183 - MERMOZ, Jean

MERMOZ, Jean L.A.S. “Your Jean,” Buenos Aires, February 20, 1929, to his grandparents, the GILLETs; 3½ pages, in-4 format, on Via Aeropostal paper. His flight was banned by the Ministry of Aviation; he expresses anger toward the French administration. He has learned of his great-uncle’s death and shares his grandfather’s grief. He laments “this huge setback… The Ministry of Aviation, to which I am, alas, answerable, has denied me authorization for a transatlantic flight. Parliamentarianism, grandstanding, and red tape—such are the reasons. In practice, they don’t exist. The Americans are truly men among men for having allowed and helped a Lindbergh to set out across the Atlantic. Here at home, our men of action are falling into disrepair. We need bold, thoughtful people, but all we have are sluggish, pessimistic thinkers who shout about the greatest glory and revival of theFrench Air Force from the depths of their desk jobs, while worrying more about a cabinet reshuffle that might harm their own interests than about encouraging new initiatives. Instead of crying “Down with Poincaré!”, they would do better to think of ways to halt the advance of foreign aviation, whose rallying cry is “Down with French aviation!” Politics is a terrible scourge. What harm it does! When will we have a dictatorship that will make us realize what we once were, what we are, and what we can be!! I’ve become a nationalist since I’ve been abroad. It makes my blood boil to see our prestige crumbling bit by bit here, solely because of our pitiful representatives, who are a reflection of our parliamentary stagnation. It’s lamentable to think that the best of our will, our energy, and our efforts are being used to fuel speeches and debates, when we’d rather see them directed toward the success and prosperity of all that is ours. It’s painful. The danger right now comes from America. The postal routes are advancing rapidly on our side. Lindbergh is in the lead, and the prestige attached to this living symbol opens every door for him and threatens to cause us real harm in South America. So, farewell to our sacrifices! The fruit of more than a year of intense and unimaginable work is slipping away from us just as we are nearing success. […] We, too, need a figurehead abroad. Costes could have been that man; he is a businessman. I know a few airline pilots who would be capable of being such men. For my part, I’ve been looking for a way to make this happen for a year; I had almost found it. I would have succeeded—I could feel it. I’ll probably do it, but I’m afraid it might be too late by then. Successfully flying from Paris to New York right now—and we have the means to do it now—would be a feat that would instantly boost our prestige at a time when we need it most. I wasn’t asking anyone for anything; I was managing on my own with the funds I’d managed to raise—and then, bang! The raid was banned, and land-based aircraft are off-limits until further notice… Politics… So I’m waiting. The Count of La Vaulx, whom I brought back from Brazil and am currently taking around Argentina, has promised to help me bring my idea to fruition as soon as he returns in March. I’m waiting. I’m not wasting my time, though. I’m going back to Chile to deliver a letter there, then organize the route. I’ll try to get there before the Americans. Plans for July: French Guiana and perhaps the West Indies. They’re preparing an aircraft for me. The General Manager in Toulouse intends, I’ve been told, to recall me to France to train me on a large seaplane and have me make a few ocean crossings between Dakar and Natal. “Always plans”… Source: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down through the family