Pilot, mayor, resistance fighter… The extraordinary destiny of Tarnais Gaston Vedel revealed in an unpublished biography

Bernard Bacquié highlights the exceptional life of a Tarnais man of legendary stature: Gaston Vedel (born in Carmaux in 1899, died in 1993 in Saint-Paul-Cap-de-Joux), pioneer of the Latécoère-Aéropostale lines, hero of the Resistance and deported, in a biography rich in discoveries and unpublished archives.

“Vedel, the rebel: from Daurat to Dora, an exceptional life” (Editions Latérales) is a work which has the makings of the character to whom it is dedicated. Its author, member of the Floral Games academy, former captain having ended his career on a 747 at Air France (he even had the opportunity to pilot Concorde), is an aviation historian, novelist, lecturer and specialist in the history of the Latécoère and Aéropostale lines.

He wrote this book with the participation of Jean-Pierre Gaubert, author of numerous works, including one devoted to the confidences collected from Gaston Vedel, with whom he was close when he was editor-in-chief of La Dépêche du Midi in Castres for 25 years.

Gaston Vedel, himself author of Forgotten Pilot, prefaced by Joseph Kessel, tells the story of the Latécoère line, future Aéropostale.

Aviation, Resistance and deportation.

Pilot under the thumb of Didier Daurat (mythical head of personnel of the Latécoère lines), from 1923, he went through the major conflicts of the 20th century with fierce determination. His aeronautical career, briefly interrupted by a very serious accident, did not prevent him from taking command again or from serving audaciously in extreme contexts: from Haile Selassie’s Ethiopia to besieged Republican Spain.

A companion of the Liberation, he marked his era with a life worthy of an adventure novel.

During the Second World War, Vedel distinguished himself in the Resistance networks and intelligence, revealing very important information to London.

Hunted by the Gestapo, he was sent to Buchenwald, then to Dora, the production center for V1 and V2 rockets, where he experienced the hell of the camps while maintaining a fighting spirit.

Bernard Bacquié gives its true dimension to the memory of the man who was mayor of Saint-Paul-Cap-de-Joux (from 1965 to 1977), thanks to unpublished archives, restored documents and surprising revelations.

This immersion in the history of aviation and the 20th century is enriched by the illustrious figures who crossed paths with Gaston Vedel: Henri de Monfreid, Jean Mermoz, Joseph Kessel, with inevitable allusion to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

With 220 documents, including 132 photos, this biography offers a striking perspective on a hero who has been overlooked for too long.