In 1915 portuguese aces fight in Moçambique against german troops.Please, someone give-me informations about this.

What "aces ??" I wonder how many aces were fighting against the Germans.

I can find no reference to Portuguese aircrew in German East Africa, just 3,000 European troops and 11,000 askaris under the command of Oberstleutnant Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck against 300,000 Imperial and Belgian troops and three squadrons of aeroplanes. The Konigsberg was destroyed in the Rufiji delta in July 1915 but that was about the highlight of that campaign.

Vorbeck was promoted Major in 1906 and his predecessor in the post was a Colonel so I suspect
he was at least a Colonel when taking up his post in 1913 later promoted to General. The 300,000
figure is the total number of allied troops who served in the whole campaign. The troops in the field at any one time would have been considerably less.
This does not detract in any way from his achievements, he was one of the top military commanders of the 20th Century. An anti Nazi he was black listed by them and lost two sons serving with the German army in WW2.
If you get the chance read his book "My Reminiscences of East Africa".

andy

Hi,

I've seen a color profile of a Farman pusher ("horace") with portugese markings, used in Mozambique. Maybe the portuguese troops used these old planes (by 1918 standarts) for reconnaissance against the germans troops that invaded the north of mozambique in 1918. But they didn't meet any aerial opposition, because Von Lettow and his troops never had planes (a taube was delivered in 1914 in german east africa but broke before the beginning of the war an was never repaired).

Hope it helps.

all WWI portuguese air force (aeronáuica militar):1 deperdussin,B (1912). 1maurice farman mf 4 with a renault motor 70cv (1912). 1 avro 500 (1912). 1 caudron 63 (1917). 2 farman mf 11 (1917). 5 farman f 40 (1917). 1 caudron6-3 (1917). 2 morane savinier h (1917). 2 nieport 10a2 (1917). 2 caudron 64(1917)in angola. 2 hidro fba (1918). 9 caudron6-4 a2 gnome motor (1918).

portuguese troops also fight in german east africa and in moçambique. in april 10, 1916, major silveira attacked and captured, old portuguese kionga. in 1917,they attacked the rovuma banks until newala, with the help of air reconnaissance by the "tenente aviador" jorge castilho.in 1918 portuguese ( not only imperial and belgian troops) try to stoped lettow vorbeck invasion.

Dear Arrifes,

According to "French planes of WW1" (flying machines press), the portuguese army had the following planes :
- 5 Farman F 40 "Horace" in october 1916. One one sent to Mozambique in september 1917 as part of Esquadrilla Expedicionaria. It was lost in an accident that killed the pilot.

-2 Maurice Farman MF 11 in september 1916, retired in 1917.

-3 FBA 100 ch Gnôme (also called FBA type B) in 1917.

-2 Caudron G 3 in 1916, 4 were ordered later.

-9 Caudron G 4 in 1918. it was planned to assign them to the Esquadrilla Expedicionaria in Angola. (Mozambique seems more likely)

-1 Deperdussin TT seems to have been given to Portugal in 1912.

-1 Morane type H in oct 1916 (serial ms721)

-7 Nieuport 83 E2 trainers (very similar to the Nieuport 10)

All these planes were given to the Escola Militar Aeronautica at Vila Nova da Rainha. They are all updated models. No portuguese unit seems to have been created during the war, but :
- Some Portuguese pilots were affected in french units in the army or navy (3 pilots in SPA 124, an escadrille of fighters). An old message discusses this point (see aerodrome archives).
- An air unit is likely to have been created in Mozambique, to locate germans troops. Maybe they used planes given by the british. At last we know they used one Farman F 40.

Hope this helps,

David Méchin

The Germans had 2 aircraft in action in Southwest Africa and 1 (pilot: Büchner, but not the ace Büchner) - I believe an AGO - in East Africa. After the loss of the latter a hydroplane was built (!)there and used.

Additional the cruiser Königsberg shot down a British airplane with the last two available grenades. Claim confirmed in The Sky Their Battlefield.