Content deleted Content added
→top: add photo |
m →top: clean up, typo(s) fixed: From 1952–1953 → From 1952 to 1953 |
||
(42 intermediate revisions by 28 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{short description|Veteran of the French resistance, neurosurgeon, aviator, first female General Officer}}
{{Infobox military person
|name= Valérie André
|birth_date=
|death_date=
|birth_place= [[Strasbourg]], France
|death_place=
|placeofburial=
|placeofburial_label=
|image=Médecin general Valérie André (cropped).jpg
|caption=
|nickname=
|allegiance= {{flagicon|France}} [[France]]
|branch= [[French Army]]
|serviceyears=
|rank= Médecin Général Inspecteur
|commands=
|unit=
|battles=
|awards= [[Légion d'honneur]]<br />[[ordre national du Mérite]]<br />[[Croix de
}}
'''Valérie André''' ({{IPA-fr|valeʁi ɑ̃dʁe|-|Fr-Valérie André.ogg}}; born 21 April 1922
As a member of the military, she is not addressed as "Madame la Générale" (a term reserved for spouses of generals) but as "General".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.defense.gouv.fr/air/base/breves/2010/fevrier/vol_simule_pour_le_general_valerie_andre
She started as a Medical Captain in Indochina in 1948, already a qualified parachutist and pilot, in addition to being an army surgeon.<ref>[http://lemamouth.blogspot.com/2010/09/un-brevet-en-or-massif.html Le mamouth: Un brevet, 54 ans après]</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://members.multimania.co.uk/Indochine/cefeo/helicopt.html |title='
One typical mission occurred on 11 December 1951, when casualties were in urgent need of evacuation from Tu Vu on the Black River. The only available helicopter, stationed near [[Saigon]], was dismantled, flown to [[Hanoi]] by a Bristol Freighter and reassembled. Captain André then flew into Tu Vu despite heavy mist and anti-aircraft fire. There, she triaged the casualties, operated on the most pressing cases and then flew the urgent wounded back to Hanoi, two at a time. Later, she was put in command of a casualty evacuation flight.
She continued in Algeria as a Medical Commander in 1960, where she completed 365 war missions. She rose to the rank of Medical Lieutenant Colonel in 1965 then to Medical Colonel in 1970. She had a total of 3200 flight hours, and received 7 citations of the [[
She has written two collections of memoirs : ''Ici, Ventilateur! Extraits d'un carnet de vol.'' (Calmann-Lévy, 1954) and ''Madame le général'' (Perrin, 1988).
She is one of eight women to hold the Grand-croix (Great Cross) rank in the [[Legion of Honour]], with [[Germaine Tillion]], [[Geneviève de Gaulle-Anthonioz]], [[Jacqueline de Romilly]], [[Simone Rozès]], [[Christiane Desroches Noblecourt]], [[Yvette Farnoux]]
She is the aunt of politician [[André Santini]].
Line 39 ⟶ 41:
* Grand-croix of the Legion of Honour (19 December 1999); previously Chevalier on 25 February 1953
* Grand-croix of the [[Ordre National du Mérite]] in 1987, the first woman to receive this distinction.
* [[Croix de
* [[Croix de
* [[Croix de la Valeur Militaire|Médaille de la Valeur Militaire]]
* Médaille commémorative d'Indochine,
Line 51 ⟶ 53:
* [[Legion of Merit]] (USA),
* [[National Order of Vietnam]]
* [[Cross of Valour (
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Portal
== External links ==
Line 65 ⟶ 67:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andre, Valerie}}
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:French generals]]
[[Category:Female army generals]]
[[Category:French Resistance members]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:French women aviators]]
[[Category:Helicopter pilots]]
[[Category:Army aviation personnel]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Women centenarians]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Strasbourg]]
[[Category:Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour]]
[[Category:Grand Cross of the Ordre national du Mérite]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France)]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures]]
Line 79 ⟶ 90:
[[Category:Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit]]
[[Category:Recipients of the National Order of Vietnam]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:20th-century French
[[Category:
|