RAF_Louvert

. ...oh my Lord...look at that village... .

. I thought the German love of water sports had been common knowledge for quite some time now: .

. OH, I have sooooooo been there, Javito. And it seems as if we have another candidate for the BOC. Apply today, my barmy lad. The Barmy OFFers Club .

. A sad day at the virtual 54 Squadron. Afternoon patrol found Major Jeffrey Alberts leading his flight through a blue spring sky across the mud east of their latest aerodrome assignment at Flez. Shortly after crossing over to the Hun side five Albatros D.IIIs, sporting wide black and white bands on their fuselages, dove on the four Pups of 'A' Flight. Kooksy flew and fought with great skill and grit as he drove his first attacker down, then turned to brush another from the tail of one of the new lads. Just as he placed a burst into the cockpit of the Alb in front of him, he was hit by two streams of lead from another Boche that had slipped onto his tail. Kooksy instinctively twisted hard to starboard as he brought the nose of his kite up and over the top of his following assailant. But a split second later flames burst out from the Pup's cowl, causing the Major to dive for the earth as he switched off the fuel and magnetos. But it was not to be. Kooksy burned all the way to the muddy ground below, crashing next to an Allied balloon position. His body was recovered from the wreck and was buried in a little cemetery near Flez in the presence of the entire 54 Squadron contingent. So, stand to your glasses steady, This world is a world of lies, Here's a drink to the dead already. Hurrah for the next man to die. ...I'm gutted... Lou .

. Oh yes TaillyHo, I will most certainly be using Bletchley's early war mods. And I could use a bit of quiet for a while, actually looking forward to the Quirk and a bit of trench mapping, gun ranging, and recce work. .

. Thank you all. It was a nasty shock and I shall dearly miss old Kooksy. C'est la vie. I hear the BE2 of 4 Squadron calling from January 1915, "Prove your worth lad, come fly a B/R bus and show your true mettle!" .

. OK, now THAT was outstanding, Hellshade. You have a true calling in the narration of film Sir. .

. That Sir is a Bristol Jupiter powered Handley Page Hinaidi, which first flew in March of 1927. They built 45 of these beasts. Wonderful stories here Gentlemen, and they run the whole gamut of emotions, IMHO. My father was born in 1918, and like so many young American men went down immediately following December 7, 1941 and attempted to enlist in any branch of the service that would have him. He unfortunately suffered from very poor circulation in his legs which caused painful bloody sores to contastly open up just above his ankles. He was classifed 4-F because of it and was never allowed to serve in the military. I believe it honestly crushed his spirit back then, and he always felt guilty about his classification right up until the day he died in 1974. I took his name as my moniker when I joined the online RB3D 209 Squadron, so that I might honour a man who desperately wanted to serve his country in an active fighting role during it's time of need but was denied the opportunity. .

. Slarti and Lou, they met in the bar To talk of poems and prose. And as they drank they argued both Til they stood there nose to nose. “Tis classic form”, Lou did expound, “That t’was ever fit to write. And if you think free verse is fine Then you’re looking for a fight!” “Classic form…bah!” Slarti quipped. “What of classic form. It’s staid and predictable and rigid and is stuck in the 19th century. Free verse is the true expression of art” And that was that, the brawl began, And blows the two did trade. Black eyes, loose teeth, and bruise’d fists Til on the floor they laid. “Alright,” said Slart, “I see your point. You’ve argued your case strong. I accept the classic’s also art, And I perhaps was wrong.” “I have also been enlightened,” Lou claimed, “and free verse is art as well... let me buy you a pinta’ on this one my friend” .

. WM, I have been a lot of places and done a lot of things, and I can say without reservation that parenthood is THE most thrilling journey of all. And like you, I started later on that journey as well, (34 for me), and I believe it gave an advantage in that I had experienced a bit more of life and came with a different mindset when I took on the role of parent; perhaps a bit more prepared, as much as anyone can be prepared for it. And you Sir have the teen years to look forward to: Hold on tight, it's gonna be a bumpy ride. .

. Three of them WM, all adults now and on their own, and when they were growing up I was allowed some of those same summer moments with them. Now Jane and I have a six-year-old granddaughter who visits every week, so once more I have the pleasure of seeing time slow down and watching the world through a child's eyes, (and it's hard to beat that view of the world). And you Sir, do you have kids? .

. This last week I picked up another three wonderful tomes to add to my collection. The first is an original private printing of Jack Morris Wright's letters home, entitled 'A Poet of the Air'. Collected together by his mother and published through the Houghton Mifflin Company in 1918 shortly after Jack's death, these intimate letters to family and friends give a wonderfully bittersweet insight into the personal thoughts and hopes and dreams of a young man who volunteered for service in France in April of 1917. Shortly after earning his wings and commission as a 1st Lieutenant in the US Army Air Service, he was killed in a crash during advanced combat flight tactics training in January of 1918. I've read this work before and find Jack's letters to be superb in the way they show the excitement, the self-examination, the vanity, the insight, the joy, and the idealism of youth in a time of war. The second is 'Capronis, Farmans, and Sias: U.S. Army Aviation Training and Combat in Italy With Fiorello LaGuardia 1917-1918' by Jack B. Hilliard. This gorgeous 616-page volume incorporates entries from the diaries and letters of the first 46 US Army flyers to go to Italy in 1917 to train under the command of Fiorello LaGuardia, and to battle the Germans along the Italian front. FIlled with many rare photos of the pilots and their planes, along with numerous maps, it is an incredible resource detailing the first American flyers at this oft-forgotten front. And the third, (following Shiloh's report on how much he enjoyed the book), a fine hardcover 1st U.S. printing of 'Horses Don't Fly: A Memoir of World War I', by Frederick Libby. So many books, so little time. .

. My pleasure Javito. Here is a view of the book shelves in my flying room: And the view from the book shelves: .

. Widowmaker, if you were to add to your list, "riding our bikes to the local general store to buy sodas, candy bars, and comic books with the money we earned collecting bottles", you would be describing my summers at that age as well. Time is a tricky thing, now summers go by in the blink of an eye. .

. Oh very nice Gents, very nice. .

. It does indeed take time Olham, but if you like the idea of getting close to how our RL WWI examples did it it's well worth the time, IMHO. That is one of the great things about this sim, you can really fly it the way you wish because it has so many options. .

. I use about the same system as you do Olham to signal the other flyers in my flight, with the exception of the 'help' command. I don't recall ever reading about a WWI pilot having a way to signal for help to his companions, so I only use the 'attack' and 'regroup' commands. And like you Olham, I don't use TAC, or indeed any of the in-sim aids including the map, (as mentioned before, I use my own 'cockpit' maps). .

. Good one WM, but what is this 'summer' you speak of? hee hee hee .

. Quite evocative Slarti, glad you keep your notebook handy. Well done Sir, and a fan of free verse I see. We'll have to tip a few in the club bar and discuss free verse v classic forms, (there's one that's led to fisticuffs on more than one ocassion). Lewie, I apologize for missing that snippet you posted quite some time ago here. Very good Sir, I want to read that WWI pilot's fiction piece when you've completed it. .

. Officers in the British and French services were required to purchase their own uniforms and accessories. In fact, in the French air service, pilot cadets also had to purchase their own uniforms, which is why benefactors such as the Vanderbilts played such a large part in the lives of the American volunteers as they supplied them the money for uniforms and other needed items, as well as an allowance while the cadets were in training. .