Sunset on the Stork of the Ace
After WW 1, the official radiator mascot of Hispano Suiza was a superb sculpture of the flying stork (La Cigogne Volante, for you Francophiles) radiator cap, and was a quiet reminder of the marque’s wartime prowess: it commemorated Group de Combat No. 12, the squadron of Georges Guynemer, a French air ace with 53 credited kills before his disappearance in September, 1917. Guynemer’s SPAD aircraft were Hispano-powered and -armed, and Guynemer was said to be a personal friend of Birkigt, the chief engineer/designer and driving force behind Hispano-Suiza.
Hispano's 8A V8 was a popular and advanced engine cast from a single block of aluminum that powered the SPAD S.VII, a fighter plane used by multiple countries. Most French squadrons used the SPAD, including Escadrille 3 Les Cigognes (The Storks), one of France's most renowned squads thanks to its talented and deadly ace George Guynemere.
Airplane, Aircraft, Propeller-driven aircraft, Propeller, Aviation, Aerospace engineering, Hangar, Propeller, General aviation, Light aircraft,
French ace George Guynemer's SPAD S.VII with his squadron's wings-down stork logo.
As the story goes, Escadrille 3 first earned its nickname by reminding French citizens of the storks commonly found in France's Alsace region,(in fact it was the symbol of the French province of Alsace,) which was under German control at the time. The name stuck, and when the French Air Force decided to collapse Escadrille 3 into the Groupe de Combat 12with multiple other squadrons, they all adopted the stork emblem.
At the same time, the Air Force also decided squads needed to have some sort of symbol on their planes to quickly identify each other, so Groupe de Combat 12 used three different iterations of the stork in flight to separate squadrons: wings spread, wings down, and wings up. Escadrille 3, Guynemere's squad, wore the wings-down stork.
After WWI and as a tribute to Guynemer, The Storks, and its own engineering successes, Hispano-Suiza adopted the stork as its official hood ornament. The company hired French sculptor Frederick Bazin to design the ornament, and this elegant art-deco interpretation is what he came up with. For me, Bazin's Hispano stork is flawless and easily one of the most beautiful hood ornaments ever created.
Bazin designed numerous car mascots, including Isotta Fraschini's "Spirit of Triumph" and French manufacturer UNIC's centaur.
Interestingly, Bucciali, who served in Escadrille 26, which was one of the squadrons that got collapsed into the Groupe de Combat, also decided to use a stork hood ornament when he began making his own very striking cars. His ornament doesn't have anything on the striking Hispano stork, but the silhouettes Bucciali commissioned for the sides of his cars, on the other hand, were pure class.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!
Sunset on the Stork of the Ace
After WW 1, the official radiator mascot of Hispano Suiza was a superb sculpture of the flying stork (La Cigogne Volante, for you Francophiles) radiator cap, and was a quiet reminder of the marque’s wartime prowess: it commemorated Group de Combat No. 12, the squadron of Georges Guynemer, a French air ace with 53 credited kills before his disappearance in September, 1917. Guynemer’s SPAD aircraft were Hispano-powered and -armed, and Guynemer was said to be a personal friend of Birkigt, the chief engineer/designer and driving force behind Hispano-Suiza.
Hispano's 8A V8 was a popular and advanced engine cast from a single block of aluminum that powered the SPAD S.VII, a fighter plane used by multiple countries. Most French squadrons used the SPAD, including Escadrille 3 Les Cigognes (The Storks), one of France's most renowned squads thanks to its talented and deadly ace George Guynemere.
Airplane, Aircraft, Propeller-driven aircraft, Propeller, Aviation, Aerospace engineering, Hangar, Propeller, General aviation, Light aircraft,
French ace George Guynemer's SPAD S.VII with his squadron's wings-down stork logo.
As the story goes, Escadrille 3 first earned its nickname by reminding French citizens of the storks commonly found in France's Alsace region,(in fact it was the symbol of the French province of Alsace,) which was under German control at the time. The name stuck, and when the French Air Force decided to collapse Escadrille 3 into the Groupe de Combat 12with multiple other squadrons, they all adopted the stork emblem.
At the same time, the Air Force also decided squads needed to have some sort of symbol on their planes to quickly identify each other, so Groupe de Combat 12 used three different iterations of the stork in flight to separate squadrons: wings spread, wings down, and wings up. Escadrille 3, Guynemere's squad, wore the wings-down stork.
After WWI and as a tribute to Guynemer, The Storks, and its own engineering successes, Hispano-Suiza adopted the stork as its official hood ornament. The company hired French sculptor Frederick Bazin to design the ornament, and this elegant art-deco interpretation is what he came up with. For me, Bazin's Hispano stork is flawless and easily one of the most beautiful hood ornaments ever created.
Bazin designed numerous car mascots, including Isotta Fraschini's "Spirit of Triumph" and French manufacturer UNIC's centaur.
Interestingly, Bucciali, who served in Escadrille 26, which was one of the squadrons that got collapsed into the Groupe de Combat, also decided to use a stork hood ornament when he began making his own very striking cars. His ornament doesn't have anything on the striking Hispano stork, but the silhouettes Bucciali commissioned for the sides of his cars, on the other hand, were pure class.
AS ALWAYS....COMMENTS & INVITATIONS with AWARD BANNERS will be respectfully DELETED!