Roland Glavany 1922-2017

In 1958 Roland Glavany became the first person in Europe to achieve Mach 2 in level flight
Roland Glavany took the Mirage IV No 01 into the air for the first time on 17 June 1959
Miarge 1, the first of the Mirage family



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Roland Glavany was born on August 22 1922 in Nantes. He went to the Ecole de l'Air in 1940.After the German offensive in France, like many other young Frenchmen that refused the Occupation he escapes France via Spain and lands in Algeria where Generals deGaulle and Giraud are based. In May 1943, Roland Glavany is one of the first ones to integrate into the all new Battalion of assault, soon named "Shock". It is an elite unit, which is integrated into Army Group B.The battalion participates in the liberation of the islands of Elbe and Corsica. Then onto Provence and the rest of France.

In 1945, Roland Glavany rejoins the Airforce, and in 1948, after jet training allowing him to join the CEV (Centers d’Essais en Vol) in 1950. Unil 1959, he was involved in flight testing the Vautour. He joined Dassault as a test pilot and made the first flights of the Mirages I, III and IV. In 1958, he was the first pilot in Europe to fly to Mach 2 (horizontal flight).

He participated in the Algerian War between 1958 and 1960,after which he entered the State Officer School of the Airforce Air and then to the Superior School of Aerial Warfare. He commanded the air bases of Bordeaux, Istres and lastly Mont-de-Marsan