This policy was based on the work of US naval author Alfred Thayer Mahan , who argued that possession of

1807-730: A reconnaissance mission in northern Bulgaria, then landed at Segarcea . The intensification of reconnaissance missions carried out by Section II prompted the section's commander, Cpt. George Valentin Bibescu, to reorganize its activity. To this end, four Blériots with the 80 hp engines and two Blériots with the 50 hp engines formed the No. 2 and No. 3 Reserve Squadrons. Cpt. Nicolae Capșa and Ioan H. Arion took off on 8 August 1913, at 6.05 a.m., with orders to drop leaflets over Sofia . The pilot noting: ...The machine climbed slowly to 1,200 m (3,900 ft)... Turning east, we climbed following

1946-799: A revolt in India, the outbreak of the war saw a reduction in nationalist activity. Leaders from the Indian National Congress and other groups believed support for the British war effort would hasten Indian Home Rule , a promise allegedly made explicit in 1917 by Edwin Montagu , the Secretary of State for India . In 1914, the British Indian Army was larger than the British Army itself, and between 1914 and 1918 an estimated 1.3 million Indian soldiers and labourers served in Europe, Africa, and

2085-504: A significant escalation, ending any chance of Austria cooperating with Russia in the Balkans, while also damaging diplomatic relations between Serbia and Italy. Tensions increased after the 1911–1912 Italo-Turkish War demonstrated Ottoman weakness and led to the formation of the Balkan League , an alliance of Serbia, Bulgaria, Montenegro , and Greece . The League quickly overran most of

2224-486: A third person. The first balloon unit of the Romanian Army was established in 1893 as part of the 1st Telegraph Company in the 1st Engineer Regiment , under the command of Lieutenant (Lt.) Eugeniu Asachi. The balloon unit was equipped with a French spherical captive balloon , which was replaced with a German kite balloon in 1900. In the beginning, the captive balloon was used for aerial surveillance in support of

2363-502: A unit under the command of Mihail Romanescu  [ ro ] was flying Messerschmitt Bf 109s from there. In the fall of 1940, Major Gotthard Handrick and a group German fighter pilots who had participated in the Battle of Britain were sent by Adolf Hitler to help train the Romanian pilots at this airbase. After Romania entered the war on the side of the Axis powers , pilots based at

2502-471: A war on two fronts; the Schlieffen Plan envisaged using 80% of the army to defeat France, then switching to Russia. Since this required them to move quickly, mobilisation orders were issued that afternoon. Once the German ultimatum to Russia expired on the morning of 1 August, the two countries were at war. At a meeting on 29 July, the British cabinet had narrowly decided its obligations to Belgium under

2641-402: A weak Ottoman government, rather than an ambitious Slav power like Bulgaria . Russia had ambitions in northeastern Anatolia while its clients had overlapping claims in the Balkans. These competing interests divided Russian policy-makers and added to regional instability. Austrian statesmen viewed the Balkans as essential for the continued existence of their Empire and saw Serbian expansion as

2780-451: A whole, the Somme offensive led to an estimated 420,000 British casualties, along with 200,000 French and 500,000 Germans. The diseases that emerged in the trenches were a major killer on both sides. The living conditions led to disease and infection, such as trench foot , lice , typhus , trench fever , and the ' Spanish flu '. At the start of the war, German cruisers were scattered across

2919-503: Is known, however, that from 1908 to 1913, military spending by the six major European powers increased by over 50% in real terms. The years before 1914 were marked by a series of crises in the Balkans, as other powers sought to benefit from the Ottoman decline. While Pan-Slavic and Orthodox Russia considered itself the protector of Serbia and other Slav states, they preferred the strategically vital Bosporus straits to be controlled by

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3058-558: The Schutzkorps was established, and carried out the persecution of Serbs. The assassination initiated the July Crisis, a month of diplomatic manoeuvring between Austria-Hungary, Germany, Russia, France and Britain. Believing that Serbian intelligence helped organise Franz Ferdinand's murder, Austrian officials wanted to use the opportunity to end their interference in Bosnia and saw war as

3197-626: The World War . In August 1914, the magazine The Independent wrote "This is the Great War. It names itself". In October 1914, the Canadian magazine Maclean's similarly wrote, "Some wars name themselves. This is the Great War". Contemporary Europeans also referred to it as " the war to end war " and it was also described as "the war to end all wars" due to their perception of its unparalleled scale, devastation, and loss of life. The first recorded use of

3336-617: The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force landed on the island of New Britain , then part of German New Guinea . On 28 October, the German cruiser SMS  Emden sank the Russian cruiser Zhemchug in the Battle of Penang . Japan declared war on Germany before seizing territories in the Pacific, which later became the South Seas Mandate , as well as German Treaty ports on

3475-715: The Black Sea over the Imperial ship. The Romanian pilots simulated an aerial battle at an altitude of 1,500 m (4,900 ft), executing dives and loops and impressing the Tsar. After the outbreak of the war, the Crown Council invoked by Carol I chose neutrality for Romania. Soon after this decision, King Carol I died and was succeeded by Ferdinand I to the throne. During the neutrality period, Romania invested in reorganizing, equipping and training its armed forces, allocating 17-22% of

3614-509: The Buzău - Râmnicu Sărat -Focșani and Buzău- Făurei - Ianca -Brăila railroads and railway stations. On 25 May, two Bréguet bombers, escorted by a third Bréguet, armed with a 37 mm (1.5 in) cannon took off with the mission to bomb the Traian railway station. After dropping their bombs, the bombers were attacked by enemy fighters. The escorting airplane opened fire with its cannon, hitting one of

3753-737: The Great War , was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers . Fighting took place mainly in Europe and the Middle East , as well as in parts of Africa and the Asia-Pacific , and in Europe was characterised by trench warfare ; the widespread use of artillery , machine guns, and chemical weapons (gas); and the introductions of tanks and aircraft . World War I

3892-706: The Rüstungswende or 'armaments turning point', when he switched expenditure from the navy to the army. This decision was not driven by a reduction in political tensions but by German concern over Russia's quick recovery from its defeat in the Russo-Japanese War and subsequent 1905 Russian Revolution . Economic reforms led to a significant post-1908 expansion of railways and transportation infrastructure, particularly in its western border regions. Since Germany and Austria-Hungary relied on faster mobilisation to compensate for their numerical inferiority compared to Russia,

4031-815: The Second Balkan War . Being organized in two sections, the Aeronautics Service carried out reconnaissance , liaison and leaflet dropping missions over Bulgaria . In 1915, the Air Corps gained independence from the Engineer Inspectorate. When Romania entered the First World War on the Allied side in 1916, the RAC was organized into 4 squadron groups, each assigned to an army, and 4 balloon sections. Limited by

4170-1005: The Svishtov railroad station and the fuel depot in Rusciuk , on the Southern front. Troops and command centers at field army and army corps level, along the Northern front, were also targeted. At the beginning of October, the French Military Mission , led by General Henri Mathias Berthelot , arrived in Romania. The Mission was composed of 500 commissioned officers and 1150 non-commissioned officers, corporals, soldiers and civilians with different specialties. The aviation component consisted of 42 commissioned officers , 45 non-commissioned officers , 36 corporals and 162 soldiers and civilians (pilots, aerial observers, specialists in balloons, communications and wireless telegraphy, etc.). The Mission’s main aim

4309-784: The United States entered the war on the Allied side following Germany's resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare against Atlantic shipping. Later that year, the Bolsheviks seized power in the Russian October Revolution , and Soviet Russia signed an armistice with the Central Powers in December, followed by a separate peace in March 1918. That month, Germany launched an offensive in

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4448-425: The artillery that defended the fortifications of Bucharest . Then, the balloon was used in the field training exercises from 1907-1911. The positive results encouraged the officials to acquire 3 more kite balloons and the necessary mobile devices to produce and store hydrogen, which was used to inflate the balloons, and to transport the equipment into operational theaters. On 20 November 1909, Cerchez & Co. ,

4587-540: The civil society could participate directly in the pilot training and aircraft purchases through public donations. A contract was also signed between the Air League and the Ministry of War, which allowed the training of military pilots at the flight school of Băneasa . The instructors of the flight school were all military pilots. As a result of the rapid development of aviation, it was necessary to regulate its status within

4726-480: The hydrophone and depth charges were introduced, destroyers could potentially successfully attack a submerged submarine. Convoys slowed the flow of supplies since ships had to wait as convoys were assembled; the solution was an extensive program of building new freighters. Troopships were too fast for the submarines and did not travel the North Atlantic in convoys. The U-boats sunk more than 5,000 Allied ships, at

4865-789: The tank . After the First Battle of the Marne in September 1914, Allied and German forces unsuccessfully tried to outflank each other, a series of manoeuvres later known as the " Race to the Sea ". By the end of 1914, the opposing forces confronted each other along an uninterrupted line of entrenched positions from the Channel to the Swiss border. Since the Germans were normally able to choose where to stand, they generally held

5004-588: The 1839 Treaty of London did not require it to oppose a German invasion with military force; however, Prime Minister Asquith and his senior Cabinet ministers were already committed to supporting France, the Royal Navy had been mobilised, and public opinion was strongly in favour of intervention. On 31 July, Britain sent notes to Germany and France, asking them to respect Belgian neutrality; France pledged to do so, but Germany did not reply. Aware of German plans to attack through Belgium, French Commander-in-Chief Joseph Joffre asked his government for permission to cross

5143-548: The 1879 Dual Alliance , which became the Triple Alliance when Italy joined in 1882. For Bismarck, the purpose of these agreements was to isolate France by ensuring the three Empires resolve any disputes between themselves. In 1887, Bismarck set up the Reinsurance Treaty , a secret agreement between Germany and Russia to remain neutral if either were attacked by France or Austria-Hungary. For Bismarck, peace with Russia

5282-441: The 1913 Treaty of London , which had created an independent Albania while enlarging the territories of Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro and Greece. However, disputes between the victors sparked the 33-day Second Balkan War , when Bulgaria attacked Serbia and Greece on 16 June 1913; it was defeated, losing most of Macedonia to Serbia and Greece, and Southern Dobruja to Romania. The result was that even countries which benefited from

5421-457: The 1st and 2nd Romanian Armies and allowed those commanders to make informed decisions during the battles. The contributions of the RAC during the summer campaign of 1917 were also noted by General Kurt von Morgen . During the month of August, the Romanian forces scored 32 victories, including those scored by the anti-aircraft artillery, with the French aviators obtaining a further 6 victories. After

5560-404: The 2nd Aeronautical Group were able to intercept and decrypt the German radio messages, which contributed to completing the commanders’ big picture of the enemy’s strength, deployments and intentions obtained through surveillance and photography. In parallel with reconnaissance and combat missions, the aviation bombed enemy military and transport facilities. One of the most important bombing missions

5699-556: The Austrians and Serbs clashed at the battles of the Cer and Kolubara ; over the next two weeks, Austrian attacks were repulsed with heavy losses. As a result, Austria had to keep sizeable forces on the Serbian front, weakening their efforts against Russia. Serbia's victory against Austria-Hungary in the 1914 invasion has been called one of the major upset victories of the twentieth century. In 1915,

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5838-642: The Austrians briefly occupied the Serbian capital, Belgrade . A Serbian counter-attack in the Battle of Kolubara succeeded in driving them from the country by the end of 1914. For the first 10 months of 1915, Austria-Hungary used most of its military reserves to fight Italy. German and Austro-Hungarian diplomats scored a coup by persuading Bulgaria to join the attack on Serbia. The Austro-Hungarian provinces of Slovenia , Croatia and Bosnia provided troops for Austria-Hungary. Montenegro allied itself with Serbia. Bulgaria declared war on Serbia on 14 October 1915 and joined in

5977-516: The Austro-Hungarian High Command to create new dedicated fighter units on the Romanian front. For this, Fliegerdetachement Nikitsch (later re-named to Kampfstaffel or Jagdstaffel Harja ) was created and assigned to Fliegerkompanie 31 . The unit's commander, Hauptmann Karl Nikitsch , requested more modern fighters as "many dogfights are carried out on the Romanian front, the losses in men and material are heavy". In

6116-545: The Balkan Wars, such as Serbia and Greece, felt cheated of their "rightful gains", while for Austria it demonstrated the apparent indifference with which other powers viewed their concerns, including Germany. This complex mix of resentment, nationalism and insecurity helps explain why the pre-1914 Balkans became known as the " powder keg of Europe ". On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria , heir presumptive to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria , visited Sarajevo ,

6255-404: The Băneasa school of the Air League. To ensure the good running of the activity, 78 military specialists were dispatched to the aerodrome. At the end of 1915, the newly independent RAC was somewhat better equipped due to the ordered airplanes arriving from France, 37 pilots and 25 observers were also licensed this year. Continuing their training missions, the Romanian pilots were well prepared for

6394-404: The Central Powers. However, the pro-German King Constantine I dismissed the pro-Allied government of Eleftherios Venizelos before the Allied expeditionary force arrived. The Macedonian front was at first mostly static. French and Serbian forces retook limited areas of Macedonia by recapturing Bitola on 19 November 1916 following the costly Monastir offensive , which brought stabilisation of

6533-410: The Chinese Shandong peninsula at Tsingtao . After Vienna refused to withdraw its cruiser SMS  Kaiserin Elisabeth from Tsingtao, Japan declared war on Austria-Hungary, and the ship was sunk in November 1914. Within a few months, Allied forces had seized all German territories in the Pacific, leaving only isolated commerce raiders and a few holdouts in New Guinea. Some of the first clashes of

6672-411: The Danube River from being surrounded. On the front in Transylvania , Grupul 1 Escadrile executed the first reconnaissance missions. On 16 September, a German aircraft that was flying over Călărași was intercepted by the Farman F.40 of Lt. Panait Cholet and observer Ioan Gruia. Using the onboard Hotchkiss 8 mm machine gun, Gruia damaged the enemy airplane which crash-landed near Silistra. This

6811-414: The Engineer Inspectorate, being organized in two branches – the aviation and the balloon branch. On 23 August 1915, the RAC was formed as an independent military arm and operated until 1 January 1924 when it became an equal to the Army and Navy, being redesignated as the Royal Romanian Air Force ( Aeronautica Regală Română ). In 1913, the newly established Military Aeronautics Service participated in

6950-548: The German High Seas Fleet was confined to port. German U-boats attempted to cut the supply lines between North America and Britain. The nature of submarine warfare meant that attacks often came without warning, giving the crews of the merchant ships little hope of survival. The United States launched a protest, and Germany changed its rules of engagement. After the sinking of the passenger ship RMS Lusitania in 1915, Germany promised not to target passenger liners, while Britain armed its merchant ships, placing them beyond

7089-465: The German Army increased in size from 1908 to 1914, he changed the allocation of forces between the two wings to 70:30. He also considered Dutch neutrality essential for German trade and cancelled the incursion into the Netherlands, which meant any delays in Belgium threatened the viability of the plan. Historian Richard Holmes argues that these changes meant the right wing was not strong enough to achieve decisive success. The initial German advance in

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7228-462: The German right wing would sweep through the Netherlands and Belgium , then swing south, encircling Paris and trapping the French army against the Swiss border. The plan's creator, Alfred von Schlieffen , head of the German General Staff from 1891 to 1906, estimated that this would take six weeks, after which the German army would transfer to the East and defeat the Russians. The plan was substantially modified by his successor, Helmuth von Moltke

7367-426: The Germans bled heavily as well, with anywhere from 700,000 to 975,000 casualties between the two combatants. Verdun became a symbol of French determination and self-sacrifice. The Battle of the Somme was an Anglo-French offensive from July to November 1916. The opening day on 1 July 1916 was the bloodiest single day in the history of the British Army , which suffered 57,500 casualties, including 19,200 dead. As

7506-565: The Middle East. In all, 140,000 soldiers served on the Western Front and nearly 700,000 in the Middle East, with 47,746 killed and 65,126 wounded. The suffering engendered by the war, as well as the failure of the British government to grant self-government to India afterward, bred disillusionment, resulting in the campaign for full independence led by Mahatma Gandhi . Pre-war military tactics that had emphasised open warfare and individual riflemen proved obsolete when confronted with conditions prevailing in 1914. Technological advances allowed

7645-545: The Ottomans joined the Central Powers in November. Germany's strategy in 1914 was to quickly defeat France, then to transfer its forces to the east, but its advance was halted in September , and by the end of the year the Western Front consisted of a continuous line of trenches stretching from the English Channel to Switzerland. The Eastern Front was more dynamic, but neither side gained a decisive advantage, despite costly offensives. Italy , Bulgaria , Romania , Greece and others joined in from 1915 onward. In April 1917,

7784-449: The Ottomans' territory in the Balkans during the 1912–1913 First Balkan War , much to the surprise of outside observers. The Serbian capture of ports on the Adriatic resulted in partial Austrian mobilisation, starting on 21 November 1912, including units along the Russian border in Galicia . The Russian government decided not to mobilise in response, unprepared to precipitate a war. The Great Powers sought to re-assert control through

7923-410: The Pipera airfield as being the second best in Romania after those at Stalin Airfield near Brașov ( Stalin City at the time). The repair facility employed 250 civilian workers who serviced military aircraft. The airport was dismantled in 1958. On its former site, the Aviation Museum of Bucharest was inaugurated on 18 March 2006. Some of the old hangars have been incorporated into the museum, while

8062-415: The Pipera airfield participated in the battles on the Eastern Front , including the Siege of Odessa and the Battle of Stalingrad . In the spring of 1951, after the start of communist rule in Romania , aircraft repair facilities which had previously been located at the Cotroceni airfield were moved to Pipera. In a secret report from June 1953, the Central Intelligence Agency assessed the facilities at

8201-420: The RAC’s Commander, became his deputy. Between 1 August 1916 and 1 January 1917, the RAC received, following some procurement contracts, 152 aircraft: 11 Bréguet 5 and 12 Bréguet-Michelin equipped with 37 mm cannons, 10 Caudron G.4 , 18 Nieuport 11 , 10 Nieuport 21 and 91 Farman F.40. Aside from the airplanes, Romania also purchased various equipment for reconnaissance and bomber aircraft, as well as

8340-565: The Romanian Anti-aircraft Defence Corps was established, with the mission to protect the important civil and military objectives against enemy aerial attacks. The Corps had 113 anti-aircraft guns, including "Negrei" and " Burileanu " gun systems, some machine guns and searchlights. Bucharest was protected by the Anti-aircraft Defence Branch of the Capital City, which was equipped with twenty 75 mm guns adapted for anti-aircraft use, two "Negrei" system 57 mm guns, 16 anti-aircraft machine guns and 8 sections of 60 and 90 cm searchlights. At

8479-402: The Romanian pilots until January 1917, when they left the country. A few hours after Romania's declaration of war, Hauptmann Geissert (commander of zeppelin LZ 101, stationed at Yambol , Bulgaria) received the order to bomb Bucharest. The zeppelins carried out raids on Bucharest, as well as on the oil refineries of Ploiești . On 4/5 September, while on a bombing raid over Ploiești, LZ 86

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8618-549: The Russian Stavka agreed with the French to attack Germany within fifteen days of mobilisation, ten days before the Germans had anticipated, although it meant the two Russian armies that entered East Prussia on 17 August did so without many of their support elements. By the end of 1914, German troops held strong defensive positions inside France, controlled the bulk of France's domestic coalfields, and inflicted 230,000 more casualties than it lost itself. However, communications problems and questionable command decisions cost Germany

8757-429: The Serbian retreat toward the Adriatic coast in the Battle of Mojkovac on 6–7 January 1916, but ultimately the Austrians also conquered Montenegro. The surviving Serbian soldiers were evacuated to Greece. After the conquest, Serbia was divided between Austro-Hungary and Bulgaria. In late 1915, a Franco-British force landed at Salonica in Greece to offer assistance and to pressure its government to declare war against

8896-455: The West was very successful. By the end of August, the Allied left, which included the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), was in full retreat , and the French offensive in Alsace-Lorraine was a disastrous failure, with casualties exceeding 260,000. German planning provided broad strategic instructions while allowing army commanders considerable freedom in carrying them out at the front, but von Kluck used this freedom to disobey orders, opening

9035-430: The Younger . Under Schlieffen, 85% of German forces in the west were assigned to the right wing, with the remainder holding along the frontier. By keeping his left-wing deliberately weak, he hoped to lure the French into an offensive into the "lost provinces" of Alsace-Lorraine , which was the strategy envisaged by their Plan XVII . However, Moltke grew concerned that the French might push too hard on his left flank and as

9174-446: The aggressor, German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg delayed the commencement of war preparations until 31 July. That afternoon, the Russian government were handed a note requiring them to "cease all war measures against Germany and Austria-Hungary" within 12 hours. A further German demand for neutrality was refused by the French who ordered general mobilisation but delayed declaring war. The German General Staff had long assumed they faced

9313-415: The aircraft they fly on very well... The Romanians are missing modern airplanes and spare parts. Once they will receive the first 6 Nieuport 11 fighters and 12 Farman F.40s, the strength of the RAC will increase and I am very certain that the Romanian pilots, who are very well trained, will be formidable opponents for their enemies. On 28 August 1916, Romania entered the war on the side of the Entente . When

9452-512: The airmen of the F.5 Squadron directing the Russian heavy artillery fire. All 12 squadrons of the Aeronautical groups participated in the offensive at Mărăști. From 6 August, the Central Powers began their offensive, the beginning of the Battle of Mărășești . The front of the 1st Romanian army was divided into three sectors, after the number of reconnaissance squadrons. From early morning until nightfall, three Farman F.40s, one for each sector, kept watch for any enemy troop movement. No aircraft left

9591-407: The attack by the Austro-Hungarian army under Mackensen's army of 250,000 that was already underway. Serbia was conquered in a little more than a month, as the Central Powers, now including Bulgaria, sent in 600,000 troops in total. The Serbian army, fighting on two fronts and facing certain defeat, retreated into northern Albania . The Serbs suffered defeat in the Battle of Kosovo . Montenegro covered

9730-411: The beginning of the campaign, the Romanian Air Corps carried out surveillance and photographic reconnaissance missions to support the land forces. In the southern theater of operations, Romanian airplanes discovered German, Turkish and Bulgarian troop movements and informed the commanders of the 3rd Army, via thrown messages. This helped to prevent the troops from Dobrudja and the forces deployed south of

9869-477: The best way of achieving this. However, the Foreign Ministry had no solid proof of Serbian involvement. On 23   July, Austria delivered an ultimatum to Serbia, listing ten demands made intentionally unacceptable to provide an excuse for starting hostilities. Serbia ordered general mobilisation on 25   July, but accepted all the terms, except for those empowering Austrian representatives to suppress "subversive elements" inside Serbia, and take part in

10008-483: The border and pre-empt such a move. To avoid violating Belgian neutrality, he was told any advance could come only after a German invasion. Instead, the French cabinet ordered its Army to withdraw 10 km behind the German frontier, to avoid provoking war. On 2 August, Germany occupied Luxembourg and exchanged fire with French units when German patrols entered French territory; on 3   August, they declared war on France and demanded free passage across Belgium, which

10147-453: The bottom where the 3rd line of enemy resistance should have been, disappearing under the plumes of smoke clouds, all that could constitute the area of a known objective was being picked apart by shell explosions of our artillery, light and heavy. And likewise, our positions, beginning with the first lines of trenches and battery emplacements identified by the enemy, were being pounded by enemy artillery with almost equal intensity to our own. In

10286-583: The campaign saw the first use of anti-aircraft warfare after an Austrian plane was shot down with ground-to-air fire, as well as the first medical evacuation by the Serbian army. Upon mobilisation, in accordance with the Schlieffen Plan , 80% of the German Army was located on the Western Front, with the remainder acting as a screening force in the East. Rather than a direct attack across their shared frontier,

10425-475: The campaigns of the First World War." In April 1911, the Ministry of War ordered 4 Farmans , this was followed by an order for 2 more Farmans. These licensed-built airplanes started to be delivered from 30 August. In the same year, the first officers began training at the flight school, Sublocotenent (Second Lieutenant - Slt.) Ștefan Protopopescu receiving the first pilot license in Romania and becoming

10564-636: The capital of the recently annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina . Cvjetko Popović , Gavrilo Princip , Nedeljko Čabrinović , Trifko Grabež , Vaso Čubrilović ( Bosnian Serbs ) and Muhamed Mehmedbašić (from the Bosniaks community), from the movement known as Young Bosnia , took up positions along the Archduke's motorcade route, to assassinate him. Supplied with arms by extremists within the Serbian Black Hand intelligence organisation, they hoped his death would free Bosnia from Austrian rule. Čabrinović threw

10703-466: The chance of a decisive outcome, while it had failed to achieve the primary objective of avoiding a long, two-front war. As was apparent to several German leaders, this amounted to a strategic defeat; shortly after the First Battle of the Marne , Crown Prince Wilhelm told an American reporter "We have lost the war. It will go on for a long time but lost it is already". On 30 August 1914, New Zealand occupied German Samoa (now Samoa ). On 11 September,

10842-440: The conclusion of the summer military operations, the aviation continued their missions with the same intensity. From 22 September, Grupul 3 Aeronautic with Escadrila F.7 and Escadrila N.10 were transferred to Botoșani. At the start of October, two aircraft from Escadrila F.5 were sent to Ismail , at the request of Gen. Dmitry Shcherbachev . The aircraft were tasked with defending southern Bessarabia and managed

10981-699: The conditions for admission to flight schools, the system of pilot licensing, the establishment of flight salary premiums, the continuous training of aircrew and the introduction of the higher pilot's license for aviators. This higher pilot's license was given to experienced aviators who performed missions in difficult conditions and its holders were permanently assigned to the Corps of Permanent Airmen. Pilots were required to fly at least 120 hours per year, otherwise, they were excluded from military aviation. On 5 July [ O.S. 22 June] 1913, Romania mobilized its army against Bulgaria. The Military Aeronautics Service

11120-511: The cost of 199 submarines. World War I also saw the first use of aircraft carriers in combat, with HMS  Furious launching Sopwith Camels in a successful raid against the Zeppelin hangars at Tondern in July 1918, as well as blimps for antisubmarine patrol. Faced with Russia in the east, Austria-Hungary could spare only one-third of its army to attack Serbia. After suffering heavy losses,

11259-493: The country’s budget for defense. However, the money spent for defense was insufficient to acquire all the necessary equipment to modernize the entire military. Although Romania had the facilities to manufacture Farman and Bristol-Coandă airplanes under French and British license, the Ministry of War preferred to import airplanes. Military pilots continued their training for participation in an eventual military campaign. The Romanian airmen believed that politicians did not understand

11398-513: The creation of new independent states, including Poland , Finland , the Baltic states , Czechoslovakia , and Yugoslavia . The League of Nations was established to maintain world peace, but its failure to manage instability during the interwar period contributed to the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Before World War II , the events of 1914–1918 were generally known as the Great War or simply

11537-449: The creation of strong defensive systems largely impervious to massed infantry advances, such as barbed wire , machine guns and above all far more powerful artillery , which dominated the battlefield and made crossing open ground extremely difficult. Both sides struggled to develop tactics for breaching entrenched positions without heavy casualties. In time, technology enabled the production of new offensive weapons, such as gas warfare and

11676-948: The crowds listened to music and drank wine, as if nothing had happened". Nevertheless, the impact of the murder of the heir to the throne was significant, and has been described by historian Christopher Clark as a " 9/11 effect, a terrorist event charged with historic meaning, transforming the political chemistry in Vienna". Austro-Hungarian authorities encouraged subsequent anti-Serb riots in Sarajevo . Violent actions against ethnic Serbs were also organised outside Sarajevo, in other cities in Austro-Hungarian-controlled Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia. Austro-Hungarian authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina imprisoned approximately 5,500 prominent Serbs, 700 to 2,200 of whom died in prison. A further 460 Serbs were sentenced to death. A predominantly Bosniak special militia known as

11815-636: The end of the year, General Constantin Prezan , the new Chief of the M.C.G.  [ ro ] , advised by the Chief of the French Military Mission, decided to reorganize the Air Corps. A new Aeronautical Directorate was created, commanded by Lt. Col. François de Vergnette de Lamotte  [ fr ] of the French Mission. The task of the director of Aeronautics was to ensure the cooperation between

11954-671: The expansion of the French colonial empire . In 1873, Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors , which included Austria-Hungary , Russia and Germany. After the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish War , the League was dissolved due to Austrian concerns over the expansion of Russian influence in the Balkans , an area they considered to be of vital strategic interest. Germany and Austria-Hungary then formed

12093-432: The fall military exercise , Vlaicu flew his airplane from Slatina to Piatra Olt carrying a message, Romania thus becoming one of the first countries to use airplanes for military purposes. The English historian, Michael J.H. Taylor noting: "In 1910 the Romanian military aviation was established, being one of the nations that adopted aviation for military purposes. The Romanian aviation participated, with great success, in

12232-551: The few aircraft the Corps had available, the Romanian airmen carried out mainly aerial reconnaissance and photography missions, though bombing missions with Romanian-made bombs were also executed. At the end of 1916, the RAC was reorganized with the help of the French Military Mission . After the reorganization, it had 3 Aeronautical Groups, each assigned to a Romanian or Russian army, and 5 balloon companies. The first flight of Romanian military personnel happened on 2 July [ O.S. 20 June] 1874, when Marius Willemot,

12371-491: The fire of the Romanian and Russian heavy artillery batteries, noting: "The shells hit the enemy trenches of the first line with great precision. The first enemy line at Găvanul was completely destroyed, and at Cota 114 a lot of green smoke could be seen." On that day, the crews of the 2nd Aeronautical Group flew on 35 missions, totaling 88 flight hours. The use of the RAC squadrons at the Battles of Mărăști and Mărășești supported

12510-662: The first aircraft company, the first aerodrome and the first flight school of Romania was founded at Chitila . The school, conducted by French flight instructors, had five hangars, bleachers for spectators and workshops where Farman airplanes were built under license. Also in November 1909, the Romanian Minister of War commissioned Aurel Vlaicu to build the A Vlaicu I airplane at the Bucharest Army Arsenal . The aircraft first flew on 17 June 1910. In September, during

12649-625: The first pilot of the Romanian Army . On 1 April 1912, the first military flight training school was established in Cotroceni . Prince George Valentin Bibescu took the initiative to establish the National Air League ( Liga Națională Aeriană ), on 5 May 1912, which was located in Băneasa . The League was formed with the aim of supporting the national aviation with money and aircraft. This way,

12788-400: The first time on the Western Front. Several types of gas soon became widely used by both sides and though it never proved a decisive, battle-winning weapon, it became one of the most feared and best-remembered horrors of the war. In February 1916, the Germans attacked French defensive positions at the Battle of Verdun , lasting until December 1916. Casualties were greater for the French, but

12927-585: The five Section I Farmans flew, piloted by Slt. Gheorghe Negrescu  [ ro ] , as the others were missing spare parts. The year 1913 marked an important point for the Romanian aviation, with new aircraft purchases from France, Great Britain and Germany. At the end of the year the aviation had 20 licensed pilots and was equipped with 34 aircraft, as follows: In 1914, 18 students enrolled for pilot training (eight officer cadets and eight non-commissioned officers). The Băneasa Flight School had another 10 students (five officers and five junior officers). With

13066-510: The front area until its replacement arrived after three hours. The front was protected by the fighters of the Nieuport squadrons so that the whole front line of the 1st Army was defended by the aviation. The aviators of the F.7 and F.9 squadrons carried out flights over the enemy positions, observer Constantin Nicolau from Escadrila F.7 noting: Starting from the first lines of trenches down to

13205-586: The front. Serbian and French troops finally made a breakthrough in September 1918 in the Vardar offensive , after most German and Austro-Hungarian troops had been withdrawn. The Bulgarians were defeated at the Battle of Dobro Pole , and by 25 September British and French troops had crossed the border into Bulgaria proper as the Bulgarian army collapsed. Bulgaria capitulated four days later, on 29 September 1918. The German high command responded by despatching troops to hold

13344-404: The future conflict. Arriving at Bucharest on 4 August 1916, the French pilot Jules de Lareinthy de Tholozan noted: The pilots performed several flights in my presence, which convinced me that they had received very good training. There is a small number of mechanics, however, they are very well trained. There is a need for more of them; the Romanian pilots have serious technical knowledge, knowing

13483-526: The globe, some of which were subsequently used to attack Allied merchant shipping . These were systematically hunted down by the Royal Navy, though not before causing considerable damage. One of the most successful was the SMS ; Emden , part of the German East Asia Squadron stationed at Qingdao , which seized or sank 15 merchantmen, a Russian cruiser and a French destroyer. Most of the squadron

13622-534: The high ground, while their trenches tended to be better built; those constructed by the French and English were initially considered "temporary", only needed until an offensive would destroy the German defences. Both sides tried to break the stalemate using scientific and technological advances. On 22 April 1915, at the Second Battle of Ypres , the Germans (violating the Hague Convention ) used chlorine gas for

13761-496: The international situation becoming more and more tense, through Order no. 421/1914, the Ministry of War tasked the command of the Aviation with survey missions in the country, especially around Craiova , Turnu Măgurele , Mărășești , Pașcani and Medgidia with the goal of setting up fuel depots in case of mobilization, as well as for the identification of fields where reserve aerodromes could be set up. Through continued propaganda in

13900-747: The interwar period, the airfield was used for civilian purposes as well. The first direct flight from Paris to Bucharest was done by the French–Romanian airline company CFRNA/CIDNA , with an airplane piloted by Albert Louis Deullin , who landed at Pipera Airport in October 1921. During World War II , Pipera Airport was the main military airport in the Bucharest area. Some units of the Romanian Air Force units were flying IAR 80 fighters (built in Brașov ), while

14039-467: The investigation and trial of Serbians linked to the assassination. Claiming this amounted to rejection, Austria broke off diplomatic relations and ordered partial mobilisation the next day; on 28 July, they declared war on Serbia and began shelling Belgrade . Russia ordered general mobilization in support of Serbia on 30 July. Anxious to ensure backing from the SPD political opposition by presenting Russia as

14178-773: The long-standing balance of power in Europe, as well as economic competition between nations triggered by industrialisation and imperialism . Growing tensions between the great powers and in the Balkans reached a breaking point on 28 June 1914, when a Bosnian Serb named Gavrilo Princip assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand , heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Austria-Hungary held Serbia responsible, and declared war on 28 July. After Russia mobilised in Serbia's defence, Germany declared war on Russia and France , who had an alliance . The United Kingdom entered after Germany invaded Belgium , whose neutrality it guaranteed, and

14317-497: The machine guns for the airplanes started to arrive only from September 1916. At the beginning of the campaign, the RAC was organized as such: The Central Powers deployed 22 German and Austro-Hungarian squadrons on the Romanian Front, totaling over 250 aircraft. They also deployed 20 balloon companies (10 Austro-Hungarian, 8 German and 2 Bulgarian), as well as 4 Zeppelins ( LZ 81 , LZ 86, LZ 97 and LZ 101). On 15 August,

14456-573: The military. A law on the organization of military aeronautics was issued on 1 April 1913 which organized the military aeronautics in two branches – the aviation and the balloon branch. The Military Aeronautics Service was put under the commanded of the General Inspectorate of Engineering and Aeronautics, led by General (Gen.) Mihail Boteanu. The law also established the Corps of Permanent Airmen ( Corpul Aeronauților Permanți ), consisting of pilots , air observers and mechanics . It laid down

14595-505: The mobilization was decreed, the RAC had 44 aircraft ready. Of the 44 aircraft ordered from France, 23 were available: 8 Farman MF.7/ MF.11 , 5 Blériot XI, 1 Farman HF.20, 4 Voisin III / V , 4 Morane-Saulnier monoplanes, 1 Caudron G.3 ; an Aviatik C.I was also delivered from Germany and another 20 aircraft were available from the flight schools: 10 Bristol T.B.8, 7 Bristol Coanda Monoplanes , 3 Farman HF.20. All aircraft were initially unarmed,

14734-508: The month of June. The first artillery salvos of the Romanian 4th Army Corps  [ ro ] in the morning of 22 July marked the beginning of the summer offensive . By this point, the RAC had 80–90 aircraft available, approximately 150 pilots (of which 42 were French) and 84 observers. During the first three days of battle, the Romanian and French airmen carried out some 130 missions, including those of directing friendly artillery fire, with

14873-400: The morning of 19 August, the enemy troops launched an attack aided by a 3-hour artillery barrage, including the use of gas shells over the 3 Romanian divisions. The German infantry managed to occupy the south-west part of Mărășești. The enemy troops were attacked by the aircraft of the F.7 and F.9 squadrons which carried out 14 bombing missions that day. At the same time, the observers directed

15012-641: The observer school to Vaslui . By the end of the campaign, the RAC lost 12 aircraft, and 12 pilots in combat, with another 2 pilots killed in training flights. The numbers of other aircrewmen lost is unknown. The Romanians shot down 5 aircraft in aerial combat, 3 aircraft were shot down by the French airmen and another 23 by the anti-aircraft artillery . On 1 January 1917 the Romanian Air Corps had 58 pilots and 12 observers, another 20 pilots and 18 observers were in training. A number of 53 aircraft were available while others were being assembled or repaired at

15151-460: The ocean, even to neutral ships. Since there was limited response to this tactic, Germany expected a similar response to its unrestricted submarine warfare. The Battle of Jutland in May/June 1916 was the only full-scale clash of battleships during the war, and one of the largest in history. The clash was indecisive, though the Germans inflicted more damage than they received; thereafter the bulk of

15290-548: The operations and the information bureaus and to centralize the information obtained during various missions. The RAC was composed of aviation, balloon, photo, meteorology, and training branches. The Commander of the Aviation Branch was Maj. Constantin Fotescu, while the Balloon Branch was commanded by Maj. Ion Iarca. With the new organization, 3 Aeronautical Groups, commanded by Romanian officers were created. However, some of

15429-465: The opposing aircraft with shrapnel . The enemy pilot barely managed to regain control and avoided hitting the ground. Hearing the noise of the battle, Lt. Vasile Craiu and Plutonier ( Sergeant First Class ) Marin Popescu, who were patrolling in the area, joined in the fighting and drove the enemy fighters away, Craiu managing to damage one of them. Reconnaissance and bombing missions continued through

15568-403: The other of 5.5 kg (12 lb), with the latter being rated as the best one to be launched by hand. At the end of July 1915, the Aviation had 34 aircraft. New Romanian aviator badges for pilots and observers also appeared in 1915. For officers, the badge was of silver metal and was worn on the chest on the left side and for non-commissioned officers it was made of silk of the same color and

15707-789: The protection of the " cruiser rules ", which demanded warning and movement of crews to "a place of safety" (a standard that lifeboats did not meet). Finally, in early 1917, Germany adopted a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare , realising the Americans would eventually enter the war. Germany sought to strangle Allied sea lanes before the United States could transport a large army overseas, but, after initial successes, eventually failed to do so. The U-boat threat lessened in 1917, when merchant ships began travelling in convoys , escorted by destroyers . This tactic made it difficult for U-boats to find targets, which significantly lessened losses; after

15846-728: The road to Sofia and the village of Zeljava we observed troops camped in 140 small forts. At 7.30 a.m. we were above Sofia at 1,200 m (3,900 ft) and passing over the Royal Palace , where Arion released more manifestos. We turned over the Metropolitan Cathedral and, about 5 km (3.1 mi) from the city, we saw a fort with two cupolas near the road to Filipopol . On return, captain Arion took more stereoscopic views . At 8.10 we landed at Orhanie . Total 150 km (93 mi) in 2 hours and 5 minutes of flight time. The Romanian airmen continued to fly reconnaissance missions during

15985-510: The role of military aviation in setting policies. Therefore, between 1914 and 1916, some enthusiastic pilots along with some experts from the Army Arsenal decided to experiment with dropping Romanian-designed bombs and practiced attacking ground targets from the air. On 12 January 1915 the first launching of a Romanian-made bomb from a height of 800 m (2,600 ft) took place. Two kinds of bombs were tested: one of 10 kg (22 lb) and

16124-621: The runway has been replaced by the Dimitrie Pompeiu Road and an office building. A local police station is also located on the same grounds. Romanian Air Corps The Romanian Air Corps or Aviation Corps ( RAC ) ( Romanian : Corpul de Aviație ) was the air arm of the Romanian army until the formation of the Romanian Air Force . It was established on 1 April 1913 as the Military Aeronautics Service ( Serviciul de Aeronautică Militară ) and subordinated to

16263-484: The sectors where the damage done by the Romanian artillery was incomplete, the aviators of F.4 Squadron would carry out bombing missions. The pilots of the N.11 and N.3 squadrons ensured the protection of the front line by engaging enemy aircraft, dogfights happening almost daily, with the aviators of Escadrila N.11 obtaining important victories, for example, Egon Nasta shot down a captive balloon using Le Prieur rockets. The numerous aerial battles and losses caused

16402-466: The shoot down one German aircraft in the Bolgrad region. On 7 November 1917, Romanian aviators scored 5 air victories through Egon Nasta, Paul Magâlea and Ion Muntenescu, all pilots of Escadrila N.11 and through the crew of Dumitru Crăsnaru and Alexandru Vasilescu from Escadrila F.9 . First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as

16541-429: The squadrons of these groups were led by French officers. Each group was assigned to an army and generally had 3 squadrons (2 reconnaissance and 1 fighter). Following the quick advance of the Central Powers, it was decided to move the flight school to Bârlad on 27 September. On 15 December, an order to move to Botoșani was received. In June 1917, the school was moved again, with the pilot school moving to Odessa and

16680-498: The support of equipping the aviation with flying machines, the residents of Turnu Severin gathered funds and bought a Bristol T.B.8, the same was done by the residents of Silistra and Iași . Visiting Romania in the summer, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia enjoyed a special welcome. While the Imperial ship was 20 km (12 mi) from the Romanian coast, two flights, one of Bristol-Coandă airplanes and another of Blériots, flew out to

16819-464: The term First World War was in September 1914 by German biologist and philosopher Ernst Haeckel who stated, "There is no doubt that the course and character of the feared 'European War' ... will become the first world war in the full sense of the word". For much of the 19th century, the major European powers maintained a tenuous balance of power , known as the Concert of Europe . After 1848, this

16958-682: The threat posed by the closing of this gap was more important than competing with the Royal Navy. After Germany expanded its standing army by 170,000 troops in 1913, France extended compulsory military service from two to three years; similar measures were taken by the Balkan powers and Italy, which led to increased expenditure by the Ottomans and Austria-Hungary. Absolute figures are difficult to calculate due to differences in categorising expenditure since they often omit civilian infrastructure projects like railways which had logistical importance and military use. It

17097-627: The war ended with the Armistice of 11 November 1918 . The Paris Peace Conference of 1919–1920 imposed settlements on the defeated powers, most notably the Treaty of Versailles , by which Germany lost significant territories, was disarmed, and was required to pay large war reparations to the Allies. The dissolution of the Russian, German, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman Empires redrew national boundaries and resulted in

17236-581: The war involved British, French, and German colonial forces in Africa. On 6–7 August, French and British troops invaded the German protectorates of Togoland and Kamerun . On 10 August, German forces in South-West Africa attacked South Africa; sporadic and fierce fighting continued for the rest of the war. The German colonial forces in German East Africa , led by Colonel Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck , fought

17375-426: The war. On 14 August, the Aviation was recalled to Bucharest. From the first experience of war, the ground commanders began to see the advantages of aviation, resulting in the fact that aircraft could be used very effectively in long-distance missions of over 200 km (120 mi) over the enemy lines, and in liaison missions with infantry and cavalry. Some shortcomings have also been noted. For example, only one of

17514-418: The west , which despite initial successes left the German Army exhausted and demoralised. A successful Allied counter-offensive from August 1918 caused a collapse of the German front line. By early November, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary had each signed armistices with the Allies, leaving Germany isolated. Facing a revolution at home , Kaiser Wilhelm   II abdicated on 9 November, and

17653-401: The workshops of Rezerva generală a aviației ( RGA ), which were the former workshops from Cotroceni and Băneasa that had moved to Iași in 1916. In the winter and spring of 1917, the aviation units were very active, despite the unfavorable weather conditions until the month of April. The 3 Aeronautical Groups were organized as such: From February, the Romanian and French specialists of

17792-406: Was a regular target for the bombers. Another priority target was the railroad bridge at Cernavodă . The initial raids against Cernavodă were ineffective, owing to the light weight of the bombs used. Better results were obtained once the bombers began receiving 100 lb (45 kg) bombs. Aircraft were used to attack enemy assembly areas and bivouacs, as well as munitions dumps. On 2 December,

17931-750: Was also mobilized and participated in the campaign which started on 10 July. The Military School and the Aviation Park mobilized 5 "Farmans", which constituted the Section I of Aviation ( Secția I de Aviație ), commanded by Lt. Ștefan Paraschivescu. Aurel Vlaicu was also assigned to this section with his A Vlaicu II airplane. Liga Națională Aeriană was transformed into the Section II of Aviation, contributing with 13 aircraft: 8 twin-seat Blériot monoplanes with 80 hp engines, 2 single-seat Blériots with 50 hp engines, 2 Farman MF.7 and 1 Blériot XXI with

18070-403: Was challenged by Britain's withdrawal into so-called splendid isolation , the decline of the Ottoman Empire , New Imperialism , and the rise of Prussia under Otto von Bismarck . Victory in the 1870–1871 Franco-Prussian War allowed Bismarck to consolidate a German Empire . Post-1871, the primary aim of French policy was to avenge this defeat, but by the early 1890s, this had switched to

18209-497: Was done by the 3rd Aeronautical Group on 31 March, with 19 aircraft. The Romanian and French crews destroyed the railroad, docks and facilities from the Port of Brăila and sank two German military ships. From May onwards, the aviation started night bombings using Farman F.40 and Bréguet bombers against important enemy targets: the Port of Brăila; Brașov ’s plants; the airfields at Focșani , Covasna , Miercurea-Ciuc and Târgu Secuiesc ;

18348-671: Was hit by Romanian artillery, which damaged one of its gondolas . The zeppelin tried to return to the base in Timișoara but while on the way, the damaged gondola detached, causing the ship to become unbalanced. The airship crashed near Utvin , killing nine of its crewmen, including the commander. Another zeppelin, LZ 81  [ de ] , would also be damaged by anti-aircraft fire while over Bucharest on 26/27 September. The airship crash-landed near Tarnovo while trying to return to base. The German bombers stationed in northern Bulgaria also carried out raids in Romania. The port of Constanța

18487-415: Was one of the deadliest conflicts in history , resulting in an estimated 10 million military dead and more than 20 million wounded , plus some 10 million civilian dead from causes including genocide . The movement of large numbers of people was a major factor in the deadly Spanish flu pandemic. The causes of World War I included the rise of Germany and decline of the Ottoman Empire , which disturbed

18626-654: Was refused. Early on the morning of 4   August, the Germans invaded, and Albert I of Belgium called for assistance under the Treaty of London . Britain sent Germany an ultimatum demanding they withdraw from Belgium; when this expired at midnight, without a response, the two empires were at war. Germany promised to support Austria-Hungary's invasion of Serbia, but interpretations of what this meant differed. Previously tested deployment plans had been replaced early in 1914, but those had never been tested in exercises. Austro-Hungarian leaders believed Germany would cover its northern flank against Russia. Beginning on 12 August,

18765-659: Was returning to Germany when it sank two British armoured cruisers at the Battle of Coronel in November 1914, before being virtually destroyed at the Battle of the Falkland Islands in December. The SMS Dresden escaped with a few auxiliaries, but after the Battle of Más a Tierra , these too were either destroyed or interned. Soon after the outbreak of hostilities, Britain began a naval blockade of Germany . This proved effective in cutting off vital supplies, though it violated accepted international law. Britain also mined international waters which closed off entire sections of

18904-403: Was the first Romanian air victory of the war. In order to improve the support for the land forces, the airmen decided to extend their missions by dropping bombs on enemy targets by hand in the absence of proper bomb dropping equipment. They threw 10 kg (22 lb) and 12 kg (26 lb) Romanian-designed "Drosescu" bombs against enemy troop concentrations at Lepnic and Gogolia, against

19043-759: Was the foundation of German foreign policy but in 1890, he was forced to retire by Wilhelm II . The latter was persuaded not to renew the Reinsurance Treaty by his new Chancellor , Leo von Caprivi . This gave France an opening to agree the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1894, which was then followed by the 1904 Entente Cordiale with Britain. The Triple Entente was completed by the 1907 Anglo-Russian Convention . While not formal alliances, by settling long-standing colonial disputes in Asia and Africa, British support for France or Russia in any future conflict became

19182-530: Was to transfer France’s knowledge and experience to its Romanian allies. The French worked to improve command and organizational structure, equipment and the training level of both leaders and combat personnel. In order to meet the objective, the members of the Mission became directly involved and assumed command positions. In this regard, Major De Malherbe was appointed as Commander of the military aviation through Order no. 11/17 October 1916, and Major Gheorghe Rujinschi,

19321-452: Was worn on the left sleeve. An important stage in the evolution of the Romanian military aviation was the establishment of the Romanian Air Corps on 23 August, which was put under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel (Lt. Col.) Constantin Găvănescu. Following the reorganization of the aviation, the flight school of Cotroceni was disbanded and the training of pilots and observers was taken over by

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