Henry Kostrba
A hundred years ago he was made the Czechoslovakian Flying Corps´ CO
He had become No 1 Ace of the Czech nationality in the Austro- Hungarian Air Force during the Great War - HERE and HERE His task of the utmost importance was to get aircraft for the newly formed Czechoslovak Republic as soon as possible.
Civilian flying had been banned by the authorities. For instance Mr Metodej Vlach – one of Czech aviation pioneers – had to dismantle the one of design of his own Her engine had to be given back to the Laurin&Klement Co at the town of Mlada Boleslav. Only engines were allowed to be turned out there. The engines were taken to Austria for final assembly of military aircraft there.
The Al-Ma Co. subsidiary of the Austrian Albatros-Phoenix Werke situated near a brewery in the Holesovice Borough of Prague turned out no aircraft from the summer of 1916. The biplanes of Knoller, Berg, Lohner, Brandenburg and other types of the Austro-Hungarian were rectified in those premises only. The first two biplanes were requisited here by Cpt. Klement Adamec for the Cz Flying Corps. This man was in charge of the aircraft´s both taking overand turning out.
www.cs-letectvi.cz/osobnost/jindrich-kostrba