Louis Schreck, (1874-1941)
Louis Schreck was born March 8, 1874 at Aubigny, small commune of the Sarthe, where his father, John Schreck, 22, of Alsatian origin, was employed in the construction of railways and his mother, Louise Fish, 22, born Aubigne, is unemployed.
We do not know much about him until 1898, when he married Marie Aline Gaché.
Louis Schreck tries to form alliances with other manufacturers to produce quality airplanes. In January 1911, he bought out Armand Deperdussin monoplanes Tellier construction and all machine tools Juvisy-sur-Orge Alphonse Tellier 2 ruined by his flight schools.
In spring 1911, Schreck created in Saint-Omer in Artois a construction company monoplanes Tellier as the "Society of ancient sites Tellier.
He installed a first flying school.
In March 1912, he partnered with a young driver engineer, Louis Gaudart, and with whom he built the first flying boat called the "d'Artois, type Donnet-Denhaut is Adire with a redan under the hull, and a monoplane racing. Unfortunately, April 13, 1913, during the second competition seaplane of Monaco Louis Gaudart, trying to dodge boats, killed himself on the aircraft in Artois.
1913 November a prospectus was issued inviting subscriptions for the capital of the Franco British Aviation Co., Lid., of which the directors are Mr. Reginald Mortimer, Capt. A. W. Gamlen, R.N.R., Engineer-Capt. A. R. Rolle, R.N., and Lieut.-Col. E. J. de Salis, the managers of the company being Capt. Andre Beaumont and Mr. Louis Schreck. Briefly the object of the Company is to construct waterplanes, more particularly those pertaining to the business of Mons. H. Leveque and of the Societe Tellier, both of which businesses the company are acquiring, whilst they also hold a licence for the construction and sale in France of the Curtiss flying boats with further rights to sell in other parts of the world, with the exception of England, Russia, Italy and the U.S.A.
At the end of WWI Louis Schreck received the Cross of the Legion of Honor for his service to his country. Of the 2870 seaplane built in France between August 1914 and November 1918, 1,470 were built by ABE (50%). Among the first victims of the abolition of markets is the firm of Argenteuil. Schreck is obliged to thank its staff and temporarily close its plant. Schreck won 30 million francs and could live on his income.