Capitaine Jean Georges Fernand Matton was a World War I cavalryman and flying ace

Flying ace

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...

. He was credited with nine confirmed and two unconfirmed aerial victories.

Matton began World War I as a cavalryman. He earned a Mention in Dispatches for his performance, followed by an award of the Legion d'honneur on 5 January 1915. His award citation read, "Ignoring a serious wound incurred during the course of a reconnaissance, he transmitted the vitally important information that he had gathered."

He then undertook aviation training, receiving Military Pilot's Brevet No. 2349 on 14 January 1916. At first he was posted to Escadrille MF20 (the 'MF' denoting the unit's use of Maurice Farman

Farman

Farman Aviation Works was an aeronautic enterprise founded and run by the brothers; Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French nationalization and rationalization of its aerospace industry, Farman's assets were...

 airplanes). On 23 July 1916, he was transferred to Escadrille N57. Five days later, he scored his first aerial victory, sharing it with Georges Lachmann

Georges Lachmann

Capitaine Georges Marcel Lachmann was a French World War I flying ace. He was credited with nine confirmed aerial victories.-World War I:On 21 July 1914, Georges Marcel Lachman was awarded the civil pilot's license he had earned. On 2 August 1914, as France began World War I, Sergent Lachmann...

 and Georges Flachaire

Georges Flachaire

Sous lieutenant Georges Charles Marie François Flachaire was a World War I flying ace credited with eight aerial victories.Flachaire joined the artillery in 1914. He soon volunteered for aviation. He was posted to Escadrille 67 on 1 September 1915. He piloted two-seater Nieuports until the new...

. This garnered Matton another Mention in Dispatches. On 2 October 1916, he was transferred to command Escadrille 48. He scored his first victory there (second overall) on 15 December.

Victory number three for Matton was a German observation balloon

Observation balloon

Observation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....

, destroyed on 16 February 1917. Matton would continue to score, right up until he joined Armand de Turenne

Armand de Turenne

Capitaine Armand Jean Galliot Joseph de Turenne was a World War I flying ace credited with 15 aerial victories.The Marquis de Turenne was a pre-war cavalryman who transferred to aviation after the war began. In June 1916, he was assigned to Escadrille 48 as a Nieuport pilot. He scored his first...

 in a double win on 9 July, for his final victories. Both his fifth and sixth wins had earned him Mentions in Dispatches.

Capitaine Jean Georges Fernand Matton was killed in action

Killed in action

Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...

 in defense of his nation on 10 September 1917.

External links

• http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/france/matton.php gives a detailed list of his victories

Reference

• Over the Front: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914-1918 Norman L. R. Franks, Frank W. Bailey. Grub Street, 1992. ISBN 0-948817-54-2, 9780948817540.

Endnotes