The WW1 Italian ace Francesco Baracca [34 kills] was shot down and pinned in the wreckage of his plane for two days. When he was finally found he had a single bullet hole in the head and a pistol in his hand.It appeared he had ended his own life.There is a small dusty museum in his home town of Lugo/Emelia Romanga, Italy where his airplane and the pistol used are [were] on display. I think it was either a Mauser or Beretta auto. I suspect most WW1 era pilots carried side arms with that thought in mind. Regards, Bart

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H.E;Bart