VOJENSKÝ PILOT RAKÚSKO-UHORSKÉHO LETECTVA JOZEF KISS A JEHO NASADENIE NA JUHOTIROLSKOM FRONTE V KONTEXTE TALIANSKYCH ARCHÍVNYCH PRAMEŇOV

In the study, the author deals with the operation of Jozef Kiss, a native of Bratislava that belonged to the most successful pilots of the Austro-Hungarian aviation. He achieved 19 confirmed victories, serving in the Flik 24 units (or Flik 24F) and Flik 55J units, finally falling in the aerial combat on the 24th May 1918. The author studied archival documents stored in the Roman military archive as well as in the Roman aviation archive, containing interesting and little known facts from the life of this aviator. Moreover, they aptly complement the data from the funds stored in the Vienna Kriegsarchive. The study deals with the operation of Jozef Kiss on the front in South Tyrol, clarifying the equipment of his home field airport in Pergin as well as operations of the enemy Italian aviation over the Valsugana valley area. Italian archival documents also contain information about the air victories of Jozef Kiss, in particular on the 25th August 1916 and 13th July 1917, achievements of his Flik 55J fighter unit in the fall of 1917 or in the last flight of this pilot.