The Devil of Antwerp - Jan Olieslagers Statue

I was planning our itinerary for a trip to Europe with my newest and bestest friend, when she informed me that while we are in Belgium we need to visit a statue of her great-great-great Uncle. His name was Jan Olieslagers. So I took it upon myself to do some research on this relatively unknown man and discovered what an accomplished person he was. Not only did this man deserve a statue in front of the airport he co-founded but perhaps he is worthy of a visit from travelers interested in the obscure.  He must have been a cool dude or at the very least, a bad-ass, to earn the nickname of “The Devil of Antwerp” for his motorcycle racing prowess and “The Father of Aerial-combat” for his aviator and pistol skills. Yes, pistol skills!  Story has it that upon spotting a German spy plane, Olieslagers pulled up along side it and the German pilot saluted him. Insulted, he pulled his pistol out of it’s holster and opened fire on the unsuspecting German pilot, forcing him to turn around and end his mission prematurely.(This guy’s the original James T. Kirk!) Olieslagers unofficially had 28 kills during the war and he was instrumental in the design and development of armed aircraft for the Belgium Air Force.  After the Armistice that ended WWI, his contributions to the war effort were recognized  by four different nations and he was awarded the following:   Belgium: Order of Leopold (highest Belgian order), Belgian War Cross France: Legion of Honor (highest French order of merit), French War Cross Imperial Russia: Order of Saint-Stanislas Serbia: Gold Medal for Bravery                                                       In addition to the statue in front of Antwerp airport, there are many streets named after Jan Olieslagers, not only in Belgium but in the Netherlands as well. Sadly his story has not been taught for decades, and most people are not familiar with this talented pioneer. For more on the life of this extraordinary man, see the following article:  https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2018/11/11/the-devil-of-antwerp-father-of-aerial-combat-jan-olieslagers/   After seeing the statue, enter the airport straight ahead and turn right for about 100 meters and you will see an aviation museum called the Stampe & Vertongen Museum. There you will see more on Jan Olieslagers and many of his Belgium aviator brethren. The website for the museum is www.stampe.be