Bernard Decre and his team have the pleasure to announce that a Press Conference, giving all details of the next research campaign (scheduled June 10th to 30th) will take place at the Aero-Club de France, 6 rue Galilée, Paris 16, on Thursday April 12th, at 08:30 am.
The success of an expedition is very much a matter of preparation!
Bernard Decre, President of the association “A la Recherche de l’Oiseau Blanc” (The search for White Bird), Nungesser & Coli aircraft, which ditched after having crossed the Atlantic 12 days before Lindbergh, is at this very moment working hard on the budget and technical matters for next research campaign, which will take place next June, 10th to 30th.
Contractors proposals come from everywhere: France, The USA, England, Canada.. and the costs vary from 1 to 3, always with 6 figures prices.
The research zone is now very well defined: a large rectangle 3 NM long and 1,5 NM wide, between “Les Grappins” and “Savoyard”, with an average of 30m depth.
Bernard Decre is also working on the boats which will be used, and their equipments. The French Navy has already confirmed that the “Fulmar” will be available.
As success depends also from the weather, an important matter is the insurance, in case it is impossible to be at sea during the campaign period.
A press conference will take place in Paris early April, we will keep you informed very soon.
This last Friday, February 2012, during the annual diner of the Aero-Club de France, Bernard Decré, President of the NGO " « A la Recherche de l’Oiseau Blanc », - The search for White Bird - has remitted officially the content of the research he conducted in the US government archives in Washington, to Jean-François Georges, President of the Aéro-Club de France, Patrick Gandil, Director of the French Civil Aviation Authority, and Catherine Maunoury, Director of the Air and Space Museum.
This very important file includes essential documents, found by Bernard Decré during the 3 years research campaign to discover the wreck - and more specifically the engine - of L'Oiseau Blanc aircraft flown by the French Charles Nungesser and François Coli, who disappeared in May 1927, during their tentative to cross the Atlantic, 12 days before the American Charles Lindbergh landed at Le Bourget airport.
These documents are the proof the the French pilots have indeed crossed the ocean, and were probably drowned after ditching in the sea, near the French islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, South of New Found Land. The documents also prove that pieces of the aircraft wings have been found by the US Coast Guards.
The whole French aviation community was there, and the French Ministry of Culture was represented. This ceremony officially marked the acknowledgment of Nungesser and Coli's performance, and of Bernard Decre's work.
However, Bernard's task is far from over: the clues are there, but the wings still have to be found in the Coast Guards wharehouses and the engine taken out of the waters. Bernard Decre is preparing a new campaign for next June, with the help of the French group Safran, the Overseas Secretariat of State , the French Navy, the Territorial Counsil and the city of Saint Pierre.
Photo : Bernard Decré on stage at the AéCF, with Patrick Gandil, Catherine Maunoury, JF. Georges and the delegate of the Ministry of Culture. copyright AéCF.
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
Safran: in search of the White Bird
Paris, December 15, 2011
Safran has signed a two-yearpartnership agreement with the association La Recherche de
l'Oiseau Blanc ("In Search of the White Bird"). It will be participating in search operations off
the coast of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, to find the wreckage of the OiseauBlanc (White Bird),
the legendary plane flown by French pilots Charles Nungesser and François Coli, that may
have crossed the Atlantic 12 days before Lindbergh in 1927.
The association has made considerable progress over the last four years, but now needs
further financial and technical resourcesto provide incontrovertible proof that the French
crew was indeed the first to have flown across the Atlantic non-stop.
Safran will be helping the association on its fourth search campaign to find the Lorraine-
Dietrich engine that powered the White Bird and is one of the cornerstones of Safran's
heritage*. The association will be directing a team of divers and engineers off the coast of
Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon to carry out a new series of searches.
Safran Chairman and CEO Jean-Paul Herteman said: "Asa French aircraftengine maker,
and because of our historical ties with Lorraine-Dietrich, we felt it was our duty to participate
in the search for the White Bird. The Lorraine-Dietrich was an exceptional engine, offering
unrivaled performance at the time**.By looking for the aircraft's engine, Safran is in fact
seeking to find a piece of our own history."
"I'm very proud that a company like Safran is working with our association on a project that I
consider a key to our shared history," added Bernard Decré, president of the association "In
Search of the White Bird". "Our partnership with Safranis not only financial, but reflects a
real team approachto solving an 84-year old mystery, one that could change the history of
aviation."
A Lorraine-Dietrich engine currently stored at the Le Bourget Air and Space Museum should
shortly be transferred to the collection of the Safran Aerospace Museum in Villaroche, near
Paris.
* The companyLorraine-Dietrich was founded in 1871. It built automobiles and rolling stock, then
heavy machinery and aircraft engines.It was acquired by Gnome & Rhône in 1941. In 1945, Gnome &
Rhône was nationalized, along with other French engine-makers reaching back to the dawn of aviation,
and renamed Snecma. Snecma merged with Sagem in 2005, creating the Safran group.
** Lorraine-Dietrich aircraft engines: selected achievements from 1927 to 1930
1927
- First crossingof the South Atlantic (on a nightflight) by a twin-engine seaplane, pilotedby
Portuguese captain Sarmiento de Beires, during his exploration of South America.
- Pilots Challe and Rapin fly from Paris to Saigon (12,000 km) in nine days.
1928
- Lieutenant Lassalleand Warrant OfficerDuroyon fly a Potez airplane14,000 kilometers in five
days, on round trips between Paris-Oslo, Paris-Madrid,Paris-Warsaw, Paris-Rome and Paris-
Lisbon.
1929
- Pilots Paillard, Le Brix and Jousse fly from Paris to Calcutta (11,000 km) in five days.
- Three Dutch navy twin-engine Dornier seaplanes fly from the Netherlands to Indonesia (16,000
km), making the first air crossing of the Indian Ocean (1,620 km).
- The CAMS 37 seaplane mail carrier makes eight trips from the Ile de France oceanliner to the
American and French coasts, saving up to 48 hours in mail distribution.
1930
- Potez airplanesmake round-trip weekly mail runs between Buenos Aires and Santiago de Chile
(1,200 km), each time crossing the Andes mountainchain at an altitude of over 16,000 feet, under
very difficult conditions: -50° temperature, snow storms, violent wind gusts, etc.
Safran is a leadinginternational high-technology group with three core businesses: Aerospace
(propulsion and equipment), Defence and Security.Operating worldwide, the Safran group has more
than 54,000 employeesand generated sales of 10.8 billion eurosin 2010. Workingalone or in
partnership, Safran holds world or European leadership positions in its core markets.The Group
invests heavily in Research & Development to meet the requirements of changing markets,including
expenditures of 1.2 billion euros in 2010. Safran is listed on NYSE EuronextParis and its share is part
of the CAC 40.
For more information,www.safran-group.com
Follow @SAFRAN on Twitter
This November 11th, the French President
said we have to remember our heroes, dead for their country...
Did he think of Charles Nungesser, the "Ace of Aces" and his navigator Francois Coli?
We salute the commitment of Patrick Gandil, French Civil Aviation Authority Director, who supports the idea of the people of Saint Pierre to name their airport "Nungesser & Coli airport".
And here is the latest news about our work:
Results:
Conférences, media and... artists !
Third research campaign:
So 2012 is quite promising, we are more than ever determined to continue!
Just before leaving Saint Pierre, we have found a
document, published in the Parish bulletin in May-June 1927, which mentions that the noise of an aircraft engine might have been heard at Swift Current, "in the mountain", at 13 km West of Saint
Pierre, near the Hermitage Bay. New evidence!
We find new clues every day, and we were really happy that Frederic Mitterrand, French Minister of Culture, came to meet us in Saint Pierre during his official visit on July 27th. He insisted on the importance of our research for the islands, and asked many precisions about our works. Every one told him about our seriousness and focus.
Bernard is now in Saint Peter, here is some news.
Pierre Lenormand, Chief of logistics, and I, have 3
objectives:
Today, July 27th, we are expecting the venue of
Frederic Mitterrand, French Minister of Culture, to whom we will present our research, and the proof that L'Oiseau Blanc has crossed the Atlantic in May 1927, a fact which modifies the History of
Avuiation. We will also propose the idea to name Saint Peter's airport "Nungesser & Coli".
We also want to publish a book about Saint Peter and the islands. It has been lacking until now, so it is a necessary cultural action!
We need of course patience and tenacity to continue these investigations. We are also thinking of using Canadian and/or US material, to avoid transport costs. We make daily progress, also thanks to the kindness and trust of the people of Saint Peter, thanks a lot to all of you!
Photos JC Lespagnol.
New pictures in album "Search" - campaign 2011".
We would like to thank:
The Safran Group
Le Secrétariat d'Etat à l'Outre-Mer
La Marine nationale (French Navy)
La Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile (French Civil Aviation Authority)
Le Conseil territorial de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon
La Mairie de Saint-Pierre
