Giuseppe Cei

He was born in Càscina, Tuscany, and showed a precocious talent for mechanics from a very early age.

He also obtained good results as a fencer, winning the sabre prize in the International Contest held at Milano in 1908.

He studied in the Roche School for Aeronautics and Mechanic Constructions, graduating in engineering.

Later his aerobatic performances in Paris, riding a Farman biplane, led the French President Armand Fallières to declare him Le roi de l'air ("The King of the Air").

Cei died on March 28 of that year when his plane crashed on Rotschild Island near Puteaux.