Major General

Christos Adamidis
A postcard of Christos Adamidis c. 1913
Native name
Χρήστος Αδαμίδης
Bornc. 1885
Ioannina, Janina Vilayet, Ottoman Empire (now Greece)
Diedc. 1949
Athens, Kingdom of Greece
Allegiance
Service/branch Hellenic Army
Years of service1912–1935
Rank Major General
UnitHellenic Army Air Service
Commands heldHellenic Army Air Service (1927–1930)
Aeronautics Command (1931–1935)
Battles/warsBalkan Wars

Christos Adamidis (Greek: Χρήστος Αδαμίδης, 1885–1949) was a Hellenic Army officer and pioneer of military aviation. He was one of the first Greek officers who received aviation training in France and later participated in air operations during the Balkan Wars.

Balkan Wars

Adamidis was born in Ioannina[1] in 1885, then part of the Janina Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. He initially became a cavalry officer in the Hellenic Army. In 1912, Adamidis was selected as one of the first three Greek officers, together with Dimitrios Kamberos and Michael Moutoussis, in order to receive aviation training in France and to man the newly established aviation branch of the Hellenic Army.[2]

During the following Balkan Wars he was positioned in Epirus front where he performed reconnaissance and bombing missions against Ottoman positions during the Battle of Bizani.[3] These missions also included leaflet and food dropping to the population of Ioannina, the urban center of the area, who was starving due to the extended military conflicts.[2] The Greek forces finally won the battle and on 6 March [O.S. 21 February] 1913, Ioannina came under Greek control. On that day, Adamidis landed his Farman MF.7 aircraft on the Town Hall square of the city, to the adulation of an enthusiastic crowd.[1][4]

Later career

In 1927 Adamidis became commander of the air arm of the Hellenic Army. In June 1928, Adamidis together with Lt Evangelos Papadakis, flew around the Mediterranean Sea with a Breguet 19 aircraft. The tour lasted 20 days covering a distance of 12,000 km (7,456 mi), and was considered a significant achievement in relation to the capabilities of Greek aviation of that time.[5][6] In 1931, when the Air Force became a separate branch of the Hellenic Armed Forces,[5] he was appointed director of the Aeronautics Department.[7]

Adamidis was discharged in 1935 with the rank of Major General.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 Δάλλας Αθανάσιος, Αργυρόπουλος Κωνσταντίνος. "Έλληνες αεροπόροι στον αγώνα για την απελευθέρωση (1912–1913)" (ΗΤΜ). Σύλλογος Αποφοίτων Ζωσιμαίας Σχολής Ιωαννίνων. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 Καρυτινός, Αλέξιος, ed. (June 2010). "H Ελληνική Αεροπορία στις Αρχές του 20ου αιώνα Βαλκανικοί Πόλεμοι – Α' Παγκόσμιος" (PDF). Αεροπορική Επιθεώρηση (in Greek) (89): 48–59 [53, 56]. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 March 2012.
  3. ↑ "Aviation in War". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  4. ↑ Nedialkov, Dimitar (2004). The genesis of air power. Pensoft. ISBN 978-954-642-211-8. Greek aviation saw action in Epirus until the capture of Jannina on 21 February 1913. On that day, Lt Adamidis landed his Maurice Farman on the Town Hall square, to the adulation of an enthusiastic crowd.
  5. 1 2 "Hellenic Air Force History: Inter-War Period". Hellenic Air Force General Staff. Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
  6. ↑ "Airisms from the four winds". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  7. ↑ Manufacturers Aircraft Association (1931). Aircraft year book, vol 13. American Aviation Publications. p. 475.
  8. ↑ Βατάκης, Παντελής, ed. (2009–2010). "Ο Αεροπόρος Κωνσταντίνος Περρίκος" (PDF). Ίκαρος (in Greek) (89): 4–17. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 October 2010.
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