Francisco Viñals Guarro was born in Barcelona in 1915.

As a government employee he found himself exempt from military service.

In September 1936, he volunteered for flying training.

In January 1937, Viñals reported to Alcantarilla airfield. There, he flew DH 60 Moth Majors, before moving on to Breguet XIXs.

In April, he graduated from flying training and joined the air force as a pilot sargento, being posted to El Prat de Llobregat to fly Ni-H.52s with the Patrulla de Protección de Costas (Coastal Patrol Flight).

In August, sargento Viñals joined the Escuela de Alta Velocidad at El Carmolí for familiarisation training on the I-16 Mosca, although he was soon posted as an instructor to the Escuela Elemental de Pilotos at Alcantarilla, flying F.480, DH 60 Moth Majors and E-34s.

In early December, sargento Viñals was ordered to Barracas airfield, which was home of the I-15-equipped 1^a/26, led by Soviet pilot Nikita Syusyukalov.
On the 13th, however, he was transferred to 2^a/26.

During the day on 21 February 1938, all the serviceable Polikarpovs took off to try to oppose Nationalist bombers during the Battle of Alfambra.
At 10:20, Miguel García Pardo and Javier Allende Isasi of 2-G-3 took off on a routine reconnaissance flight over the Teruel front. There they discovered 20 I-15s and a similar number of I-16s in combat with a few Bf 109Bs. When García Pardo and Allende Isasi went to the assistance of the Messerschmitts, the German pilots failed to recognize them as allies and opened fire on them. They beat a hasty retreat, calling into battle another formation of Fiat CR.32s before continuing with their reconnaissance.
The new formation compromised 24 CR.32s of the XXIII Gruppo ”Asso di Bastoni” led by Maggiore Andrea Zotti. The pilots included the Spanish capitán Carlos Haya González who, after attending his mother’s funeral, arrived by car in Bilbao just as the group was about to take off. Despite Commander Zotti’s opposition, he insisted on taking his place in the formation.
At 11:04 over Teruel when they spotted about 40 Republican fighters split in three formations with I-15 “Chatos” at 3,500 and 4,000 meters, and I-16 “Moscas” at 5000 meters. The Republican fighters were already in combat with 17 Bf 109s. Zotti immediately chased them, and sent part of the Gruppo to attack the “Chatos”, which tried to evade as they were over Republican lines. At Puebla de Valverde, the “Moscas” intervened, but they were faced by the rest of the XXIII Gruppo, which at the end claimed two “Chatos” and a “Mosca” destroyed. One of the I-15s was claimed by Franco Lucchini of the 19^a Squadriglia. In attempting to destroy an I-15 that was attacking another aircraft of his squadron, Carlos Haya González approached too close and collided with the I-15, falling to his death. It seems that this was sargento Viñals (I-15 CA-013) of the 2^a/26, who managed to return despite the almost total destruction of the rudder (according the Republic bulletin, it was teniente Manuel Orozoco Ovira, of the 4^a/26, who collided with Haya). Viñals’ I-15 was found to have a shattered aileron, badly damaged upper port wing and missing cockpit door and gunsight. Viñals’ promotion, recommended by the coronel Jefe de Fuerzas Aéreas and the Minister of National Defence, Indalecio Prieto, was effective from 22 February. The order was gazetted in the Diario Oficial issue No 47, which noted, ’For his heroic conduct in yesterday’s combats near Teruel, sargento del arma de aviación Francisco Viñals Guarro is promoted to teniente.’
Juan Lario Sanchez witnessed this combat. Haya fell near Puerto de Escadiòn, and was posthumously awarded with a Medaglia d’oro al valor militare.
The German pilots of J/88 claimed seven I-16s when 1 staffel claimed three near La Pueblé (Leutnants Fritz Awe, Hans-Karl Mayer and Erich Woitke) and 2 staffel claimed four near Sarrion and Teruel (Unteroffizier Herbert Ihlefeld, Leutnant Edgar Rempel, Unteroffizier Kurt Rochel and Staffelführer Oberleutnant Joachim Schlichting).
It seems that the Bf 109s had been in combat with twelve I-16s from 2^a/21, which suffered three wounded pilots and one killed in combat with Messerschmitts and Fiats over Teruel in the morning while reporting 18 enemy aircraft downed (daily total?). Leitenant Aleksey Denisov (I-16 CM-034) claimed one Bf 109 before being shot down and had to bail out wounded. Leitenant Boris Adil’gireevich Takhtarov was wounded and badly burned when his aircraft (CM-123 or CM-239) caught fire after being hit by Bf 109s and he had to take to his parachute. When he jumped his parachute opened early, and on the way down the Germans tried to strafe him, but his comrades prevented them (he spent 35 days in the hospital and then returned home). The third wounded pilot was Andrey Belov. Leitenant Viktor Sergeevich Troshkin was killed while flying CM-032.
General Rojo advised Prieto, the Minister of Defence, that the Air Force had carried out three operations during the day, and that during the last of these they had been involved in a large-scale combat with the Nationalist Air Force. He later advised Prieto that according to information from Jerica (the Air Force’s command centre) five German aircraft – later stated to be five Bf 109s, seven Fiats CR.32s and one twin-engined aircraft had been destroyed. This message included the information that the ace pilot, Carlos Haya, who was reputed to have carried out the night attack on the War Ministry in Madrid, had been killed in this engagement. Their own losses were quoted as two I-16, which failed to return to base and two others, which were damaged and whose pilots were injured. Sergeant Manuel Orozco Ovira, who managed to fly his aircraft back to base after its tail had been destroyed, was recommended an award for outstanding bravery and skill.
The I-15s from the 2^a/26 claimed three and two probable CR.32; these were claimed by Teniente Leopoldo Morquillas Rubio (CO) (1 probable), J. Mora Fauria, sargento Viñals, Fernando Villins León (1 probable) and C. Zuazo Garre. Francisco Montagut Ferrer from the 3^a/26 claimed a Bf 109 while an unknown pilot from the 4^a/26 claimed a CR.32. An unknown I-16 pilot from 1^a/21 claimed a CR.32.

Around midday on 24 March, 18 Fiats from all six Spanish CR.32 escuadrillas led by capitán Ángel Salas provided escort for the He 51s and SM.79s attacking Quinto. Between Quinto and Farlete they encountered eleven Ratas and 30 Chatos. In the ensuing combats four Chatos were claimed; capitán Salas, alférez Arístides García López Rengel (1-E-3), brigada Ramón Senra Àlvarez (1-E-3) and Rúiz Jiménez each claiming one. Teniente José Jurado González (3-E-3), flying Fiat No 3-104, was killed in action when Republican fighters shot him down between Caspe and Quinto.
Legion Condor Bf 109s also joined the fray, while He 51s flown by Spanish pilots performed ground attack missions below the swirling dogfight and one of the He 51s were destroyed, although its pilot survived.
At the end of this air battle, Salas almost succeeded in capturing a Chato. He had attacked one of the enemies and, although unable to destroy the machine, he so clearly held the upper hand that the Chato pilot descended to a low altitude and was making for Nationalist lines, with Salas in close attendance. Just as the Chato was about to land, it was attacked by a Bf 109B (No 51) flown by Oberleutnant Wolfgang Schellmann, staffelkapitän of 1.J/88, and destroyed, prompting Salas to lodge a formal complaint with the Legion Condor.
The German Bf 109s from 1.J/88 claimed two more I-15s in this combat when Leutnant Fritz Awe and Unteroffizier Alfred Stark claimed one I-15 each.
Totally the CR.32 pilots claimed four I-15s and five probable and the Bf 109s were credited with three I-15s.
In this battle Government aircraft Nos. CA-006, CA-032, CA-037 and CA-052, piloted respectively by Antonio Sánchez, Benigno Domingo Hueso, Jesús Pérez Pérez and Fernando Villins León, were destroyed and the pilots KIA; teniente Viñals and Elías Hernández flying machines Nos. CC-030 and CC-027 collided; and Alfredo Dealbert, aircraft No. CA-038 force-landed outside the airfield.
Teniente Viñals of the 2^a/26 had sortied from Pomar de Cinca airfield and he bailed out and landed between Pina and Osera.
The Government Air Force had not previously lost so many aircraft in a single battle. The Escuadra de Caza N^o 11 claimed four CR.32s and one Bf 109 with one CR.32 and one He 51 as probably destroyed.

A short while later the 2^a Escuadrilla began a series of moves that would see it flying from a succession of temporary bases – Balaguer, Bell-Puig, Valls, Vendrell (Tarragona), Monjos and Sabanell (Villafranca del Penedés). For the operations in Levante the 2^a Escuadrilla flew from Manises, La Señera and, subsequently, Alcublas.

In August 1938, Viñals was sent with his unit to Los Llanos, then to Saceruela and, finally, to La Garganta. Viñals was again shot down in combat during this period, being attacked over the Cabeza del Buey area. On this occasion he managed to land his I-15 on the Almorchón flats. The following day groundcrew repaired the I-15 and he flew it back to his airfield, despite enemy anti-aircraft fire.

Viñals remained with the 2^a Escuadrilla of the Grupo N^o 26 through to war’s end. As a patrulla commander, he flew numerous strafing, bomber escort, reconnaissance, frontline patrol and air combat sorties on the Aragon, Levante and Extremadura fronts.

In December 1938, teniente Viñals was appointed CO of the 2^a/26 shortly before the start of operations in Catalonia. The unit also saw action over Extremadura and Pozoblanco in 1939.

On 29 March 1939, teniente Viñals (CO) led a formation of 12 I-15s of the 2^a/26 to Barajas airfield, where the unit formally surrendered its equipment to the victorious Nationalist armies.

Viñals ended the Spanish Civil War with 1 biplane victory.

Viñals was later court-martialled and sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment. The sentence was commuted to eight years, but he was pardoned after serving two years and three months.

Viñals settled in Barcelona, where he died in 2011.

Claims:

Kill no.	Date	Time	Number	Type	Result	Plane type	Serial no.	Locality	Unit
	1938
1	21/02/38	11:04-	1	CR.32 (a)	Destroyed	I-15	CA-013	Alfambra	2a/26

Biplane victories: 1 destroyed.
TOTAL: 1 destroyed.
(a) Claimed in a collision with capitán Carlos Haya González of XXIII Gruppo, who was KIA.

Sources:
Air War over Spain - Jesus Salas Larrazabal, 1974 Ian Allan Ltd, Shepperton, Surrey, ISBN 0-7110-0521-4
Fiat CR.32 Aces of the Spanish Civil War - Alfredo Logoluso, 2010 Osprey Publishing, Oxford, ISBN 978-1-84603-983-6
Fighter Pilots Of The Spanish Republic (Vol. 1) - Rafael A. Permuy López, Historica 36/39 no. 1, ISBN 84-87314-89-9
Soviet airmen in the Spanish civil war 1936-1939 - Paul Whelan, 2014 Schiffer Publishing Ltd, ISBN 978-0-7643-0
Spanish Republican Aces – Rafael A Permuy López, 2012 Osprey Publishing, Oxford, ISBN 978-1-84908-668-4
The Legion Condor - Karl Ries and Hans Ring, 1992 Schiffer Publishing, ISBN 0-88740-339-5