Dej

Ground-strafing in an attempt to stem the German advances in the first half of 1918 saw the demise of many of the British minor aces and accounts in some part for the peak in that period. One can also trace the changes in air superiority lent to either side by technological advance... but not so markedly as one might anticipate. In general, the German Air Service was consistently better, some reasons for which Olham has given above. Leaving the Italian Front aside, and with no disrespect to any other nation, the main protagonists in the air war are rather obvious... and more so were one to include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada into 'British'

Visit your local Library, Sir, or join if you're not yet a member, 'No Parachute' is readily available via inter-library lending. As are all the seminal WW1 aviation works.

DO. It's an essential read, similar to Udet in its air ace and 'post-war gentleman aviator adventurer' content, but much better written. Have you read 'Winged Victory' yet? If not then you have the unique opportunity to obtain that and 'Winged Victor' (the new biography of V. M. Yeates) and read them back to back, each for the first time! I wish I'd been able to, but I first read 'Winged Victory' long ago. The biography is available from the Cross & Cockade website.

I quote: '.... I hold out for a time, but the call becomes urgent, and I give my reluctant attention to a difficult expedient, with the hope that no Hun will come along at an inconvenient moment. My hands are completely numb, but I pull of my right gauntlet and fumble interminably at opening buttons, which takes quite a time, because my fingers have no sense of touch. Then comes the task of finding the way through obstinate underclothes. This achieved, there is the problem of where? The refined procedure is to have a funnel with a rubber tube running to a container on the floor of the cockpit, but most of us just aim at the joystick and hope for the best, the hope being strongest over Hun territory.... ... Of course, the even more difficult predicament is capable of neither solution nor description, but it is a real problem, for the castor oil fumes that one inhales for hours at a time from the Le Rhone rotary engine constitute a positive purgative....' At the time he describes, Lee is at 20,000 ft. He is wearing, over his normal underclothes and uniform tunic and trousers, two pairs of thick socks, thick fleece-lined thigh boots, two thick sweaters, a long wollen scarf wound around his neck, a knee length wool-lined sheepskin collared leather jacket, silk gloves and wool-lined leather gauntlets with a detachable mitten end... and he's numb with cold and short of breath.

After 'No Parachute' Olham, you should try to obtain (try the library) 'Open Cockpit'. It's more of the same but with a subtle difference, more frank perhaps and with a wealth of insight into other aspects of flying Pups... the castor oil induced nausea, how to have a pee in the cockpit, how inadequate they were against the D.III (or so Lee felt). Longer descriptions of day-to-day squadron activity too and much evidence to support Creaghorn's point about the effects of damage.

I just use the additional clocks feature in Vista... don't need any additional utilities.

It is. Or an Fee with No. 22; Sopwith Pup with No. 54; DH2 with No. 24. Naval 6 also based at Chipilly in OFF, during April '17, flying Nieuport 17s.

Hey Creaghorn, Why don't you try No. 1 Squadron RFC? I think it's the earliest British fighter role you can get (happy to be corrected), flying Bristol Scouts out of Bailleul Asylum in 1915. It's quite a different experience that early on but you later move on to Nieuports and things get challenging after an 'easing in'. At least, that's how it was a few moons back when I tried an early war campaign, IIRC.

Well, I thought the chance of half a point would be better than none and all that lot was too much to type up on an iPhone! Although, if Lou were using posts over at The Aerodrome for his source then he might be expecting 'natural oxide of iron (yellow ochre) and lamp-black (or carbon black)'

Ministry of Munitions Proctective Covering No. 10. Otherwise known simply as 'PC 10'

In my experience, writing fiction about an historical unit is fraught with peril and labour: the risk of inaccuracy demands so much research, not to mention the sheer graft of having the timelines of one's characters' stories interweave seamlessly with those of the historical unit. Better by far, imho, to create a fictional unit and interweave it with historical events and the genuine experiences of other units with whom one my interact, but only as much as you may want or need to. There's a microcosm of free creation in one and a hard and fast macrocosm to dip into as and when you will in the other.

Aloes! Vingt-quatre palmes je crois.

The Nie.17 shown is #1531, I think (difficult to see on an iPhone). It was #1530 that had the camo wing, as part of repairs following a crash on 20th August 1916.

Thanks to a timely nod from the above mentioned 'thoroughly decent fellow' , I have at last acquired a copy of 'High in the Empty Blue' (which I've been after for years but failed to find at an affordable figure) at a few pounds above the jacket price of the library copy I've renewed five times!. Cheers Lou, that's made my Easter, if not my year. I'm happier than a Prince in... ah, well, yes, leave it at that, nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more, know what I mean... etc'.

Link

As far as I can find out Claude was the last who saw combat. If there's any other then they've not made themselves known... and hitting 110 is hardly common.

A precipitous answer as it turns out... Dr.1 with those crosses... in early 1917? DOH! *Slaps forehead* Good to see you on the scoreboard Lewie. But as this is a prize competition I think Lou must be granted 100% control over the skins posted, plus the fact, if you post one you're automatically depriving yourself of three points... if that's what you're asking.

Oh, alright... 1. Bruno Loerzer 2. Jasta 26, early 1917 3. Hermann Göring Loerzer receved the PLM in February 1918, simultaneously taking command of JGIII and in Fokker D.VIIs putting the fear of God into allied squadrons in the summer of '18. He remained friends with Hermann Göring and became a Major General in 1938. He had an eventful life: His II Air Corps participated in the invasion of Russia in the summer of 1941, as a section of Kesselring's 2nd Air Fleet -- in support of Fieldmarshall von Bock. His unit was transferred to Messina, Sicily in October 1941, and he remained there until the middle of 1943, when his section returned to the Italian mainland. Göring promoted Loerzer to Generaloberst in February 1943 and in June 1944 was chief of the National Socialist Leadership Branch of the Luftwaffe. He retired in April 1945. Died in 1960, aged 69. Some memories he must have had. Source of the latter - Wikipaedia. I had the first bits 'in me 'ead'

Shouldn't that be 'infamous' ace, Lou?

Natch! If it's needed, these guys will have thought of it.

Yes everybody. I've said it before but it'll stand repeating. Don't neglect your local library. They can and will obtain the rarest of books, 'High in the Empty Blue'; 'No Parachute'; 'Open Cockpit'; Jefford's 'RAF Squadrons - A comprehensive Record'; 'Aces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire' (all the way from Louisiana, USA to Hampshire, UK that one was. For £9.) It's a good way to 'try before you buy (or bid)'. That way you'll only ebay for books you know you want.

Ditto HW. So wouldn't you too like a nice hardback copy instead? As for recognising skins, at worst you only need recognise the a/c type then browse the appropriate folder in the OFF skins directory until you find a skin with the necessary features. Thereafter your own WW1 library or Wikipaedia will do the rest. Go on. Have a go.

Nearly forgot. May's cousin Mary Lumsdon gave him his nickname

My version... 1) Lt. Wilfred Reid ‘Wop’ May 2) 209 Sqn. RAF. Formerly Naval 9, RNAS, it became 209 Sqn, RAF upon formation of the Royal Air Force on 1st April 1918, May transferred to 209 Sqn. on 9th April and remained with the squadron until the end of the war. 3) On 21st April 1918, May was indeed the pilot that Manfred von Richthofen was pursuing when he was himself shot down and killed. One version of the story is that the inexperienced May, having been told to avoid combat, was circling above a dogfight that developed between 209 Sqn. and a group of Fokker Triplanes when he noticed a Triplane doing the same thing. He charged at it firing wildly until his guns jammed. His intended victim was Wolfram von Richthofen, Manfred’s cousin. MvR noticed and went after May, Roy Brown, a former school friend of May noticed this and went after Richthofen. The rest is history. May went on to become a leading light in Canadian aviation, opening Canada’s first aerodrome; pioneering the use of aircraft for detective work and medical emergencies and, later, effectively creating the first Canadian search and rescue service

No worries, Lou. It's bloody well worth competing for. Free absolute classic WW1 autobiography vs. paying £30+ for it... go figure Roll up, Roll up, everyone, every throw is free. Btw, I actually do have a luvverly bunch of coconuts