PILOT NOTES
Offzstv. Bernhard Harms - Kasta 18
Pronville, 29. Juni 1916

Weather: grey, rainy, huge thunderheads
Wind: 5 Knoten
Takeoff: 09:20 h

We circle over our reconaissance area at Bapaume, when I suddenly hear "Tacktacktack" -
MG round hitting our Roland. Bauer, my observer, fires down the right side.
To my surprise I find a British Farman Experimental, less than 50 meters below us!
Bauer hits them now, and they drive off and turn back towards their lines.
But I am really angry now, push my heavy "Walfisch"s nose down and engage the cheeky
Englishmen. I hit the engine in my first approach. It produces black smoke, then it
drops dead. Hah! Now they are the surprised ones, I think.
The pilot goes into a steep downward right spiral, to bring the craft down quick,
it seems. Maybe the tank is pierced and they fear a fire, or he might be wounded?
They try to land in no-man's land, but the Farman summersaults in the mud and wires
and breaks apart. Bauer and I find ourselves alone now - no sight of the other three
Rolands or the Aviatik. So we fly home without any further incidents.




Vice-President of the BOC (Barmy OFFers Club)
Member of the 'Albatros Aviators Club' - "We know how to die with Style!"