Juan Ramón Munés

Juan Ramón Munés (15 April 1903 – 18 February 1968) was a Salvadoran military officer and one of the first Salvadoran pilots. He was a member of the Civic Directory, a military junta established after the 1931 Salvadoran coup d'état. He commanded the Salvadoran Aviation Corps (air force) from 1931 to 1944.

Biography

Juan Ramón Munés was born on 15 April 1903 in Santa Ana, El Salvador. His parents were Juan Munés and María Mateu.

In 1923, Munés and Ricardo Aberle became the first students of the Military Aviation School taught by Italian aviator Enrico Massi. On 4 October 1923, Massi was instructing Munés in a Caudron G.3 when their aircraft crashed into a farm in Soyapango at 11:30 a.m. after a mechanical failure. Munés survived the crash but Massi was killed.

Munés and Aberle graduated on 12 July 1924 and Salvadoran president Alfonso Quiñónez Molina attended the ceremony. By 1939, Munés was promoted to captain major. On 6 April 1944, Munés became the Director of the Army Instruction. On 15 December 1944, the Legislative Assembly promoted him to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Munés retired from military service in 1951. He served as the governor of La Libertad in 1951.