Francesco Baracca

Francesco Baracca (9 May 1888 – 19 June 1918) was Italy's top fighter ace of World War I. He was credited with 34 aerial victories. The emblem he wore side by side on his plane of a black horse prancing on its two rear hooves inspired Enzo Ferrari to use it on his racing car and later in his automotive company.

Biography

left|thumb|Francesco Baracca Pilot licence

Francesco Luigi Giuseppe Baracca was born in Lugo, Emilia-Romagna. He was the son of wealthy landowner Enrico Baracca (1855-1936) and his wife countess Paolina Biancoli . The younger Baracca initially studied at a private school in Florence before entering the Military Academy of Modena in October 1907. As he had become a passionate equestrian as an antidote to classroom boredom, he became a cavalryman with the prestigious ' Regiment upon his commissioning in 1910. His first duty station allowed him to attend concerts and opera in Rome, as well as pursue hunting and equestrian competitions; he gained some fame in the latter. This little idyll was spoiled by orders to report to a small town in central Italy. Baracca then became interested in aviation and learned to fly at Reims, France, receiving his pilot's license on 9 July 1912. He then served with the Battaglione Aviatori and in 1914 with the 5th and 6th Squadriglie.

World War I

During the months between the outbreak of World War I and Italy's entry into the war, there was intense political controversy in Italy between pro-war and pro-peace factions. Baracca remained aloofly neutral but ready to serve his nation. After Italy entered the war on the Entente side in May 1915, he was sent to Paris to convert to Nieuport two-seaters. Upon his return in July, he was assigned to the 8a Squadriglia Nieuport. The Nieuport 10s that equipped this squadron were almost useless against Austro-Hungarian raids; they were too slow, with too slow a rate of climb, to bring the intruders to battle with any regularity. The frustrated Italian pilots even resorted to leaving their observers ground-bound in attempts to improve performance, to little avail. On those rare occasions when the battle was joined, the Nieuports' guns usually jammed. Renaming the unit to 1a Squadriglia Caccia on 1 December 1915 did nothing to solve the problems.

The Nieuport 11 single-seat fighter with Lewis guns entered service in April 1916, and on 7 April, flying this new fighter, Baracca scored his first victory, holing the fuel tank of an Austrian Hansa-Brandenburg C.I having received forty-five hits, was forced to land and the crew, composed of Sergeant Adolf Ott and Lieutenant Observer Franz Lenarcic (who later died of the wounds) of Flik 19, was taken prisoner. This was also Italy's first aerial victory in the war. This first victory featured his favourite manoeuvre, which was to zoom in unseen behind and below an enemy and fire his machine gun from pistol range.

It was around this time that Baracca adopted as a personal emblem a black prancing horse on his Nieuport 17, in tribute to his former cavalry regiment. This prompted some to call him, "The Cavalier of the Skies". Flying the Nieuport 17 and then, from March 1917, the SPAD VII, he scored both individually, and in combination with other Italian aces.

left|thumb|Major Francesco Baracca posed in front of his SPAD S.VII

Baracca's second victory was an Austrian Lohner over Gorizia on 23 April 1916. After his third victory, he transferred to 70a Squadriglia.

Baracca temporarily upgraded to a Spad XIII in October 1917, using it to achieve a couple of victories on 22 October, and on a win scored on a joint sortie with Pier Piccio on 25 October. That night he wrote: "I had my SPAD shot up and its longeron broken into pieces by enemy machine gun fire in an aerial dogfight." As a result, Baracca returned to the more manoeuvrable Spad VII, remarking, "It doesn't matter if the VII is equipped with a single gun. Provided you are a good fighter, a single gun is just enough." Nevertheless, after repair, he sometimes returned to the Spad XIII.

Baracca remained as much as possible with the 91st Squadriglia, even after being promoted to Maggiore in November 1917. He would try to visit his victims in hospital afterwards, to pay his respects, or he would place a wreath on the grave of those he killed.

Death

left|thumb|Francesco Baracca poses beside his 34th and last victory. On 15 June 1918, Baracca and Aliperta forced down at San Biagio di Callalta the Albatross D III flown by Lieutenant Sigismund von Josipovich

Baracca saw little action in 1918, but he added more victories, for a total of 34, before failing to return from a strafing mission on the Montello (hill) area on 19 June. According to other sources, Baracca had left Osnago to provide him with top cover as he dived on the enemy trenches. Osnago lost sight of his commander, and then he saw something burning in a nearby valley. Some days later, on 24 June, after an Austro-Hungarian retreat, Baracca's remains were recovered from where they lay, four meters from the burnt remnants of his Spad VII.

thumb|The monument at [[Nervesa della Battaglia.]]

His body, when found, reportedly bore the marks of a bullet to the head. His pistol was out of its holster, but away from his body, leading to suspicions that he elected to take his own life rather than die in a crash or be taken prisoner. An Austrian pilot reportedly claimed to have shot him down in combat. This claim is allegedly supported by evidence, but the most accepted version is that Baracca was hit by ground fire. (On that day at 18.10 a C.I reconnaissance aircraft of Flik 28 took off, piloted by Max Kauer with Arnold Barwig as observer-gunner. They had to fly to the front of the 17th Division to take photographs, a dangerous task with the air dominance now ensured by the Italian air force. During the flight, they saw two Spad fighters approaching about a kilometre away and promptly manoeuvred to fight them. First, the observer fired a volley of 15-20 shots at one of them who was going down, then they saw him climb up to the right and fired him again, setting him on fire.)

Ltn Arnold Barwig in Phönix C.I 121.17, piloted by Zgsf Max Kauer, claimed to have shot down the Italian ace. The Austrian crew also photographed the shot-down aeroplane and noted the time and place of engagement.

Legacy

Baracca's total of 34 victory claims can largely be verified from known Austro-Hungarian losses and surviving military records, establishing the Italian as one of the highest-scoring Allied pilots during the conflict. After the war, his home in Lugo was turned into the Francesco Baracca Museum, which displays mementoes, uniforms, and medals from Baracca's life, as well as rudders and guns taken from shot-down aircraft. In the 1920s, a SPAD VII once flown by Baracca in December 1917 was presented for display, which was subsequently restored by GVAS (the Italian aeronautical preservation society).

On 17 June 1923, a unique encounter intertwined the destinies of the Prancing Horse and Enzo Ferrari forever. Enzo Ferrari wrote about that encounter: 'When I won my first Savio Circuit in Ravenna in 1923, I met Count Enrico Baracca and Countess Paolina, parents of the flying hero. One day the Countess said to me, "Ferrari, why don't you put my son's prancing horse on your cars? It'll bring you good luck." The Horse was and will always be black; I added the canary yellow background, the colour of the city of Modena.'

Still, the Prancing Horse symbol would not appear on Scuderia Ferrari cars until 9 July 1932.

The roller coaster at Ferrari World on Yas Island Flying Aces, is named after him and themed to him.

Many roads in Italy are named after Baracca. The airport of Bolzano, a city in the region of Trentino-Alto Adige, the Roma-Centocelle Italian Air Force base, and the Lugo di Romagna airfield are all named after Baracca. A huge monument to his memory dominates the main square of his home town at Lugo di Romagna.

He was decorated with the Order of Karađorđe's Star with swords and a number of other decorations.

References

Sources

Nieuport Aces of World War 1. Norman Franks. Osprey Publishing, 2000. , .
SPAD XII/XIII Aces of World War I. Jon Guttman. Osprey Publishing, 2002. , .
Franks, Norman; Guest, Russell; Alegi, Gregory. Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI. Grub Street, 1997. , .
Varriale, Paolo. Italian Aces of World War 1. Osprey Publishing, Oxford, UK, 2009. .
Shores, Christopher. Air Aces. Greenwich, CT: Bison Books, 1983. .
Gentilli R., Iozzi A., Varriale P. (2003). Italian aces of World War I and their aircraft. Schiffer Publishing Ltd., Atglen PA.

External links

Regia Aeronautica Italiana – Entry on Francesco Baracca
Francesco Baracca Museum in Lugo di Romagna