Andre Gundelach was a Pilot for the Lafayette Escadrille and he 96th Aero Squadron. Lieutenant Gundelach, with Second Lieutenant Pennington H. Way, observer, volunteered for a hazardous mission to bomb concentrations of enemy troops. They successfully bombed their objective, but while returning were attacked by eight enemy planes. Their plane was brought down in flames and both officers killed.

From Find a Grave:
Andre Gundelach, the son of a Chicago, Illinois, cabinet maker, epitomized the best of the young Americans who served as bombing and observation pilots. Andre was born in Chicago on 16 January 1895, the son of August Gundelach and Alice (Burkhart) Gundelach. Andre attended Chicago parochial schools. His mother died while he was still a youth, and in 1914 Gundelach enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served as a boatswain's mate. While aboard ship with the Asiatic Fleet, he made a round-the-world cruise. Of French ancestry, (his mother had been born in France of English and Belgian parents), in late 1916 Andre asked for and received an honorable discharge from the Navy in order to join French aviation. In February of 1917, Gundelach sailed from New York to Bordeaux, France. On 20 March 1917 he enlisted in France's Service Aeronautique. From 24 March to 10 July 1917, he attended the aviation schools at Avord, Pau, and the G.D.E. He received his brevet on the Bleriot on 31 May 1917. On 12 July 1917, Caporal Gundelach was assigned at the Front to Escadrille SPA 95 and flew with that squadron until 8 September. While with SPA 95 he was awarded the French Croix de Guerre with Palm for his destruction of an enemy aircraft. On 24 September he requested and was granted a transfer to Escadrille Sop. 111, a bombing squadron, and he flew with that squadron until 21 December 1917. On 9 November 1917, Gundelach had been commissioned a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Service. From 3 January to 18 May 1918 he served as an instructor at the 7th Aviation Instruction Center, Clermont-Ferrand. On 23 May 1918, Lt Gundelach was assigned to the 96th Aero Squadron, United States Air Service, a Day Bombardment Squadron. A fellow pilot, Lt Charles Codman later penned these observations of Gundelach: "Gundelach obviously knew what he was about. That keen blue eye, the rare but infectious smile that lit up the bony face under its thatch of blond hair, were reassuring, and his manner of handling a Breguet as if it were a pursuit plane inspired confidence." Lt Gundelach flew with the 96th Aero Squadron as a flight commander until 12 September 1918. On that day he was killed in combat in the Saint Mihiel Sector. He was posthumously awarded the U.S. Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism. His citation describes the action that resulted in his death: "For extraordinary heroism in action near Buxieres, France, September 12, 1918. Lieutenant Gundelach with Second Lieutenant Pennington H. Way, Observer, volunteered for a hazardous mission to bomb concentrations of enemy troops. They successfully bombed their objective, but while returning were attacked by eight enemy planes. Their plane was brought down in flames and both officers were killed." [Source: "The Lafayette Flying Corps: The American Volunteers in the French Air Service in World War One," by Dennis Gordon. Schiffer Military History. Atglen, PA: 2000. Pages 190-191.] ∼ 2nd Lieutenant U.S. Army, World War One-Lt. Gunderlach was killed in action during his tour of WWI France. Lt. Gunderlach is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gunderlach of Chicago, Illinois.