Friedrich Wilhelm "Fred" Zinn was a volunteer American aviator of German descent who flew with French Armée de l'Air forces in World War I and an early pioneer of aerial photography for wartime reconnaissance and Military intelligence. Fred Zinn lived in Battle Creek, Michigan. While visiting France in August 1914, he joined the French Foreign Legion shortly after the outbreak of World War I. He was one of the group who signed the flag in Paris on October 17, 1914, before departing for Rouen.