Mircea „Miky” Cantacuzino

Mircea Cantacuzino, a graduate of the Charlottenburg Polytechnic, is among the most important promoters of civil aviation in Romania.

In May 1928, together with Octav Oculeanu, he purchased a Klemm airplane that he brought from Böblingen, Germany, to Pipera, thus making the first large-scale raid in the history of our sports aviation. Shortly after this, Mircea Cantacuzino opens the first civilian piloting school in Romania "...without Mr. Cantacuzino's initiative, no one would have been found to do what his lordship did, and even today, no aviation movement in the sense of tourism it would not have manifested itself under the sky of our country. Because the older movement started by the Aeroclub through Prince Bibescu's "Potez" plane and the even older one of the Blue Aeroclub through his "Avia" plane, were limited to a single person for an aeroclub and to a much too limited circle and in any case, also by fliers, for the other aeroclub". However, Mircea Cantacuzino irreparably crashes the plane and is forced to buy another machine with which, on September 26, 1928, flights resume.

In 1930, Mircea Cantacuzino also made flights with passengers. Unfortunately, he will perish in such a flight, on May 25, 1930, crashing on the Otopeni - Băneasa road. "A serious plane accident, to which the engineer Mircea Cantacuzino fell victim, was recorded last night at 7:30 in Băneasa. At that time, Eng. Mrcea Cantacuzino, who is the sports commissioner of the Aeroclub of Romania and director of the private aviation school, was making a leisure flight on his plane, with Mrs. Colette G. Polizu-Micşuneşti as a passenger... After he had flown over Banesa, he was returning to the landing field. A piloting mistake, he lowered it too low, next to M. Mărculescu's pub on the Otopeni-Băneasa road, and when he realized the mistake, it was too late. The plane could no longer be put back into operation, crashing over the kiosk with the grill of the pub, completely disintegrating".

Ms. Colette G. Polizu-Micsunesti was only left with a few non-serious injuries and an easily imaginable fright.

In a dying state, Eng. Mircea Cantacuzino was transported to the Antoniu sanatorium, where he died during the night."

Although the death of the creator of the school was a heavy loss, the institution continued its activity with notable results, the activity being supported, since June 1930, by the Association for the Advancement of Air Tourism "Mircea Cantacuzino" founded by Ioana Cantacuzino.