Walter Mittelholzer

Walter Mittelholzer (April 2nd 1894 with Saint-Gall - May 9th 1937 in Styrie) was a pilot, photographer, traveller and writer Suisse. He was a pioneer of the Civil aviation and took part in the launching of Swissair.

In 1917, it obtained its license of pilot and in 1918, it finished its instruction as a military pilot. The November 5th 1919, it founded a company of photographs and air transports with Alfred Count: Count, Mittelholzer & Co. . In 1920, it amalgamated its company with AD Astra Aero , a surer value from the financial point of view. Mittelholzer was the director and the pilot as a chief of AD Astra Aero. The March 10th 1925, it accomplished a flight with the top of the Demawend, a top culminating with 5.671 meters in Iran.

It accomplished the first flight (with 23 stopovers) north of Africa until the south of the continent. This tour, organized without modern infrastructure of communication and navigation, lasted 77 days for a total distance of 14.850 kilometers. Party the December 7th 1926 of Zurich, it took the direction of Alexandria and atterit with the Cape the February 21st 1927. The December 15th 1929, it became the first to fly over the Kilimandjaro. From Africa, Mittelholzer will bring back many stereotypes of which photographs, exclusive for the time, of the tribes of the Kenya.

In 1931, it was named chief technical officer and instructor as a chief of the new Swiss company: Swissair. It founds Swissair Photo AG with an aim of diffusing its air photographs near the general public, the company always exists under the name of Swissphoto Group AG .

As much of the pioneers of its time, it found death at the time of an accident. The May 9th 1937, whereas it flew over a mountainous region of Styrie in Austria, it was crushed with its plane.

External bonds

DER erste Flug quer über Afrika

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