The Aeroconservancy Museum Original Artifacts from 1914-1918
Lafayette Flying Corps Uniforms, medals and photographs
This tailored uniform with aviation Pattes De Collet and cuff stripes for a Sergent belonged to a pilot named "Busch," according to its labels, either the French aviator, Roger Auguste Achille Busch, who was shot-down 12-April-1918, or an American volunteer, Philip Nelson Bush, who flew for Escadrille Spa 73. In a lengthy research paper, An American in Escadrille Spa 73, [click to open] now in its 8th draft, it appears that it belonged to the American; Bush was the height and proportions of this uniform, he was known for wearing expensive, tailored uniforms, which this is; according to a U.S.A.S. list of Americans who trained in the French flight school at Pau, Bush's name was spelled "Busch" by the French; the date of his graduation matches the date on the tailor's labels; his rank matches the uniform's rank stripes; his Croix De Guerre with Star matches his record; and one of the four photos that accompanied the uniform is of a Breguet from Br. 117, one of the bombing escadrilles that Bush's Escadrille escorted and in whom his friend, Chuck Kerwood, was serving when he was shot-down and captured. Note extensive moth damage in this detailed photo study.