Military Career
On a visit to Paris, Bullard decided to settle in France. At the outbreak of World War I, he enlisted in the French Foreign Legion. He was wounded in 1916 in the Battle of Verdun, and was awarded the Croix de Guerre. He then became a pilot in the Lafayette Flying Corps in the French Aéronautique Militaire, and on August 17, 1917 was assigned to the 93d Spad Squadron. He took part in about twenty combat missions and was credited with shooting down two German aircraft.
When the United States entered the war, the US Army Air Service convened a medical board to recruit Americans serving in the Lafayette Flying Corps. Although Bullard passed the medical examination, he was not accepted, since only Caucasians were allowed to fly. Late in 1917, Bullard engaged in a fight with a French officer and was transferred back to the infantry in January 1918. He served as a foot soldier until the Armistice in November 1918.
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