View source for Spanish Republican Air Force

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name                     = Spanish Republican Air Force
| native_name                   = {{lang|es|Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española (FARE)}}
| image                         = Polikarpov I-16-Mosca.jpg
| caption                       = [[Popeye]] on the Spanish Republican [[Polikarpov I-16]] of [[Antonio Arias Arias]], commander of the 4th squadron. [[Museo del Aire (Madrid)|''Museo del Aire'']], [[Cuatro Vientos]], [[Madrid]]. Other characters on Spanish Republican planes included [[Mickey Mouse]] and [[Betty Boop]].
| dates                         = 1931–1939
| country                       = {{Flag|Spanish Republic}}
| allegiance                    = Spain (1931–1939)
| branch                        = [[Spanish Republican Armed Forces]]
| type                          = [[Air Force]]
| role                          = 
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| command_structure             = 
| garrison                      = 
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| nickname                      = 
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| motto                         = 
| colors                        = 
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| equipment                     = 
| equipment_label               = 
| battles                       = [[Spanish Civil War]]
| anniversaries                 = 
| decorations                   = 
| battle_honours                = <!-- Commanders -->
| commander1                    = 
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| commander2                    = 
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| commander3                    = 
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| notable_commanders            = {{plainlist|
*[[Ignacio Hidalgo de Cisneros]]
*[[Andrés García La Calle]]
*[[Leocadio Mendiola]]
*[[Antonio Camacho Benítez]]
*[[Carlos Núñez Mazas]]
*[[Ángel Pastor Velasco]]
*[[Miguel Núñez de Prado]]
*[[Virgilio Leret Ruiz]]
*[[Manuel Cascón Briega]]}}
| identification_symbol         = {{plainlist|
*[[File:Emblema FARE I Época (1931-1934).svg|145px]]<br/><small>(1931–1934)</small>
*[[File:Emblema FARE II Época (1934-1936).svg|175px]]<br/><small>(1934–1936)</small>
*[[File:Emblema FARE III Época (1936-1939).svg|175px]]<br/><small>(1936–1939)</small>}}
| identification_symbol_label   = Emblem
| identification_symbol_2       = [[File:Fin flash of the Spain 1931-1939.svg|75px]]
| identification_symbol_2_label = [[Fin flash]]
| identification_symbol_3       = [[File:Roundel of the Spanish Republican Air Force.svg|95px]]
| identification_symbol_3_label = [[Roundel]]<br> (1931–1936)
| identification_symbol_4       = [[File:Roundel of Spanish Republican Air force.svg|75px]]
| identification_symbol_4_label = [[Roundel]]<br> (1936–1939)
| aircraft_attack               = [[Breguet XIX]], [[Vickers Vildebeest]], [[Beechcraft Staggerwing]], [[Gourdou-Leseurre GL-633]], [[Potez 25]]
| aircraft_bomber               = [[Potez 540]], [[Tupolev SB]], [[Bloch MB.200]],<ref>[http://members.fortunecity.es/potez/bloch.htm BLOCH  200/210] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319161616/http://members.fortunecity.es/potez/bloch.htm |date=19 March 2012 }}</ref> [[Bloch MB.210]], [[Polikarpov R-Z]], [[Hawker Spanish Osprey]], [[Macchi M.18]], [[Breguet 413]],<ref>[https://archive.today/20120709170743/http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/1108/img146xp1.jpg Breguet Br.413]</ref> [[Breguet 460]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://wp.scn.ru/en/ww15/b/393/75/0 |title=Br.460 B4 |access-date=23 April 2012 |archive-date=8 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200108071149/http://wp.scn.ru/en/ww15/b/393/75/0 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| aircraft_fighter              = [[Hawker Fury]], [[Bristol Bulldog]], [[Blériot-SPAD S.51]], [[Blériot-SPAD S.91]], [[Dewoitine D.510]], [[Fokker D.XXI]], [[Martinsyde Buzzard]], [[Nieuport-Delage NiD 52|Hispano-Nieuport Ni-52]], [[AEKKEA-RAAB R-29]], [[Avia BH-33]], [[Dewoitine D.372]], [[Polikarpov I-15]], [[Polikarpov I-16]], [[Grumman FF|Grumman G-23]], [[Letov Š-31]], [[Letov Š-231]], [[Letov Š-331]], [[Loire 46]], [[Fw 56]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Spanish Civil War Aircraft|url=http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/spain/did.html|access-date=2012-04-14|archive-date=5 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205085135/http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/Spain/did.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| aircraft_interceptor          = 
| aircraft_patrol               = [[Latecoere 28]], [[Spartan Zeus]], [[Lockheed Model 9 Orion|Lockheed Orion]], [[Fokker C.X]], [[Miles Falcon]], [[RWD 9]], [[Macchi M.18]], [[Potez 58]]
| aircraft_recon                = [[Polikarpov R-5]], [[Bellanca CH-300]], [[Savoia-Marchetti SM.62]], [[Aero A.101]], [[Koolhoven F.K.51]]
| aircraft_trainer              = [[General Aircraft Monospar|Monospar ST-4]], [[General Aircraft Monospar|Monospar ST-12]], [[Avro 594]], [[Avro 626]], [[Avro 643 Cadet]], [[British Aircraft Swallow]], [[Caudron C.270]], [[Caudron C.282]], [[González Gil-Pazó GP-1]], [[Hanriot H.180]], [[Hispano-Suiza E-30]], [[Hispano-Suiza E-34]], [[Miles M.2 Hawk Trainer]], [[Morane-Saulnier MS.181]], [[Morane-Saulnier MS.230]], [[Romano R.82]], [[Romano R.83]], [[SAB-SEMA 10]], [[Stampe et Vertongen RSV.32|RSV.32]]
| aircraft_transport            = [[Fokker F-VII|Fokker F-VII.3m/M]], [[Fokker F.XX]], [[de Havilland Dragon Rapide|De Havilland DH-89M]], [[Farman F 402]], [[Douglas DC-1]], [[Douglas DC-2]], [[Junkers K 30]], [[Airspeed Envoy]], [[Airspeed Viceroy]], [[Avia 51]], [[Blériot 111]], [[Blériot-SPAD S.56]], [[Breguet 26T]], [[Breguet 470]], [[British Aircraft Eagle]], [[Caudron C-440]], [[Caudron C.600 Aiglon]], [[Consolidated Fleetster]], [[Couzinet 101]], [[Ford Trimotor]], [[General Aircraft ST-25]], [[Hanriot LH.437]], [[Latécoère 28]], [[Lioré et Olivier 213]], [[Northrop Delta]], [[Northrop Gamma]], [[Potez 560]], [[Vultee V-1]] <br>''See also''<br> '''[[List of aircraft of the Spanish Republican Air Force]]'''
}}
[[File:I-15 Polikarpov Tinker.jpg|thumb|right|The ''Chato'' No. 56 flown by [[Frank Glasgow Tinker]] in the 1st Sq ''Lacalle''. He scored four victories in this aircraft. Occasionally he flew No. 58 as well.]]
The '''Spanish Republican Air Force''' was the air arm of the [[Spanish Republican Armed Forces|Armed Forces]] of the [[Second Spanish Republic]], the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939. Initially divided into two branches: '''[[Spanish Republican Army#Aeronáutica Militar|Military Aeronautics]]''' ({{lang|es|Aeronáutica Militar}}) and '''[[Spanish Republican Navy#Aeronáutica Naval|Naval Aeronautics]]''' ({{lang|es|Aeronáutica Naval}}), the Republican Air Force became the '''Air Forces of the Spanish Republic''' ({{lang|es|Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española (FARE)}}), also known as {{lang|es|Arma de Aviación}},{{NoteTag|Some authors favor the name ''Arma de Aviación'', claiming that the term ''Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española'' (FARE) was only used later by some pilots such as Francisco Tarazona in their memories (Francisco Tarazona Torán, ''Yo fui piloto de caza rojo.'')}} after it was reorganized following the restructuring of the Republican Armed Forces in September 1936, at the beginning of the [[Spanish Civil War]].<ref>[http://www.sbhac.net/Republica/Imagenes/ImGCe.htm Memoria Republicana - SBHAC]</ref>
This defunct Air Force is largely known for the intense action it saw during the Civil War, from July 1936 till its disbandment in 1939.

The Spanish Republican Air Force was popularly known as {{lang|es|"La Gloriosa"}} (The Glorious One). But, according to some historians, the command structure of the Spanish loyalist forces was marred by ineptitude and lack of decision-making throughout the Civil War.<ref name="Antony Beevor 2006">{{cite book | title = The Battle for Spain | author = Antony Beevor | author-link = Antony Beevor | orig-year = 1982| year = 2006 | publisher = Orion | isbn = 978-0-7538-2165-7}}</ref> Starting from the crucial first weeks of the conflict in July 1936, the rebel side was able to undertake a massive [[airlift]] of troops from [[Spanish Morocco]] using mostly the slow [[Junkers Ju 52|Ju 52]], without any Spanish Republican interference. This was the world's first long-range combat airlift and the military planes on the Spanish Republican side failed to check it.<ref>Per photograph caption pg.146 and also text pg.201, ''Air Power'', Budiansky, Stephen, Penguin Group, London England 2005</ref>

The [[Battle of Guadalajara]] and the defence of the skies over [[Madrid]] against Nationalist bombing raids during the [[Siege of Madrid|capital's long siege]] would be the only scenarios where the loyalist air force took part in an effective manner. In other important republican military actions, such as the [[Segovia Offensive]], the [[Battle of Teruel]] and the decisive [[Battle of the Ebro]], where the [[Aviación Nacional]] was relentlessly strafing the loyalist positions with accurate low-level attacks,<ref>Chris Goss et al. ''Luftwaffe Fighter-Bombers Over Britain: The German Air Force's Tip and Run Campaign, 1942-43'', Stackpole, {{ISBN|978-0-8117-0691-9}}, p. 26</ref> the republican military airplanes were practically absent from the skies. Moreover, when they appeared and attacked, they did so in an unorganized and inadequate manner that mostly failed to achieve positive effects.<ref name="Antony Beevor 2006"/> Most of the Spanish Republican planes that survived the conflict were repainted with the markings of the {{lang|es|Aviación Nacional}} after the defeat of the Spanish Republic in the Iberian battlefields.<ref name="zi.ku.dk">{{Cite web |url=http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/spain/did.html |title=Aircraft that took part in the Spanish Civil War |access-date=9 November 2010 |archive-date=5 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205085135/http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/Spain/did.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== History ==
Like all the branches of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces, the Spanish Republican Air Force went through two clear phases during its existence:
* The pre-Civil War phase, before the [[Spanish coup of July 1936|coup of July 1936]] that would fracture the Spanish military institution
*The Civil War reorganization of the forces that remained loyal to the established republican government dictated by the pressing needs of the moment.

===First years===
At the time of the democratic [[municipal elections]] that led to the proclamation of the Spanish Republic, the Spanish Air Force (''Aeronáutica Española''), under the names ''Aeronáutica Militar'' and ''Aeronáutica Naval'', the former being the air arm of the [[Spanish Republican Army]] and the latter the [[naval aviation]] of the [[Spanish Republican Navy]],<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20110524210819/http://aviarmor.net/aww2/aircraft/spain/hs_e30.htm Hispano Suiza E-30]}}</ref> included mainly French planes, some of which were remnants of the [[Rif War (1920–1926)]]. Once the Republican Government was established, General Luis Lombarte Serrano replaced pro-monarchist General [[Alfredo Kindelán]] as chief-commander of the air force, but he would be quickly succeeded by Commander [[Ramón Franco]], younger brother of later dictator [[Francisco Franco]], a national hero who had earlier made a Trans-Atlantic flight in the [[Plus Ultra (flying boat)|''Plus Ultra'']] hydroplane.

Aviation was developing in those years in Spain; in 1931 Captain Cipriano Rodríguez Díaz and Lieutenant Carlos de Haya González flew non-stop to [[Equatorial Guinea]], then a Spanish colonial outpost.

In 1933, under Capitan Warlela, systematic [[cadastral]] surveys of Spain were carried out using modern methods of [[aerial photography]]. The following year Spanish engineer [[Juan de la Cierva]] took off and landed on [[Spanish seaplane carrier Dédalo|seaplane carrier ''Dédalo'']] with his [[autogyro]] C-30P. In 1934 Commander [[Eduardo Sáenz de Buruaga]] became new chief-commander of the air force. On the same year a major restructuring of the Spanish military air wing took place.<ref name="Relación orgánica"/>

Following a Government decree dated 2 October 1935, the ''Dirección General de Aeronáutica'' was placed under the authority of the War Ministry, ''Ministerio de la Guerra'', instead of under the [[prime minister of Spain]], following which in 1936 the Air Force regional units became restructured. Accordingly, the [[Spanish Navy]]-based ''Escuadra'' model was replaced by ''Región Militar'' divisions which are still operative today in the [[Spanish Air Force]].<ref>[http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=EE5C6C5E496A45E8C125744800476806 Ejército del Aire - 1936] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220082750/http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=EE5C6C5E496A45E8C125744800476806 |date=20 December 2014 }}</ref>

Five years after the proclamation of the Spanish republic, a section of the [[Spanish Republican Army|Republican Army]] in [[Spanish Morocco]] rebelled under the orders of General [[Francisco Franco]]. The rebellion succeeded only in fractioning Spain and Franco went ahead and began a bloody war of attrition, the Spanish Civil War.  
  
During the Civil War the Air Force of the Spanish republican government would have to fight against the better equipped ''[[Aviación Nacional]]'', created by the fraction of the army in revolt and their powerful [[Italian Fascist]] and [[Third Reich]] supporters.<ref name="Antony Beevor 2006"/>

===Spanish Civil War===
After 18 July 1936 [[coup d'état]], the Republican government lost the military planes that were in aerodromes under rebel control. The loyalist areas of Spain retained, however, a great part of the 60 [[Breguet XIX]], 27 [[Vickers Vildebeest]] and 56 [[Nieuport-Delage NiD 52|Hispano-Nieuport Ni-52]] planes that the Spanish Air Force had before the hostilities, for the Republic had the control of the majority of the territory. Nevertheless, confronted with a war of attrition in the same month, the Spanish Republican government bought in France 14 [[Dewoitine D.371]], 10 [[Dewoitine D.373]] and 49 [[Potez 540]], among other military aircraft, for the value of 12 million francs. All these planes were largely obsolete at the time,<ref>Gerald Howson, ''Arms for Spain: Untold Story of the Spanish Civil War'', John Murray Publishers Ltd, 1998, {{ISBN|978-0-7195-5556-5}}</ref> so that in the first four months after the start of the hostilities, the only aircraft of the Republican government that could be considered modern were three [[Douglas DC-2]]s that had been purchased recently for [[LAPE]], the Republican airline in March 1935.<ref>[http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=FF2EFC70E4D35944C12574480047672D 11-III-1935 Llega a Barajas el primer Douglas DC-2 para las Líneas Aéreas Postales Españolas (LAPE)]</ref> These were requisitioned by the Spanish Republican Air Force and used as military transports.
 
Within the month of his military coup, the help received by [[Francisco Franco]] from [[Nazi Germany]] ([[Condor Legion]]) and [[Kingdom of Italy|Fascist Italy]] ([[Aviazione Legionaria]]) gave the rebels the upper hand in airpower over Spain. The first German and Italian bombers arrived to increase the size of the rebel air force already in July 1936 and [[Fiat CR.32]] and [[Heinkel He 51]] fighter planes began operating in August.<ref name="zi.ku.dk"/> These planes helped the rebel army side to gain full control of the air, as did the Italian [[Aviazione Legionaria]] and the German Condor Legion.

In September 1936 the Navy and Air Ministry (''Ministerio de Marina y Aire'') and the Air Undersecretariat, (''Subsecretaria del Aire''), both part of the National Defence Ministry ''(Ministerio de la Defensa Nacional)'' were established under the command of [[Indalecio Prieto]] as minister. For identification purposes the Republican tricolor roundel was replaced by red bands, an insignia that had previously been used on ''[[Aeronáutica Naval]]'' aircraft during the monarchy in the 1920s, before the time of the Republic.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://img.wp.scn.ru/camms/ar/2355/pics/173_1.jpg |title=Blackburn T.1/T.2 Swift/Dart with 1927 ''Aeronáutica Naval'' markings |access-date=30 July 2012 |archive-date=20 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020153948/http://img.wp.scn.ru/camms/ar/2355/pics/173_1.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://img.wp.scn.ru/camms/ar/1831/pics/173_1.jpg |title=Blackburn T.3 Velos with 1927 ''Aeronáutica Naval'' markings |access-date=30 July 2012 |archive-date=20 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020154026/http://img.wp.scn.ru/camms/ar/1831/pics/173_1.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the same month the first serious air combat took place over Madrid when Italian bombers attacked the city in a massive bombing operation.<ref>[http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=EE5C6C5E496A45E8C125744800476806 Ejército del Aire - 1939] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220082750/http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=EE5C6C5E496A45E8C125744800476806 |date=20 December 2014 }}</ref>

The western democracies, like France, the United Kingdom and the United States, did not help the young Spanish Republic. Afraid of the "[[Communism|Communist]] threat" [[Neville Chamberlain]] and [[Léon Blum]] were ready to sacrifice Spain, as they later sacrificed [[Czechoslovakia]], in the belief that Hitler could be [[Appeasement|appeased]].<ref>Pierre Renouvin & [[René Rémond]], ''Léon Blum, chef de gouvernement. 1936-1937'', Presses de la Fondation nationale des sciences politiques, coll. 'Références', 1981</ref> In the void thus created, only the [[Soviet Union]] helped the Spanish government effectively.<ref>[http://www.gutenberg-e.org/kod01/kod15.html Stalin and the Spanish Civil War - Soviet Hardware Supplied to the Republic]</ref> At the end of October, four months after the rebels had been supplied with German and Italian aircraft by [[Adolf Hitler]] and [[Benito Mussolini]], the first [[Tupolev SB]] bombers arrived from Russia. They were nicknamed ''"Katiuska"''. One month later the first [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] fighter planes arrived to alleviate the lack of operational planes in the loyalist side, the [[Polikarpov I-15]], nicknamed ''"Chato"'' (Snubnosed)<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://boozers.fortunecity.com/lolos/226/unidades.htm |title=Unidades de la FARE que actuaron con I-15 |access-date=21 April 2012 |archive-date=18 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090518152112/http://boozers.fortunecity.com/lolos/226/unidades.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the [[Polikarpov I-16]], nicknamed  ''"Mosca"'' (housefly) by the loyalists and  ''"Rata"'' (rat) by the rebels. The [[Polikarpov R-5]] and the [[Polikarpov R-Z|R-Z]] reconnaissance bombers were known as ''"Natacha"'' in the Spanish Republican Air Force.<ref>[http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=88&Itemid= Polikarpov RZ Natacha]</ref>

The Republican air arm was restructured again in May 1937. The new structure included two branches, the ''Arma de Aviación'' and the ''Subsecretaría de Aviación'', but unified the ''Aeronáutica Militar'' and ''Aeronáutica Naval''. Some sources give this date as the date of the creation of the Spanish Republican Air Force, although it had been previously operative as an air force already. The Republican Air Force would keep this structure until this disbandment two years later.<ref name="Relación orgánica"/> Many planes belonging to the fleet of the [[Spanish Republican Airline]] LAPE (Líneas Aéreas Postales Españolas) were requisitioned by the Spanish Republican Air Force and used as military transports.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://u1.ipernity.com/12/46/65/5974665.84b96921.560.jpg |title=LAPE Poster with Airline Network |access-date=20 April 2012 |archive-date=26 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226082605/http://u1.ipernity.com/12/46/65/5974665.84b96921.560.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Innovative, and often lethal, aeronautical bombing techniques were tested by Condor Legion German expeditionary forces against loyalist areas on Spanish soil with the permission of Generalísimo Franco. The pilots of the Spanish Republican Air Force were unable to check these modern-warfare attacks. Their planes were mostly obsolete and often in a bad state of disrepair.<ref>[http://www.oocities.org/red_spain/ EL Potez 54 en la Guerra Civil Española]</ref> The ungainly French [[Potez 540]], a highly vulnerable plane that proved itself a failure in Spanish skies during the Civil War,<ref>[http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/italy_baschirotto.htm Biplane fighter aces]</ref> was labelled as 'Flying Coffin' ({{langx|es|Ataúd Volante}}) by loyalist pilots.<ref>[http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=89 Potez 540/542] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811034430/http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=89 |date=11 August 2011 }}</ref>
The rebel side, however, claimed that both air forces were almost equal, since the Soviet Union was helping the loyalist air force, but the fact was that:
{{Blockquote|''... on the other side, the fabled military support provided by the Soviet Union was too little and too late – and generally of poor quality. In addition, whilst the Nationalists received vast supplies on credit from the US and Britain, Stalin's assistance came with strings attached.''<ref>[http://www.aworldtowin.net/reviews/Spanishcivilwar.html Review: Antony Beevor, ''The Battle for Spain: the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939'']</ref>}}

The Spanish Republican Air Force was unable to counteract the deadly low-level attacks and close support of the infantry tactics developed by [[Wolfram von Richthofen]] during the Civil War.<ref>Edward Jablonski, ''Terror from the Sky: Airwar,'' Vol. 1, Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Co. 1972, p. 15</ref> As an air force it became practically ineffective after the [[Battle of the Ebro]] in 1938, when the spine of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces was broken. Finally the Spanish Republican Air Force was completely disbanded after the decisive rebel victory on 1 April 1939.

The last Republican military airport in [[Catalonia]] was in [[Vilajuiga]], from where on 6 February 1939 Commander [[Andrés García La Calle]] led a great part of the planes of the Spanish Republican Air Force to France. The orders had been given in haste by the beleaguered authorities of the doomed Republican Government who wanted to prevent the aircraft from falling into the enemy's hands. The planes landed in [[Francazal]] near [[Toulouse]], where the French authorities impounded them, arrested the Spanish Republican pilots, and swiftly interned them in [[concentration camp]]s.

==''Escuadrilla España''==
[[File:Esparanza Potez 540 FARE.tiff|300px|thumb|Aircraft supplied by France at the beginning of the conflict were obsolete and slow, an easy target for the more modern and faster Italian and German fighters]] 
The ''Escuadrilla España'' or ''Escuadra España'', Squadron España, {{langx|fr|Escadrille Espagne}}, also known as ''Escuadrilla Internacional'', was a Spanish Republican Air Force unit organized by French writer [[André Malraux]]. Even though it was largely ineffective, this squadron became something of a legend after the writer's claims of nearly annihilating part of the rebel army in the [[Battle of the Sierra Guadalupe]] at [[Medellín (Spain)|Medellín]], [[Extremadura]]. The ''Escuadrilla España'' reached a maximum of 130 members and would fly a total of 23 combat missions before it was wrapped up in February 1937.

During the 1930s, André Malraux was active in the [[anti-fascist]] [[Popular Front (France)|Popular Front]] in France. Upon hearing the news of General Franco's rebellion that marked the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, he put himself at the service of the Spanish Republic. Despite opposition from French president [[Albert Lebrun]], Malraux helped to organize the aid to the Republican air force<ref>Cate, pp.228-242</ref> helped by his contacts with highly placed personalities within the French Air Ministry, such as [[Jean Moulin]], future [[French Resistance]] leader. Even though President Albert Lebrun opposed direct assistance to the threatened fellow republic, Léon Blum, then the [[prime minister of France]], decided to help the Spanish Republicans with discretion. Thus 20 Potez 540, 5 [[Bloch 210]], 10 [[Breguet XIX]], 17 [[Dewoitine D.371]], 2 [[Dewoitine D.500]]/510, 5 [[Amiot 143]], 5 [[Potez 25]] and 6 [[Loire 46]] planes were sent to Spain at the beginning of the conflict.<ref>[[Hugh Thomas (writer)|Hugh Thomas]], ''The Spanish Civil War''; New revised edition (2011)</ref> Thirteen more Dewoitine D.371 are mentioned by [[Jules Moch]] in his book ''Recontres avez Leon Blum'' and the Amiot 143 ended up not being delivered,<ref>[http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/spain/didnt.html Aircraft that didn't participate in the Spanish Civil war]</ref> for aircraft constructor [[Félix Amiot]], who would later become a [[Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy|Nazi collaborator]], sympathized with the enemies of Republican Spain in the civil war.<ref>[http://es.slideshare.net/WALTERWILLIAMMONTALV/la-soledad-de-la-republica-angel-vinas Ángel Viñas, ''La Soledad de la República''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630104607/http://es.slideshare.net/WALTERWILLIAMMONTALV/la-soledad-de-la-republica-angel-vinas |date=30 June 2015 }}</ref>

The French planes, however, were not up to the enemy aircraft. The slow [[Potez 540]], some of them badly equipped,<ref>[http://usuarios.multimania.es/mrodval/GC181401.HTM Spanish Potez 540]</ref> rarely survived three months of air missions, reaching only about 80 knots against enemy fighters flying at more than 250 knots.<ref>[http://www.airaces.narod.ru/spane/desnitsk.htm Air Aces - Semyon Desnitsky]</ref> Few of the fighters proved to be airworthy, and were delivered intentionally without guns or gun-sights. The French Ministry of Defense had feared that modern types of planes would easily be captured by the Germans fighting for Franco, and the lesser models were a way of maintaining official "neutrality".<ref>Cate, p.235</ref> In the end the French planes were surpassed by more modern types introduced in late 1936 on both sides and their fate was that many of them crashed or were shot down. The crash of Spanish Republican Air Force serial '[[Ñ]]' Potez 540 plane that was shot down by rebel planes over the [[Sierra de Gúdar]] range of the [[Sistema Ibérico]] near [[Valdelinares]] inspired André Malraux to make his ''[[L'espoir (film)|L'espoir]]'' movie.

In order to give the whole operation an official character, the Spanish Republican War Ministry authorities gave André Malraux the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]], even though he was not a pilot and hadn't even been through military service. This title gave Malraux authority as Squadron Leader of ''Escuadrilla España'', for he was only answerable to [[general]] [[Ignacio Hidalgo de Cisneros]], the Spanish ''Ministerio del Aire'' commander-in-chief. The writer thus helped to hire crews for the planes, mainly volunteers and professional pilots who had served in the [[Aéropostale (aviation)|Aéropostale]]. After the pilots and the planes arrived to Madrid in August 1936, Malraux himself took charge of the organization of the squadron.

Malraux was given considerable autonomy, in [[Albacete]] he recruited his own personnel, who escaped the control of the [[International Brigades]] run by hard-line Stalinist [[André Marty]] who tried to impose discipline. The only thing that held together the writer's motley group of pilots, [[Air gunner|gunners]], mechanicians and airfield assistants and guards, was their common [[antifascist]] resolve.

Malraux had to pay a heavy price for his freedom of action though. The ''Escuadrilla España'' would suffer a chronic shortage of spare parts and supplies. The number of planes in combat condition was greatly reduced by accidents, lack of quality and by being shot down in action. André Marty, unhappy with the group's autonomy, plotted to bring the ''Escuadrilla España'' under his command. Finally the situation was resolved by means of the integration of the squadron in the regular Spanish armed forces. Once the contracts of the professional pilots was severed, the ''Escuadrilla España'' would become part of the official Republican Air Force, losing its former status, but taking the name of ''Escuadrilla Malraux'' in honor of its founder. The losses, however, escalated, and after covering the flight from enemy-occupied [[Málaga]], the last two bombers were shot down and the ''Escuadrilla Malraux'' was formally dissolved.

Even after France joined the [[Non-Intervention Committee]], Malraux helped the Spanish Republic to acquire military aircraft through third countries.
The Spanish Republican government circulated photos of Malraux's standing next to some Potez 540 bombers suggesting that France was on their side, at a time when France and the United Kingdom had declared official neutrality. Malraux, however, was not there at the behest of the French Government. Aware of the Republicans' inferior armaments, of which outdated aircraft were just one part of the problem, he toured the United States to raise funds for the Spanish Republican cause. In 1937 he published ''[[Man's Hope|L'Espoir]]'' (Man's Hope), a novel influenced by his Spanish war experiences.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.lrb.co.uk/v23/n15/john-sturrock/the-man-from-nowhere| title=The Man from Nowhere| author=John Sturrock| work=The London Review of Books| volume= 23| number= 15 | date= 9 August 2001}}</ref>

Malraux has often been criticized by opponents for his involvement or motivations in the Spanish Civil War. [[Comintern]] sources, for example, described him as an 'adventurer'.<ref>Beevor, p.140</ref> The professional pilots of the ''Escuadrilla España'' charged exorbitant rates to the Republican Government for their services.<ref>Beevor, id.</ref> 
Other biographical sources, including fellow combatants, praise Malraux's leadership and sense of camaraderie. At any rate, Malraux's participation in such an historical event as the Spanish Civil War inevitably brought him adversaries, as well as supporters, resulting in a polarization of opinion.<ref>Derek Allan, Art and the Human Adventure, André Malraux's Theory of Art (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2009). pp. 25-27.</ref>

==Soviet pilots in Spain==
[[File:SB ls66.jpg|thumb|Model of a Spanish Republican Tupolev SB2 ''Katyuska'', [[La Sénia]] Museum.]]
The Soviet Union profited from the [[international isolation]] of the Spanish Republic imposed by the [[Non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|non-intervention agreements]] and assisted the beleaguered Republican government by providing weapons and pilots.
Some of the most effective pilots in Spain were young men from the Soviet Union. The Spanish Republican Air Force lacked modern planes and experienced pilots. Unlike most other foreign pilots in the service of the Spanish Republican Air Force, Russian pilots were technically volunteers. They received no incentives, like combat bonuses, to supplement their modest wages.

Many Soviet airmen came in the fall 1936, along with the new aircraft that the Spanish Republic had purchased from Russia. After the western democracies refused military assistance to the established Spanish Government in the name of so-called "Non-Intervention", the Soviet Union and Mexico were practically the only nations that helped Republican Spain in its struggle. In a similar manner as Hitler with his [[German re-armament|Third Reich re-armament]], [[Joseph Stalin]] saw the acquisition of first-hand combat experience in Spain by Soviet pilots and technicians as essential for his plans regarding the capability and combat readiness of the [[Soviet Air Forces]]. Therefore, much emphasis was placed on detailed reporting of the results of the testing of the new Russian military equipment and air-warfare techniques.<ref>[http://www.gutenberg-e.org/kod01/print/kod20.pdf Soviet Pilots in the Spanish Civil War]</ref>

The first planes that came to Spain were Tupolev SB bombers; the fighters would arrive later. Their first action was a morale-lifting bombing raid on the [[Talavera de la Reina]] military airfield used by the Legionary Nazi and Italian planes that dropped their bombs over Madrid every day. This action made the Russian pilots very popular among the people in Madrid. The ''Katiuska'' pilots took advantage for the time being of their aircraft's relatively higher speed, but the plane was vulnerable and its fuel tanks easily caught fire when shot at. Furthermore, when the Condor Legion brought the speedier [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]] fighters later in the war, the SB squadrons suffered heavy losses.

Anatol Serov, nicknamed "Mateo Rodrigo", established the ''Escuadrilla de Vuelo Nocturno'' fighter squadron along with Mikhail Yakushin. This night-flight section would use I-15 ''Chatos'' that had modified exhaust pipes, so that the flames in front would not impair the pilot's night vision. M. Yakushin would become the leader of the Night Fighter Squadron that would be quite effective against the Condor Legion Ju 52 night bombing raids.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20091211004433/http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=91&Itemid= Los chatos nocturnos - ADAR]</ref>

There were about 300 Russian pilots in or around Madrid by the end of November 1936. The improved defensive capacity of the Spanish Republic boosted the morale of the areas of Spain under loyalist control. The Russian pilots gave their best performance in the [[Battle of Guadalajara]], routing the Italian ''Aviazione Legionaria'' and pounding the Fascist militias incessantly from the air.

Following the demands of the [[Non-Intervention Committee]], Soviet pilots were phased out in the fall of 1938 and trained Spanish airmen took their places after having been trained at the flying schools of [[Albacete]], [[Alicante]], [[Murcia]], [[El Palomar, Valencia|El Palomar]], [[Alhama de Murcia|Alhama]], [[Los Alcázares]], [[Lorca, Spain|Lorca]] or [[El Carmolí]] that had been set up by the Soviet military.<ref>John O'Connell, ''The Effectiveness of Airpower in the 20th Century: Part One (1914 - 1939)'', iUniverse, {{ISBN|978-0595430826}}, p. 125</ref>

From about 772 Russian airmen that served the Spanish Republican Air Force for over two years, a total of 99 lost their lives. Little gratitude or recognition were shown to the surviving pilots despite their effort and, to compound their sad lot, many would later become victims of the [[Stalin Purges]] after their return to the USSR.<ref>[http://www.onairpower.org/docs/Category:Soviet_VVS Soviet Air Force (VVS) Reference List] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213074636/http://www.onairpower.org/docs/Category:Soviet_VVS |date=13 February 2012 }}</ref>

==Pilot training==
The training of pilots, as well as other air force personnel, was trusted to the Instruction Services (''Servicios de Instrucción''). All the different units of the Instruction Services depended from the [[Ministry of Defence (Spain)|''Ministerio de Marina y Aire'']].<ref name="Relación orgánica">[http://www.sbhac.net/Republica/Fuerzas/FARE/Organica/Organica.htm Memoria republicana — SBHAC. Estructura orgánica de las FARE]</ref> During the Civil War the instruction bases and centres were scattered throughout the republican zone:

* The High-speed Flying School (''Escuela de Vuelo de Alta Velocidad''), located at the [[El Carmolí]] air base in the [[Campo de Cartagena]].
* The Bomber School (''Escuela de bombardeo''), located at the [[Santiago de la Ribera]] and [[Los Alcázares]] air bases.
* The Multiple-engined Aircraft School (''Escuela de polimotores''), located at Santiago de la Ribera and Los Alcázares as well.
* The Aircraft Mechanics School (''Escuela de mecánicos''), located at [[Godella]], [[Valencia Province]].
* The Weaponry School (''Escuela de Armeros''), located at [[Eibar]], [[Basque Country (autonomous community)|Basque Country]].

==Fighter aces==
{| class=wikitable style="font-size: 9pt; text-align:left"
|-
! Name !! Country !! Service !! Victories !! Observations
|-
|[[Lev L. Shestakov]]<ref>[http://i16fighter.narod.ru/spain/spain_e.htm I-16 in Spanish Civil War] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110818053715/http://i16fighter.narod.ru/spain/spain_e.htm |date=18 August 2011 }}</ref> || Russia || ''4ª Escuadrilla de Moscas'' || 39 ||His total victory count may be 42
|-
|[[Sergey Gritsevets|Sergei I. Gritsevets]]<ref>[http://www.warheroes.ru/hero/hero.asp?Hero_id=1080 Russian War Heroes -  Sergei I. Gritsevets]</ref>|| Russia ||''5ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 30 || Nicknamed "Sergio"
|-
|[[Manuel Zarauza Clavero]] || Spain ||''3ª & 4ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 23 ||Reputed to be the most skilled Spanish pilot on the ''Mosca''.<br> Exiled in the USSR and [[Killed in action|KIFA]] over [[Baku]] on 12/October/1942
|-
|[[Leopoldo Morquillas Rubio]] || Spain ||''3ª & 2ª Escuadrilla de Caza''|| 21 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Vasca''
|-
|[[Pavel Rychagov]] ||  Russia || ''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos'' || 20 || Nicknamed "Pablo Palancar".<br>Arrested and executed in Stalin's 1941 purge
|-
|[[Anatol Serov]] ||  Russia || ''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos'' || 16 || Nicknamed "Mateo Rodrigo"<br>He established the ''Escuadrilla Vuelo Nocturno'' night-flight squadron
|-
|[[Vladimir Bobrov (pilot)|Vladimir Bobrov]]<ref>[http://users.accesscomm.ca/magnusfamily/scwurs.htm Spanish Civil War - U.S.S.R. Air Aces]</ref>||  Russia || || 13 || Flew more than 100 combat missions
|-
|[[Andrés García La Calle]] || Spain || ''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos'' || 11 ||Supreme commander of the fighter squadrons of the Spanish Republic in Dec. 1938
|-
|[[Manuel Aguirre López]] || Spain ||''1ª Escuadrilla, Grupo 21'' || 11 ||Also in ''3ª Escuadrilla de Moscas''
|-
|[[Abel Guidez]] || France || ''Escuadrilla España'' || 10 ||
|-
|[[José María Bravo Fernández]] || Spain ||''1ª & 3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 10 ||Became Commander of ''3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' and ''Grupo 21''. <br>Exiled in the USSR he took part in World War II as a Soviet pilot. 
Some documents ascribe him 23 victories<ref>[http://www.elpais.com/articulo/Necrologicas/Jose/Maria/Bravo/Fernandez/ultimo/gran/as/Republica/elpepinec/20091228elpepinec_2/Tes José María Bravo Fernández, el último gran 'as' de la República. ''El País'']</ref>
|-
|[[Juan Comas Borrás]] || Spain ||''3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 10 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Lacalle'' & ''Esc. Vasca''.<ref>[http://boozers.fortunecity.com/lolos/226/aviones.htm Lista incompleta de aviones]</ref> [[Killed in action|KIA]] on 24/Jan/1939
|-
|[[Emilio Ramirez Bravo]] || Spain ||''4ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 10 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Lacalle''
|-
|[[Miguel Zambudio Martinez]] || Spain ||''Escuadrilla Vasca'' || 10 ||Also in ''3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'', ''26 Grupo de Caza''
|-
|[[Antonio Arias Arias]]<ref>[http://users.accesscomm.ca/magnusfamily/scwspn.htm Spanish Civil War Air Aces - Spain]</ref> || Spain ||''1ª, 3ª & 4ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 9 ||Exiled in Russia, Arias fought in the [[Soviet Air Forces]] during World War II.<br> He returned to Madrid as an old man in 1990 and retired.
|-
|[[Vicente Beltrán Rodrigo]] || Spain ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 9 ||Also in ''3ª Escuadrilla, Grupo 21'', shot down in [[Battle of the Ebro]].<br>Exiled in Russia, joined the Soviet Air Forces. Returned to Spain in 1958
|-
|[[Frank Glasgow Tinker]] || United States || ''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 8 ||Part of the [[Yankee Squadron]]
|-
|[[Sabino Cortizo Bertolo]] || Spain ||''5ª & 3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 8 ||[[Killed in action|KIA]] on 21/Jan/1939
|-
|[[José Falcón San Martín]] || Spain ||''5ª & 3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 8 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Vuelo Nocturno''
|-
|[[Pavel Agafonov]] || Spain ||''Escuadrilla Palancar''|| 8 ||Nicknamed "Ahmed Amba". Returned to the USSR in April 1937
|-
|[[Felipe del Río Crespo]] || Spain ||''Escuadrilla Vasca'' || 7 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Norte'' (1937); KIA on 23/Apr/1937
|-
|[[Juan Lario Sanchez]] || Spain ||''4ª & 2ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 7 ||
|-
|[[Jan Ferák]]<ref>[http://www.fronta.cz/interbrigadista-jan-ferak Jan Ferák - ¡No pasaran!]</ref>|| [[Czechoslovakia]] || ''Escuadrilla España'' || 7 ||Dewoitine D.372 pilot
|-
|[[Francisco Meroño Pellicer]] || Spain ||''1ª & 6ª Escuadrilla de Caza''|| 7 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Norte'' (1937)
|-
|[[Orrin Bell|Orrin B. Bell]] || USA ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 7 ||Shot down 7 [[He 51]] over the Córdoba-Granada front<ref>[http://www.palba.cz/portal.php?topic_id=2579 III.díl. Španělsko. Fašismus 1936 až 1939. Č 9]</ref>
|-
|[[Andrés Fierro Menú]] || Spain ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 7 ||Had engine trouble during a mission protecting Tupolev SB bombers;<br>was taken prisoner following emergency landing at [[Almenar]] airfield.<br>After escaping he reached the USSR where he joined the Soviet Air Forces
|-
|[[Francisco Tarazona Torán]]<ref>[http://aces.safarikovi.org/victories/mexico-sp.html Air Aces: Francisco Tarazona Torán]</ref> || Mexico ||''1ª & 3ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 6 ||Claims 8 victories in his autobiographical book.<ref>Francisco Tarazona Torán, ''Yo fui piloto de caza rojo.'' Editorial San Martín, Madrid 1974 {{ISBN|978-84-7140-069-7}}</ref>
|-
|[[José Pascual Santamaria]] || Spain ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Caza''|| 6 ||Also in ''Escuadrilla Norte'' (1937)
|-
|[[Ivan Trofimovich Yeryomenko]] || Russia ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 6 ||Nicknamed "Ramón", "Antonio Aragón". or "Alexandrio"<br>Leader of the ''1ª Escuadrilla'' between May and October 1937.
|-
|[[Evgeny Nikolayevitch Stepanov]] || Russia ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 6 ||Knew how to use the "[[aerial ramming]]" technique.<br>Shot down over [[Ojos Negros, Teruel|Ojos Negros]] and made prisoner on 17/Jan/1938<br>Returned to Russia and fought in World War II in the Soviet Air Forces 
|-
|[[Božidar Petrović|Božidar "Boško" Petrović]]<ref>[http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/yugoslavia_petrovich.htm Biplane fighter aces - Božidar Petrović]</ref> || [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]] || ''2ª Escuadrilla, Grupo 12''|| 5 ||Nicknamed "Fernandez Garcia"
|-
|[[Rafael Magrina Vidal]] || Spain ||''2ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 5 ||KIA on 16/Jul/1937
|-
|[[Julio Pereiro Peréz]] || Spain ||''2ª, 4ª & 5ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' || 5 ||
|-
|[[Harold Edward Dahl|Harold E. Dahl]] || USA ||''Escuadrilla Lacalle''|| 5 ||Nicknamed "Rubio". Also in ''1ª Escuadrilla de Caza'' 
|-
|[[Sergei Tarkhov|Sergei Fyodorovich Tarkhov]] || Russia ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Caza''|| 5 ||Nicknamed "Capitán Antonio". Some authors claim Tarkhov flew a ''Chato''.<br>However, he was most likely a ''Mosca'' pilot.<ref>[http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=68&Itemid=#2 ADAR - Sergei Fyodorovich Tarkhov] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110903182620/http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=68&Itemid= |date=3 September 2011 }}</ref>
|-
|[[William Labussière]] || France ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 5 ||Fought also in World War II 
|-
|[[James Peck (pilot)|James Peck]]<ref>[http://www.alba-valb.org/volunteers/browse/james-lincoln-holt-peck Abraham Lincoln Brigade - James Peck]</ref>|| USA ||''1ª Escuadrilla de Chatos''|| 5 ||One of the few [[African-American]] pilots in the Spanish Republican Air Force. 4 victories unconfirmed
|-
|}

==Ranks==
{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background-color:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin: 0px 12px 12px 0px;"
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC"
{{Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Armed Forces/OF/Blank}}
{{Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Air Forces/OF/Second Spanish Republic (1936–1939)}}
|}

;Preceding agencies
{| style="border:1px solid #8888aa; background-color:#f7f8ff; padding:5px; font-size:95%; margin: 0px 12px 12px 0px;"
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC"
{{Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Armed Forces/OF/Blank}}
{{Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Air Forces/OF/Second Spanish Republic (1931–1936)}}
{{Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Air Forces/OF/Second Spanish Republic (Naval, 1931–1936)}}
|}

==Aircraft, insignia and historical documents==
<gallery perrow="5">
File:Alas FARE piloto caza.jpg|Fighter pilot wings in the Civil War
File:Dewoitine D.510 profile (2).svg|[[Dewoitine D.510]]
File:Polikarpov I-16-Spain (clipped).jpg|A Polikarpov I-16 "Mosca" in flight
File:Farman F 402.jpeg|[[Farman F 402]] of the Spanish Republican Air Force. [[Museo del Aire (Madrid)|''Museo del Aire'']], Cuatro Vientos
File:FARE53.JPG|Spanish Republican Air Force ''2a Escuadrilla, Grupo 24'' standard and pilot's summer uniform. [[La Sénia]] Museum
File:DSC 6393 FIO MOSCA EC-JRK.jpg|Polikarpov I-16 restored by the ''Fundación Infante de Orleans''
File:Romano R-80 Spanish Republican AF.jpg|[[Romano R.80]].2 of the military training facility at [[El Carmolí]].
File:Fin flash of the Aeronáutica Naval.png|Fin flash of the ''Aeronáutica Naval'', the [[naval aviation]] of the [[Spanish Republican Navy]] which was merged with the Air Force in September 1936
</gallery>

==See also==
{{div col}}
*[[Spanish Air Force]]
*[[Spanish Civil War]]
*[[LAPE]] ''(Líneas Aéreas Postales Españolas)'', Spanish Republican Airline 
*[[List of aircraft of the Spanish Republican Air Force]]
*[[List of Spanish Civil War air aces]]
*[[Deutschland incident (1937)]]
*[[Aviazione Legionaria]]
*[[Condor Legion]]
*[[German re-armament]]
*[[Some Still Live]]
*[[Yankee Squadron]]
*[[Timofey Khryukin]]
{{div col end}}

== Notes ==
{{NoteFoot}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* Antonio Arias Arias, ''Arde el Cielo: Memorias de un Piloto de Caza Participante en la Guerra de España (1936-1939) y en la Gran Guerra Patria de la URSS (1941-1945).'' Edited by A. Delgado Romero, 1995. [[Silla, Valencia]]. (Memoirs of a Spanish Republican Air Force fighter pilot and squadron leader, who later fought for the Soviet Union during WW2).
*{{cite journal |last1=Green|first1=William|last2=Swanborough|first2=Gordon|name-list-style=amp |title=A Grumman by Any Other Name...|journal=Air Enthusiast |date=February–May 1979 |issue=9 |pages=26–39 |issn=0143-5450}}
* Green, William & Swanborough, Gordon. "Soviet Flies in Spanish Skies". ''Air Enthusiast Quarterly'', No. 1, n.d., pp.&nbsp;1–16. {{ISSN|0143-5450}} 
*{{cite journal |last1=Howson|first1=Gerald|title=Fokker's Trimotors Go to War |journal=Air Enthusiast |date=August–November 1990|issue=13|pages=43–49 |issn=0143-5450}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Herr|first1=Allen|title=Eagles over Malaga: American Pilots in the Spanish Civil War |journal=Air Enthusiast |date=January–February 1999 |issue=79 |pages=42–53 |issn=0143-5450}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Laureau|first1=Patrick|title=Polikarpov I-15 "Chato": Un chasseur russe au destin exotique..., partie 1 |journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=May 1978 |issue=102 |pages=34–41 |issn=0757-4169 |language=fr |trans-title=Polkarpov I-15 "Chato": A Russian Fighter in an Exotic Destination, Part 1}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Laureau|first1=Patrick|title=Polikarpov I-15 "Chato": Un chasseur russe au destin exotique..., partie 2 |journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=June 1978 |issue=103 |pages=42–45 |issn=0757-4169 |language=fr |trans-title=Polkarpov I-15 "Chato": A Russian Fighter in an Exotic Destination, Part 2}}
* Leyvastre, Pierre. "The Day of the Dewoitine". ''Air Enthusiast Quarterly'', No. 1, n.d., pp.&nbsp;17–19, 84–96. {{ISSN|0143-5450}} 
*[http://www.portalcultura.mde.es/publicaciones/publicaciones/Historia_Militar/publicacion_0191.html Carmen Calvo Jung, ''Los Últimos Aviadores de la República''] {{ISBN|9788497815444}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |last1=Falco|first1=José|title=Mes derniers victoires; Villajuiga, Février 1939|journal=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=February 1989 |issue=231|pages=18–19 |issn=0757-4169 |language=fr|trans-title=My Last Victories; Villajuiga, February 1939}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100925145911/http://www.ejercitodelaire.mde.es/ea/pag?idDoc=684308D600241B20C125746C0026797F Ejército del Aire, how to get to the museum]
*[http://www.aire.org/museo/ Museo del Aire de Madrid non-official page] {{in lang|es}}
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkfeG6fYmW0 Polikarpovs dans la guerre d'Espagne]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK3kDtny-rU Cuatro Vientos, Madrid - Polikarpov planes in the Museo del Aire]
*[http://www.sbhac.net/Republica/Imagenes/FotoFare/FotoFare.htm Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española] {{in lang|es}}
*[http://adar.es Asociación de Aviadores de la República] {{in lang|es}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100916224715/http://adar.es/index/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=27 List of Spanish Republican Air Force pilots (incomplete)]
*[http://www.nodo50.org/republica/enlaces.html Enlaces Republicanos] {{in lang|es}}
*[http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=4848 Axis History - Bibliography]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110310030338/http://www.elgrancapitan.org/portal/index.php/articulos/guerra-civil-espanola/1293-la-ayuda-material-a-la-republica La ayuda material a la República Española] {{in lang|es}}
*[http://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/The-War-Between-the-Wars.html?c=y&page=4 The War Between the Wars - Smithsonian]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100618065106/http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Air_Power/Spansh_CW/AP18.htm Aerial Warfare and the Spanish Civil War]
*[http://www.adar.es/emblemas.pdf Spanish Republican Air Force emblems]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110706214434/http://www.campaviaciolasenia.cat/index.php/en/history/types-of-aeroplanes-which-were-in-the-aviation-field La Senia Town Hall - Types of aeroplanes which were in the aviation field]
*[http://mrvalv.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html Aviacion en la Guerra Civil Española]
*[http://www.sbhac.net/Republica/Imagenes/PersoFare/PersoFare.htm Republican pilots]
*[http://www.katesharpleylibrary.net/vx0mqt Biography of Vicente Monclús Guallar, republican pilot imprisoned in the USSR]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Spanish Air and Space Force]]
[[Category:Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic]]
[[Category:Soviet Union–Spain relations]]
[[Category:History of the Spanish Air Force]]
[[Category:Disbanded air forces]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1931]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1939]]