Roland Garros (October 6, 1888 – October 5, 1918) started his aviation career in 1909 flying a Demoiselle (Dragonfly) monoplane, an aircraft that only flew well with a small lightweight pilot.
In September 1911 Garros established a new world altitude record of 18,410 feet.
Roland Garros became on September 23, 1913, the first person to fly a plane across the Mediterranean (from St. Raphael, France to Bizerte, Tunisia).
Garros managed to escape from the German Prisoner of War camp in February 1918, after several attempts, and re-joined the French army.
On October 5, 1918, Garros was shot down and killed near Vouziers, Ardennes, a month before the end of the war and one day before his 30th birthday.
A tennis center, which Garros attended religiously when he was studying in Paris, was named after him in the 1920s, the Stade de Roland Garros. The stadium accommodates the French Open, one of tennis' Grand Slam tournaments.
The French Open tennis stadium is not the only thing named after Roland Garros: the airport on Réunion in the Indian Ocean, also bears his name.
Sources Daily Express, Wikipedia
In September 1911 Garros established a new world altitude record of 18,410 feet.
Roland Garros became on September 23, 1913, the first person to fly a plane across the Mediterranean (from St. Raphael, France to Bizerte, Tunisia).
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| Roland Garros Wikipedia Commons |
During World War I, Garros flew a Morane-Saulnier Type L aircraft equipped with a machine gun that fired through the propeller blades. This innovation allowed the pilot to fire forward without hitting the propeller blades, and gave the plane a significant advantage in air combat.
On April 18, 1915, during a reconnaissance mission over German lines, Garros was forced to land due to engine trouble. He was subsequently captured by the Germans and spent three years as a prisoner of war.
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| Roland Garros in 1910 |
A tennis center, which Garros attended religiously when he was studying in Paris, was named after him in the 1920s, the Stade de Roland Garros. The stadium accommodates the French Open, one of tennis' Grand Slam tournaments.
The French Open tennis stadium is not the only thing named after Roland Garros: the airport on Réunion in the Indian Ocean, also bears his name.
Sources Daily Express, Wikipedia
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