On July 19, 1918, British Sopwith Camels from the new
aircraft carrier Furious made an early morning surprise attack on the German
naval Zeppelins at Tondern, Germany. Their mission was a tremendous success,
practically ending Zeppelin operations and setting the precedent for World War
II’s aircraft carrier attacks at Taranto and Pearl Harbor.
Historian/author Narayan Sengupta traces the evolution of
aircraft carriers and naval aviation up to 1941 with a primary focus on the
Tondern raid. Sengupta, an American of Franco-Indian heritage, has spent seven
years researching American military aviation in World War I. He has traveled
across France and the United States to visit airfields, air museums and
archives after learning that America’s first combat squadrons were based a few
hundred yards from his mother’s home in Saints, France. In 2008, he organized
the 90th Anniversary Commemoration of the United States Air Force’s first
combat operations. He has written four books: "American Eagles - The
Illustrated History of American Aviation in World War I”, “POW Stories”,
“Disaster at Dieppe” and “Lafayette Escadrille: America's Most Famous Squadron,
" all available on www.USAWW1.com.
The "First Sunday Lecture" series is sponsored by
the Friends of Smyrna Library.
Speaker Bio: Narayan Sengupta
On July 14, 1918, the Germans shot down and killed Teddy
Roosevelt’s youngest son, Quentin, in the skies over France. Until his tragic
death, Quentin stayed in the home of Narayan Sengupta’s great-great
grandmother. This incredible story and a love of history compelled Narayan to
research American World War I aviation. The result is four books about World
War II and World War I, articles and photos published in “Over the Front”, the
History News Network, the Marietta Daily Journal and elsewhere.
Narayan has had ten veterans on the French side of his
family, seven of whom were in combat. One died in action, one was wounded, one
was captured, one was an occupier and one was in the Resistance. Two received
the Croix de Guerre. On August 27, 1944, his mother’s family was liberated by
brave Americans of the US 3rd Armored Division. On the Indian side of his
family, both great uncles were noted historians, and one was head of the All
India Historical Society. Consequently, he is very passionate about America’s
military accomplishments and its veterans.
Narayan speaks several languages, loves to travel and has
visited about 20 countries. He was Star Student at North Fulton High School
(which was America’s first International Baccalaureate School), majored in
History at Emory and earned an MBA from Georgia State. He worked at places like
IBM, Coca-Cola, Hewlett Packard, MCI and Alltel before starting NFI
(www.nfiweb.com), a website, search engine optimization and database
development firm in Atlanta, Georgia.
