Olham

Hmmm - might be some truth in it. I mean, how could you otherwise have sailed all the way down to Australia and New Zealand, where you had to drink your tea headover, without the tea dripping out of the cup. Do the Aussies and Kiwis have to pay for using it still, now they're independent?

Hmmm - I just googled it, but I won't repeat here, what I found it stands for... Ahem!

Yeah, I know, Dej - seems sort of remis, somehow. I'm glad, that none of you crumpets claimed, Isaac Newton had INVENTED gravity (Lol!!)

First fight with Jasta 78b, Buhl-Lorraine, March 1918. Five of us in Albatros DVa vs 6 Nupes. We did not only win - I lost none of my men. Something I'm really proud of.

For Wels/Catfish, and other Zeppelin fans. Sometimes, life shows unexpected coincidences. Now, that I am interested in WW1 aircraft, I find an article in my native hometown paper, about a look-out post on the island of Norderney. A photograph showed a heavy machine gun and a telescope on a platform, on top of a huge sand dune. I read, this guard had to observe the sky above the north sea, to look out for English "Zeppelins" and so to guard the Luftschiffhafen Hage. I hadn't even known, England had such airships. And I hadn't known, there was a "Zeppelin" base in Ostfriesland. After some research, I found something about the base. I saw, that the hospital, where I was born, had been a part of this former airship base. Peculiar feeling... During WW1, Hage was an important Luftschiffhafen (airship base) of the Kaiserliche Marine. Two such bases where built in Ostfriesland; the other was in Wittmundhafen. Altogether, the Deutsche Marine (German Navy) built 15 such bases. The base at Hage had 4 big Luftschiffhallen (airship hangars); each was 184 m long, 34 m wide and 28 m high. The base was built from November 1913 to April 1914. After the war, in the 1920s, they got destructed again. Up to 9 Luftschiffe where based in Hage. The "Zeppelins" where used for long range reconnaissance of enemy fleet movements, and also for bombing raids of land based and Naval targets. For start and landing of a "Zeppelin", many hands where needed. The tail end was held by 25 men, port and starbord side both needed 25 men again; the remaining cables and ropes got handled by 45 more men. It needed almost 200 men to start and land a Luftschiff safely. Hage had about 660 groundcrew men; also, there where 30 fighter aircraft with pilots for defense of the base. One picture shows a Luftschiff over my hometown Norden; the windmill still exists there. http://www.pilotundluftschiff.de/Hallehage.htm

Finland - land of thousand lakes. Must be beautiful in summer. I hope you'll keep on flying my side, at least with one of your pilots. I feel like a minority here.

Good question, Hasse Wind - with two guns, she would sure have been terrible!

"Yesyesyessss!!!" (sound sample from the House of Lords). You must be dreaming, Widow - remember Jasta 12 . We'll hand your bums to you, and those blue-white-red roundels are perfect target markings. Mmuahahahahaaaa!!!! And Hasse Wind is flying in our ranks, if I may remind you. (Hope, you still do, Hasse?)

What a way such sims and the vid cards have made! By the way, some of the BHaH devs had also been devs of "Red Baron 3D" - as far as I know. Wasn't OvS one of them - oh, my brain - scrambled eggs!

For the E.V I think it's waterproof that it saw the front service, even if for short. The DVIII, I'm investigating, but it doesn't seem there where many craft at the front - if at all. And I understand you well, Creaghorn, and agree for the historical accuracy. Maybe a compromise could look like this: Entente pilots meet only so many E.V in their campaigns, and only in the regions where it flew, as would be historically accurat. And the German pilot could always start his campaign in those Jastas, which had the E.V or even the DVIII, and enjoy that craft until it gets withdrawn. Does that make sense?

That was quite clever to bring Isaac Newton into the game. Now let me see, who we have - Einstein? Naw, wouldn't be fair; he half "belongs" to the Americans. Beware, Launchbury, you may have found it easy to down some German craft. A reason for that easyness could be, that we concentrate the real aces in special Jastas. And one of these days, you may come across them... What's your favourite fighter by the way, Launch, and what did your most difficult opponent fly, if I may ask?

I guess he was able to stay under their radar, so to speak. No, he died from cancer in 1942. Maybe, "lucky man" wasn't really the right word... Which nationality are you?

Right, Rickity, I also mailed to "Militärhistorisches Institut Potsdam", and the people, who run Fokker now. In all cases I asked for useful addresses, in case, they couldn't help directly. Still though, I don't expect too much coming in. They would have to dig for it. Maybe, I would have to visit Militärhistorisches Institut Potsdam, and see, if i can get access to their archive. Still difficult, if you don't know where to search, you know?

Yes, DII and early DIII where very good at their time. And if you want to fly the DVa, go to Jasta 9 in the summer of 1918. You will almost only have SPAD XIII as opponents. And against those, the Albatros is doing fine. It takes some time, but your feeling for Albatros will constantly grow. After some time, you won't really fear any other craft (except when they hugely outnumber you, of course). All my recent pilots died through mid air accidents or ground fire - I haven't been shot down since long. There where "engine-outs", caused by those terrible Brisfits, but I sailplaned down then.

Yes, my dad's father had been an infantery soldier, but I don't know where exactly. He was sent home after a forward attack, in which both his arms had been shot through by machine gun fire. There was also a far away relative, a pilot named Jeschonnek, but I don't know more about him, except that he was a high ranking officer in WW 2. My mother's dad was too young for WW 1, and too old for WW 2 - lucky man!

To all those, who are interested in "Zeppelins" (Luftschiffe) at war, I higly recommend the famous movie by Howard Huges, "Hell's Angels". The Zeppelin scenes where, what impressed me most. You are in their interiour, and even go down with the observer in a drop shaped gondola, hanging on a steel rope. Impressive.

I have now sent an E-mail to the Deutsche Luftwaffe about these questions, and asked for their help, or at least for info, where I could find the data.

Study and enjoy. http://www.collectors-edition.com/Shop/Gal...erFlugzeuge.htm

Congratulation to you and your family, Shredward. She MUST be perfect, as she is your child - an inbuilt natural fact so to say. Now you will soon have the privilege to live another childhood again. Maybe I envy you a little. Salut!

Haha - yes, would be difficult to run in that thing. But they didn't really expect a landing so far away from the front. They just where a watch out post, to prevent an English air ship raid on the 4 Zeppelin hangars in Hage.

Yes, I absolutely agree - as long as it might have been so, I would also like to see it in BHaH. And even my "enemies" like Widowmaker would want an equally well equipped opponent for their Snipe. Am I right, Widow?

Thick fur coats don't seem to be the exception in WW1. This picture shows a soldier on a watch post on the island of Norderney (see my thread about Zeppelins over Ostfriesland).

Two pictures of soldiers on the above mentioned watchpost dune on the island of Norderney.

Some powder shuggar vill do - I'll have zem as zey come. But later, vee may need a good brandy - vee will have a belly ache from all ze crumpetz, ant may have to trim our fighterz again. (Presses one hand on his mouth to prevent another "Mmuahahahahaaaa!!!")

Wow - well directed action vid with very good choice of daytime lighting. This gives me an impression, why German war technology seems to be so deeply implanted in collective memory. They must have appeared really frightening over a city, casting big shadows - even STARWARS used those fears. Those Zeps look so good - even their burning, phantastic! - that now I join those who ask: can we have them in the sim? Wonder, that you got through with the music, Hiccup - mine, they always kicked out for copyright reasons.