After two days of bad weather, their first mission was to patrol enemy front lines between Arras and north of Mossy Face to restrict German air operations. It didn’t take long before they came in contact with a Boche flight. The enemy machines showed up near Arras. Toby was able to pick one and get on his tail. He made good use of his Vickers and watched the enemy tumble down. He couldn’t follow and finish the job. One of his wingmen was in trouble. He was being followed by another Albatros. Mulberry had to make a decision: finish off his Hun, or save his wingman. The choice was easy. Toby adjusted his heading to intercept the second Hun and fired. The confusion was enough for his wingman to get free and get on his assailant’s rear. Toby’s work was done and he reacquired his original target, which was now gliding home under no power. Mulberry wasn’t about to let him go and aimed again. More bullets ripped through the German plane, which promptly crashed SW of Riencourt.
"Take the cylinder out of my kidneys, The connecting rod out of my brain, my brain, From out of my arse take the camshaft, And assemble the engine again."
#4513638 - 03/31/2012:25 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Fullofit, fine flying Sir! I think that’s called situational awareness. You must have eyes like a hawk to find your original victim. A bit cold blooded I might add. But I fly for the Huns so obviously that’s my take.
Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear or a fool from either end. BOC Member since....I can't remember!
#4513639 - 03/31/2012:44 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: Nov 2014 Posts: 3,696Fullofit
Senior Member
MFair, I'm blind as a bat (without my glasses). It was a fluke. The second Alb was flying along the first one. That's how I spotted him. I'd never see him against the ground clutter otherwise. Cold blooded it is, but that's the surest way to get that claim confirmed. MvR knew that well.
"Take the cylinder out of my kidneys, The connecting rod out of my brain, my brain, From out of my arse take the camshaft, And assemble the engine again."
#4513646 - 03/31/2002:31 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
MFair – well, ginger tea and peppermint oil may be the perfect headache cure for all those devout Lutherans in the North woods of Wisconsin and Minnesota, but I’d recommend Ganz my father’s remedy for all that ails you – single malt whisky and lemon. “You put the lemon at the foot of your bed and then tuck yourself in with the bottle of whisky. When you see two lemons, you’re cured.”
Carrick, be careful those ground attack missions. As you’ve seen, they can be deadly. Your screenshots of the Nieuport in action are absolutely fantastic.
Wulfe, congratulations on bragging that Roland with your new Bristol. Sounds like some very good shooting. Too bad it fell into the nearby farm pond before anyone else saw it. Leefe Robinson has turned it up a notch since the devil may care that he was when Collins knew him back in 37 Squadron.
Lou, you sure made short work of those Albatri! And a very close call with Swany. He did well to put his machine down after the collision.
Epower – hearty welcomes to Winningstad! You wrote a wonderful introduction and I’m dying to see the rest of his journey to the front. Best of luck. I hope Oliver has a long career.
Rick, Beanie – thanks for dropping in. Hope you can join as one day!
Fullofit, Toby continues to rack up the kills. I agree with MFair. You have eyes like a hawk.
An Airman’s Odyssey – by Capt James Arthur Collins, VC, DSO, MC
Part One Hundred and Ten: In which I trade a balloon for a drink
The trip north was exhausting. Twenty-one hours of boredom, broken only by the chance to spend a few minutes over coffee with Lefebvre at the Gare du Nord in Paris. He had found a building in Bordeaux and some American-built bottling equipment in Bergerac. And he had left Arnaud with a detailed list of things to do to prepare the operation.
My time with Térèse had passed far too quickly. I rolled the memories over in my mind like a connoisseur rolling brandy around his tongue. Every little detail, glance, or laugh came back. I longed for my next trip south, yet had no idea when that might be. I had not yet met her parents and had the impression that she was nervous about the introduction. Everything in its time, Jimmy!
The return to the squadron was a joy undiminished by the long journey. We had lost poor Dan Robert and there were a couple of new faces in the mess. For the most part, however, we had fared well over the last couple of weeks. Child had added three more Huns to his bag and there was a mild binge underway when I arrived. Major Harvey-Kelly was taking all comers in a violent game of crud, Xavier had been de-bagged and was standing half naked at the bar, and Sheeley, the new boy in our flight, was being violently ill outside. It was lovely to be home.
We had a new orderly in the flight commanders’ hut, Corporal Tucker. I met him at 4 AM when he stood in a doorway and bellowed “All flights cancelled – bad weather!” My addled brain was still searching for an appropriate response when Ben Murray, my fellow Canadian and commander of A Flight, assailed the good corporal with language he had learned in a hockey dressing room. Corporal Tucker was dispatched to fetch a pot of tea. We threw some coal in the stove, pulled heavy sweaters on over our pyjamas, and lit our pipes. It was a happy gathering – Murray, Russell, and me. A chastened Tucker returned with tea and shortbread biscuits. Russell produced some brandy to warm up the tea and we talked until the sun was up. There were rumours that a new Spad 2 was in the works. It promised a more powerful engine. No one knew if it would have one machine gun or two.
After a quiet day spent reconnecting with the fellows it was good to get back in the air on the afternoon of 28 March. The weather was still poor, rain bordering on sleet, the clouds low and heavy. But Wing was insistent. Preparations for a spring push who were clearly underway. My C Flight was ordered to attack a new observation balloon that had been cited north of Lens. I loaded a new mix of Buckingham, Pomeroy, and Sparklet. The Major announced that he would be tagging along. So it was the Major, Sheeley, Reid, and me. For the first time in ages, I was enthusiastic about climbing into my machine.
I huddled low in the cockpit to keep out of the stinging rain and set a quick course north-east, throttling back to let the others catch up. Over Doullens I began a climb through the clouds. The plan was to stay above the cloud layer, turn east over Bethune, and drop down in the immediate vicinity of our target. It seemed to take forever to penetrate the cloud ceiling. Like most of our Spads, mine lacked the curved spirit level used to indicate bank, so it was quite easy to fall out of heavy clouds in a spin. I held the stick motionless and waited minute after minute for the mist to dissipate. It was likely more than five minutes before I came out into a grey world above. Cloud stretched below me from horizon to horizon without break. Above, there was a second layer of cloud two or three thousand feet higher up. I throttled back and searched for the others. Finding myself still alone, I began to circle. After ten minutes none of the others were visible so I set course for Bethune.
There was no hope of seeing the city through the clouds. I pushed the stick forward and waited. After a very long time I emerged into driving rain. I spotted Bethune just behind me and turned back. The weather was so bad now that I chose to remain below the clouds while crossing the lines. The Huns had an aerodrome at Haubourdin. It was just north of the balloon I was looking for. Archie welcomed me into Hunland and pointed the way. I found Haubourdin and turned south. And there was the balloon, dark with rain and drooping over its basket. The local Archie boys were sound asleep as I approached in a shallow dive and opened fire from three hundred yards. Firing in short bursts, I loosed at least one hundred and fifty rounds into the balloon. Just as I was breaking left to avoid a collision, the thing exploded into a giant ball of flame, throwing my Spad violently sideways.
"Just as I was breaking left to avoid a collision, the thing exploded into a giant ball of flame, throwing my Spad violently sideways."
Now the Archie began in earnest. This time I had no hesitation about climbing back through the cloud. I return to Fienvillers excited about my victory to find that the Major was the only other of the flight to find the target. He had already filed his combat report. He had had approached the balloon from below and was firing into it when it exploded. We had not seen each other. The recording officer, Captain Watley, suggested that we share the victory. Major Harvey-Kelly suggested that we flip a coin for it. I suggested that if he would buy me a drink he was welcome to it.
On 29 March, we flew a defensive patrol north to Bruay. We never got there. Just east of Doullens, Reed spotted four Hun two-seaters heading east back towards the lines. We gave chase and I managed to put rounds into each of them without result. Major Harvey-Kelly claimed one, a flamer, and Reed claimed another.
On 30 March, we escorted a pair of BE2Cs on a photographic reconnaissance north-west of Cambrai. I disliked these jobs, mainly because of the dramatic difference in speed between a Quirk and a Spad. One is forever forced to zigzag and circle and in bad weather it is a simple thing to collide with one of your mates. On this occasion, we arrived safely over the objective and circled about waiting for the Quirks to be done. No sooner had they signalled that they were ready to return than six vee-strutters dived on them out of the cloud. There were five of us: the Major, Child, Orlebar, Sheeley, and me. We dived to the rescue and a wild melee ensued. The Albatri were all painted blue with red noses. We’d seen this lot before and they were good. Some of the fellows thought they were Baron Richthofen’s gang, who all apparently paint their machines at least partly red. Others thought that the fact all the machines of this crew were mainly blue suggested they were from a different squadron. In any event, we had our hands full. For two or three minutes, I had two of the fellows chasing me about the sky. They were skilled pilots and I managed only a couple of short and unaimed bursts in their direction. In the end I found myself alone in the sky with these two thugs. The other spads had gone and I could see two more Huns about a mile off with nothing to do. I took advantage of the first opportunity to put my nose down and head home. Sheeley put down at Bapaume but all of us were back in time for dinner. Child claimed an Albatros out of control, confirmed by Orlebar.
I have never warmed up to the Spad. It’s heavy handling and off-centre iron sight don’t suit me. But I do appreciate the ability to outrun the Hun when things become too hot. The new Albatros scout is quicker than the old model but we can still get away if the Hisso is running well. I pitied the Nieuport and Sopwith jockeys who have to stay and fight it out until the Huns get tired.
#4513647 - 03/31/2002:44 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Nigel Farnsworth Philby Sgt, Rfc 1 Rfc Sqn Flanders 2 unconfirmed Bell Asylum, Flanders March 31, 1917.
The mess looks a bit empty. HQ will be sending up replacements tomorrow. The errks are patching our remaining 10 machines with the parts that are left from the 2 Hanger Queens. The problem, as I see it, is Pilots We have 2 good pilots and 2 mediocre pilots the rest barely can fly in our outdated machines.
Last edited by carrick58; 03/31/2002:56 AM.
#4513690 - 03/31/2011:18 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: May 2012 Posts: 4,879RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.
Carrick - Nigel's lot have been having a tough go of it lately, and from all indications things are going to get a whole lot worse for the RFC in Flanders.
Raine - it's good to see Collins back in the air, though his proximity to that exploding gasbag was less good. Another fine episode. And might there be a wedding in Jim's future, provided he can keep himself amongst the living?
Fullofit - smart, heads-up flying from our Toby, but then we've come to expect nothing less from him. Let's hope he continues his smart flying with the next big push on the horizion, (and let's hope you don't lose your glasses).
.
31 March 1917 66 Squadron R.F.C. Vert Galand, France
A long, quiet sortie for Captain Swanson's crew today, and apart from a pair of Caudrons there was little to see in the air. B Flight had an extended look at the lines east of Arras, taking note of build-up changes and traffic to and from the front. It was clear the spring offensive would be launching soon. In preparation, the warning had come down that, beginning in April, HQ wanted the skies over Arras kept clear of Hun planes until the beginning of the push. To that end, every RFC squadron in the area was expected to put up constant patrols during daylight hours, driving back any and all enemy recce buses and keeping the Hun blind to what was being planned below. With the recent local influx of several new Boche scout groups and their Albs Swany knew, as all the seasoned pilots there knew, keeping the skies clear was not going to be easy.
Apart from a pair of Caudrons, there was little to see in the air during B Flight's sortie of the day.
.
#4513693 - 03/31/2011:27 AMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: May 2012 Posts: 4,879RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.
Remember folks to post your end-of-month stats. Also, for the RFC and RNAS, if there are any recent combat wounds any of your pilots have suffered and not yet been given the Wound Stripe for, please let me know. I feel we may have missed one or two of them.
Mission: Patrol Friendly Front Lines to Croisilles
The Kette engaged French Caudron G4 escorted by 3 Nieuport 23’s from Esc 53 East of Bapaume at 7,000 feet, heading West.
Karl fired 20 – 60 rounds towards one of the French aircraft, but the Frenchman dived low, so not wanting to get his tail shot off - Karl kept his height. As the French aircraft started to gain height Feldwebel Kurt Kuppers dived on to the French aircraft. Karl witness the French aircraft crash into a line of trees South East of Bapaume. On their return to Fontaine-Uterte Kurt Kuppers made a claim of the French machine, although this was later rejected.
Thanks for the comment RAF
Last edited by Beanie; 03/31/2006:07 PM.
'Der Fuchs'
BOC Member 'BWOC BWOC BWOC'
#4513747 - 03/31/2005:03 PMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: May 2012 Posts: 4,879RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.
Actually Beanie, it was Carrick that made the comment. I do agree though, good flying info.
.
#4513748 - 03/31/2005:03 PMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: May 2012 Posts: 737epower
Artless Aide-de-camp
epower
Artless Aide-de-camp
Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 737
Quote
Epower, that would be an opportunity too good to pass up.
Fullofit - Yes, I quite agree but young Oliver must stay alive. I wonder in what capacity Smokey might make his way to Western Europe
Last edited by epower; 03/31/2005:24 PM.
#4513749 - 03/31/2005:04 PMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
#4513768 - 03/31/2006:07 PMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]
Joined: May 2012 Posts: 737epower
Artless Aide-de-camp
epower
Artless Aide-de-camp
Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 737
A quick technical question for you seasoned veterans:
What's the best method of embedding images in a post. Specifically, where to store them? Imgur, photobucket? I'm not happy with the bandwidth-hogging method I'm using now which is attach pic then use that link to embed the image in the post.
Thanks!
#4513769 - 03/31/2006:09 PMRe: Deep Immersion DiD campaign -- Player Instructions (UPDATED 28 Nov 2018)
[Re: Raine]