Another Book For My WWI Aviation Library

[Hasse Wind 46]

Lou, you lucky bastard! None of my old books are signed by the author, though some of them have previous their owner's names written on them.

 

Would be nice if I find that copy of Kaiser Wilhelm's memoirs I'm looking for with his personal signature.

 

And Dej, that also sounds like a very rare signature. A shame Mr. Hawker didn't live to sign his own biographies.

[Ras 0]

THat is some great reading so far, Lou. Thanks for sharing it with us

[RAF_Louvert 101]

.

 

Hasse Wind, I am a luck bastard!

 

Olham, thanks for creating the pic for the OFF files. Also, what is the title of your von Schleich book?

 

Shredward, it is wonderful that Joseph will now be included and honored in this excellent sim.

 

Dej, a copy of Hawker's bio signed by his brother is super, no matter what the condition or edition. You're a luck bastard too.

 

 

 

I began reading Joseph's memoirs last night, and what an amazing story he has. The book begins thus:

 

"I was born Alsatian. And I am proud of it, though mindful that this accident of birth caused me a great deal of trouble."

 

He grew up in Muelhausen and played at the nearby Habsheimer aerodrome as a child, which is where he first became enamoured with the thought of flying, (I found this quite serendipitous as Habsheim is where my current campaign pilot Paul Blum is stationed). Joseph applied for the Air Service at the beginning of the War but was turned down as he was only 16 at the time. He wound up in the machine gun corps instead and spent the next three years fighting on both the Western and Eastern fronts. In December of 1917 he was finally transferred from Galacia to Hanover, Germany to flight school. By late summer of 1918 he was assigned to Staffel 10 of the Richthofen Squadron, and flew with Loewenhardt. He was with the flight and witness to the accident that claimed Loewenhardt's life. By early October of 1918 he had been assigned to Staffel 64, primarily because he was one of only two non-commissioned flying officers in Richthofen's group, and the regular officers did not what them around, (they felt they were "slumming" having to be in the company of these two men). Staffel 64 was made up entirely of NCO pilots. When the revolution came in Germany at then end of the War he was released from service, and due to being born in the Alsace, (which had now reverted back to the French after being part of Germany since the Franco-Prussian war), he was told he should leave Germany right away as he was no longer "German", (this of course is what he was referring to in his opening line of the book). Can you imagine how he must have felt, after serving faithfully with the German Army since the beginning of the War, now being told he was no longer welcome in the country he fought for.

 

I am about a third of the way into the book. Joseph has joined and served with the French Air Service as an instructor at Istres for three years, has not renewed his contract, and instead has taken on a job with a newly-formed airline service in North Africa. It is the summer of 1922. Despite the section of this volume concerning WWI being relatively short, it is rich with little tidbits of information. For example, he describes how engine speed was controlled on the rotary-powered Halberstadts, (remember the numerous discussions we've had in this forum concerning rotary engine "throttle" control). Here is the excerpt:

 

"Our machines were Halberstadt trainers, small sensitive biplanes powered with 80 h.p. Obersol (rotary) engines. They were different from any other training planes in that their motors could not be made to idle like other engines. The motor was controlled by a contact button on top of the stick. Pressing this button shut off the ignition and killed the engine. Therefore, in landing, we had to kill and release until the motor was running at correct speed. It had to be pressed many times in making a landing.

 

I took thirty-five initiation flights with Heinze as the pilot. Even now, I blush to think of how dumb I must have been. On the thirty-sixth flight, I took the controls. I got off all right and was able to fly straight courses, circles and curves according to instructions. Then came the order I dreaded most, to make my first landing. I released the button at the wrong time. The plane heaved, its nose went up and it stood on its tail. Heinze corrected my mistake and we taxied to the hanger. He was bitterly disappointed. "If you can't learn to concentrate, you'll never learn to fly," he said.

 

I was crushed. For three days Heinze avoided me. I was despondent. My friends tried to cheer me. They told me how Richthofen had all but "washed out" a plane on his first landing and how the Baron had failed twice to pass his pilot's test. It was small balm. Finally the third day, Heinze ordered me into the plane. That simple, innocent button on the end of the stick leered at me with its one eye. As I scowled at it, it seemed to laugh back. To think that my flying career could be ruined by that simple little button. I would not allow it. On that third day, I was the master. I landed perfectly. When I got out of the plane my right thumb pained from pressing that button so hard and so often. As Heinze nodded approvingly and told me I was ready for solo, I looked at my thumb. The outline of the button was pressed right into the skin."

 

I am sure the remainder of this book will be equally enlightening and entertaining.

 

Cheers!

 

Lou

 

 

 

 

 

.

Edited September 4, 2010 by RAF_Louvert

[RAF_Louvert 101]

THat is some great reading so far, Lou. Thanks for sharing it with us

 

 

 

 

Oops, sorry Ras. Went to make a correction and ended up deleting the post you responded to. More coffee..STAT!

[Olham 164]

Seems to be a good read of Doerflinger, Lou! I'll search for it.

 

The name of the book aboutvon Schleich:

 

Fried Lange: Ritter von Schleich (Jagdflieger im Weltkrieg und im Dritten Reich)

 

It has an eagle with a Swastika on the front, and also inside it is made up like Nazi propaganda, what it actually is.

Still though, it may contain enough about WW1 which is interesting to read - I'll read it using my "Anti-Nazi-Filters".

I really hate the "brown hordes"!

 

One thing that struck me was this page, showing von Schleich with the British pilot Lt. Reece, whom he had shot down.

And years later, when the two met again in England. War is a strange happening...

 

 

Edited September 4, 2010 by Olham

[RAF_Louvert 101]

.

 

Great pics Olham, and thanks for the info. War is a strange happening indeed.

 

BTW, here is a link to a copy of Joseph's book available for $30:

 

"Stepchild Pilot" at AbeBooks

 

.

[Olham 164]

Thanks a lot, Lou, but they want 25,- $ for shipping to Germany.

I'll search for the title at abebooks.de - one day I'll find it.

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

Wow, these are the reasons that make this community so great! Lou with his WWI prospecting resulting in a real treasure, Olham producing a book with pictures of several other aces, and Shredward offering to include Lou's ace in the next version of OFF!

 

Thanks, guys!