User:HelO.L42/Bernard Le Pecq

Bernard Le Pecq (July 27, 1914 - October 18, 1943) was a french resistant and fighter pilot of breton origin. He was born in Laval, in France. He was arrested and killed as a French Resistant in Paris.

A street in Laval was named after him, in memory of his sacrifice.

His sister was the artist Andrée Bordeaux-Lepecq.

Early life
Bernard Le Pecq was born in a quite wealthy family, specialized in cloth, scrap metal and feathers trade. He completed his high school curriculum at the Lycée de l’Immaculée-Conception and got his bachelor degree in 1930 in Paris. He then studied foreign languages at the University of Oxford and in Vienna. In 1933, he began fighter pilot learning. One year later, during his military conscription in Istres's Air Base, he became Master Corporal. He founded Mayenne's flying club and started working with his family in trading. He became a Reserve Pilot.

Resistance
In the early days of World War II, Bernard Le Pecq fought as a fighter pilot on Bloch planes at the Battle of France where he wins four victories. In 1940, he received the War Cross and went to Noth Africa with his flight where he heard the Appeal of 18 June. He then went back to Laval and was demobilized in July 1940. In March 1942, he joined the Marathon-Ronsard network of the French Resistance under the name Chinchilla. His job back then was to search for landing and airdropping grounds.

Bernard Le Pecq was called in August 1943 in London where he met the Colonel Passy and Charles de Gaulle who gave him instructions. He then came back to France to join Free France as a fighter pilot by winter.

In October 1943, he was denounced and arrested with his wife Ginette Lévy and died in Paris as he was trying to escape. He was granted the Resistance Medal posthumously.

A street in his birth town, Laval, was named after him.