rest and leave

[andqui 1]

I know it differed by nation, but does anyone know how long pilots were usually on active service at the front before being given a rest? A week, a month, three weeks?

 

If anyone could tell me country specific, for the Germans, British, French, and American, that would be great. I'm especially interested in the french, as that's who I'm flying for now.

 

thanks in advance

[Bletchley 8]

Hello andqui,

 

In the RFC there were usually two pilots away on leave at any one time, in quiet periods (leave was usually cancelled, I think, when an offensive was imminent), and this was managed in rotation (so, about one period of leave every two to three months). The normal leave period was 10-14 days for home leave, to allow for travelling time, but there were also shorter periods of one week or a weekend to allow for breaks in Paris, or just for rest (at the discretion on the CO, I think, and probable only in quiet periods as well). A normal 'tour' of duty for an RFC pilot was 6-9 months, but there was some discretion here also, exercised by the CO and the Medical Officer, and it would depend on how much flying/combat the pilot had experienced and any symptoms of combat fatigue or altitude sickness (often ear or sinus problems, or recurrent headaches) - a pilot arriving in a quiet period, usually in late Autum or Winter, could expect to stay somewhat longer than 6 months, whilst a pilot arriving in the Spring or Summer would most likely be sent back to Home Establishment in the Autumn or early Winter of that year.

 

A pilot sent back to Home Establishment would either join a Training Squadron as a flying instructor, or a Home Defence Squadron. These postings were usually for about 6 months, and the pilot would then be posted back to the Front (usually to a different squadron, and with promotion to Flight Commander). An RFC pilot from Canada, Australia, South Africa, etc. would usually have the option of 'Home Leave' instead of Home Establishment, and this might be followed by a stint as a flying instructor in the home country. After surviving a second 'tour' the pilot would normally be posted to a permanent training or staff post, or in some cases the command of a squadron (but squadron commanders were not expected to fly very often, if at all, on combat patrols).

 

I am not sure if this was ever made official policy, or if it just evolved, and there were probably variations on this from one unit to another, and from the early period through to the late period of the war.

 

Bletchley

[andqui 1]

Hello andqui,

 

In the RFC there were usually two pilots away on leave at any one time, in quiet periods (leave was usually cancelled, I think, when an offensive was imminent), and this was managed in rotation (so, about one period of leave every two to three months). The normal leave period was 10-14 days for home leave, to allow for travelling time, but there were also shorter periods of one week or a weekend to allow for breaks in Paris, or just for rest (at the discretion on the CO, I think, and probable only in quiet periods as well). A normal 'tour' of duty for an RFC pilot was 6-9 months, but there was some discretion here also, exercised by the CO and the Medical Officer, and it would depend on how much flying/combat the pilot had experienced and any symptoms of combat fatigue or altitude sickness (often ear or sinus problems, or recurrent headaches) - a pilot arriving in a quiet period, usually in late Autum or Winter, could expect to stay somewhat longer than 6 months, whilst a pilot arriving in the Spring or Summer would most likely be sent back to Home Establishment in the Autumn or early Winter of that year.

 

A pilot sent back to Home Establishment would either join a Training Squadron as a flying instructor, or a Home Defence Squadron. These postings were usually for about 6 months, and the pilot would then be posted back to the Front (usually to a different squadron, and with promotion to Flight Commander). An RFC pilot from Canada, Australia, South Africa, etc. would usually have the option of 'Home Leave' instead of Home Establishment, and this might be followed by a stint as a flying instructor in the home country. After surviving a second 'tour' the pilot would normally be posted to a permanent training or staff post, or in some cases the command of a squadron (but squadron commanders were not expected to fly very often, if at all, on combat patrols).

 

I am not sure if this was ever made official policy, or if it just evolved, and there were probably variations on this from one unit to another, and from the early period through to the late period of the war.

 

Bletchley

 

just what I was looking for, thanks

 

Any info on the French or the Germans?

[Bletchley 8]

Hello andqui,

 

I don't know much about the German or French systems. The prevailing view appears to be that German pilots had to go on until they dropped, but were transferred to elite units if successful (i.e. they had nothing resembling the 'tours' of duty established by the RFC). Maybe they had a period of home leave between transfers? I guess leave would otherwise have been handled in a similar, way with pilots taking their turn in rotation. Maybe they also had some sytem of rewarding success, with periods of leave from the Front in order to be invested with medals or to be promoted to the press, or to 'protect' the highly publicised aces? (I seem to recall that they tried to keep MvR from returning to combat duties for this reason, although I may be wrong about that). I know even less about the French system, but I would guess it would have been more like the German system than the British. Both the French and the Germans appear to have had a culture whereby the 'aces' were promoted to the press and concentrated together in elite units, whereas the British liked to maintain their anonimity (with some exceptions) and spread them around more. The British system of having 'tours' of duty helped to do this, but would probably not have worked so well with the French or German systems.

 

Bletchley

[shredward 12]

Don't know if I've ever seen a leave system spelled out for German pilots, but having been through many of their records in detail, I can say that they did have frequent periods of leave, often either a fortnight or a month long stay. Some seemed to have been away a lot more than others - der Dicke comes to mind.

Cheers,

shredward