lt. cdor. av. Corneliu Batacui

Long Range Recon Pilot

Born: 24 August 1901, Benic, Alba county

Units:

• 22 June 1941: 1st Long Range Recon Squadron

Combat missions: 1

Victories: 1

Decorations:

• Virtutea Aeronautica Order Gold Cross class

War episode:

Early on 22 June 1941, lt. cdor. av. Corneliu Batacui, the CO of the 1st Long Range Recon Squadron, took off in the first mission of the war flown by ARR aircraft. He and his crew had to observe the strength of VVS forces in southern Bessarabia and drop light bombs on Soviet positions. Near Cetatea Alba, the Blenheim Mk. I no. 36 was attacked by six fighters. Apparently they managed to shoot down one of the attackers, but the same fate awaited them. There were no survivors. He and his crew (slt. av. Nicolae Uratu - observer and smstr. Ioan Caruntu - machine-guner) were the first Romanian casualties of the war. Their bodies were found much later and were buried on 2 October 1941.

Died: 22 June 1941, Cetatea Alba

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