medical servicies

[guina]

Both the Portal and the forum hardly mention the existence of a medical service in Romanian Army.Did it exist,how was it organised on diferent levels,were there fiel hospitals,who was commanding this service,etc.And what about "Escadrila alba"
Can anyone fill this vacum?

[Victor]

You are obviously right, but, with the exception of the White Squadron the subject wasn't well treated or at least I am not familiar with it. What exactly are you ijnterested in regarding this unit?

[guina]

Victor,
I wold like to know to whom was it subordinated ( ARR or Medical servicies ),where it operated and what was it strength and types of aeroplanes it flew.
Thank you

[chisi]

Types of airplanes

Fieseler Fi-156 Storch
Potez 56
Potez 65
RWD 13

(according with images and newsreel footages included in the movie "Escadrila Alba", produced by the Army Press Trust - TPA)

[guina]

Thanks,Chisi!

[Victor]

The Medical Squadron was formed on 25 June 1940, under the command of cpt. av. Gheorghe Valvarie. It was based at Baneasa airport, near Bucharest, and was unique through teh fact that four of its pilots were women: Nadia Russo, Mariana Dragescu, Virginia Dusescu and Virginia Thomas.

The squadron was equipped with a mix of 9 RWD-13s, 2 Monospar ST-25s and a Potez-65. Three of the RWD-13s , one ST-25 and the Potez 65 had stretchers and could transport wounded soldiers. One on the ST-25s was lost on 11 July 1940 during a training flight and killed the instructor N. Evghenovici and students Maria Adam, Jeana Iliescu, Maria Voitec and Victoria Comsa, four new female pilots that were supposed to join the unit.

to be continued

[Victor]

After the war started on 22 June 1941, the squadron's three RWD-13s with strechers (painted white with red crosses) were moved to the Focsani airfield, closer to the front. The squadron was taken over on 3 July by cpt. av. I. Panaitescu and, because the ground offensive was underway, they began flying. There days with 3-4 missions. The unarmed airplanes had to fly low to avoid VVS fighters, land and take off very quickly to avoid enemy ground fire.

On 10 July the squadron moved to the Tecuci airfield. By 20 August they had transported over 200 wounded. The first wartime loss occured on 21 August, when the remaining ST-25 flown by adj. sef av. Calinescu crashed on its way from Bucharest to the front. The same day, the squadron moved to the Tighina (Bendery) airfield, closer to the fighting around Odessa and the big field hospital at Tiraspol. The three RWD-13s were painted over in camouflage colors, but the white color remained in the unit's nickname, which was dubbed the White Squadron.

Nadia Russo, Mariana Dragescu and Virginia Thomas and their RWD-13s ferried wounded between the improvised hospitals near the front line and Tiraspol. From there, the Potez 65 flown by adj. sef av. Nicolae Popescu took them to Bucharest.
By the fall of Odessa the Squadron had transported around 700 wounded.

On 6 November the squadron left Tighina for Bucharest. The airplanes were submitted to a general overhaul. The four female pilots were awarded the Virtutea Aeronautica Order Gold Cross class by Royal Decree no. 2712/27 September 1941.

to be continued

[guina]

Thank you Victor for your effort!Im waiting for the rest.
dan

[chisi]

ATTENTION!

Today, at 13:00, on B1 tv channel, is "Escadrila Alba" (The White Squadron) movie!