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Barrett · 15 September 2000, 08:44 AM

It's never been a big item with me, but I do wonder what is actually KNOWN about Fonck and his personality. Everybody interested in Great War aviation "knows" that he was an obnoxious braggart who had the maddening habit of living up to his own boasts. But stop and think a moment: how do we REALLY know that?
AFAIK, every such item is from 1930s-50s authors writing well after the fact, without any specific references. These same assertions often come from "historians" who put canvas on WW I aeroplanes.
Therefore: among his contemporaries, who observed Fonck's arrogance? Who considered him a braggart? It'd be interesting to trace the historiography, if it were possible. Meanwhile, the only first-person account I know of on the subject was from Ed Parsons who, IIRC, said RF was intensely competitive--not the same as being an obnoxious, arrogant boor.
I think that a similar example is W Voss' "famous" last night bash in Berlin, attending Lorzer's PlM party in Berlin. We do know where that originated--with Quentin Reynolds, though his source is obscure. But we know that Lorzer didn't receive TBM until about 5-6 months later, and Voss evidently spent his last night with his brothers at the front. (Besides which, it is far from certain he could have closed up the Bristol Hotel bar and made it back to J.10 in time to bag No. 48 the next morning.)
So: I'm not saying that the conventional wisdom about Fonck is wrong. I just can't help asking--where's the proof?

15 September 2000, 08:44 AM	#3
Barrett Forum Ace of Aces Join Date: Aug 1998 Location: The American West Posts: 5,749	It's never been a big item with me, but I do wonder what is actually KNOWN about Fonck and his personality. Everybody interested in Great War aviation "knows" that he was an obnoxious braggart who had the maddening habit of living up to his own boasts. But stop and think a moment: how do we REALLY know that? AFAIK, every such item is from 1930s-50s authors writing well after the fact, without any specific references. These same assertions often come from "historians" who put canvas on WW I aeroplanes. Therefore: among his contemporaries, who observed Fonck's arrogance? Who considered him a braggart? It'd be interesting to trace the historiography, if it were possible. Meanwhile, the only first-person account I know of on the subject was from Ed Parsons who, IIRC, said RF was intensely competitive--not the same as being an obnoxious, arrogant boor. I think that a similar example is W Voss' "famous" last night bash in Berlin, attending Lorzer's PlM party in Berlin. We do know where that originated--with Quentin Reynolds, though his source is obscure. But we know that Lorzer didn't receive TBM until about 5-6 months later, and Voss evidently spent his last night with his brothers at the front. (Besides which, it is far from certain he could have closed up the Bristol Hotel bar and made it back to J.10 in time to bag No. 48 the next morning.) So: I'm not saying that the conventional wisdom about Fonck is wrong. I just can't help asking--where's the proof? __________________ You will not rise to the occasion: You will default to your level of training.