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Roland Garros

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Aviator

The Resume

    (October 6, 1888-October 5, 1918)
    Born in Saint-Denis, Reunion
    Set an altitude record of 17,000 feet (1912)
    Made the first non-stop flight across the Mediterranean Sea (1913)
    Shot down four German aircraft during World War I
    Forced down behind German lines by ground fire (April 18, 1915)
    Was shot down and killed over Vouziers in the Ardennes
    Namesake for the stadium where tennis' French Open is played

Why he might be annoying:

    He planned on becoming a concert pianist until he witnessed an air show in Rouen (1909).
    Ironically, he was teaching military aviation in Germany when WWI started.
    Early in the War, he was falsely reported to have died after ramming a zeppelin with his plane.
    He was often erroneously credited as the first fighter ace, but he had only four confirmed victories. (Traditionally, ace status required five.)

Why he might not be annoying:

    When WWI started, he escaped from Germany via a nighttime flight to Switzerland.
    After installing metal deflector plates on his propellor, he became the first fighter pilot to shoot down an aircraft by firing forward through his own propellor (April 1, 1915).
    He escaped from a German POW camp (February 14, 1918) and rejoined the French army.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 9 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 14 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 23 Votes: 39.13% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 11 Votes: 9.09% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 15 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying