Air Stories — page 56: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

AIR STORIES let go every bomb on board. The last two seemed to explode right over the deck in the swirl of water set up by the sub- merging U-boat, and from the evidence of the oil that later came to the surface there was little doubt that the submarine had dived for the last time. Seaplanes v. Flying-Boat HROUGHOUT September the pilots of No. 1 Wing kept up a constant patrol in conjunction with the Fleet, with occasional diversions in the form of raids on enemy bases, attacks on submarines and enemy aircraft, or ‘‘ spotting ’’ work for the coastal batteries. There were, however, comparatively few encounters with German aircraft reported in this area at that time for the enemy had not yet developed his fighter aircraft, but was relying for his defence on a highly- efficient organisation of anti-aircraft gun batteries. Only two decisive combats appear in the Wing’s records for that period. The first took place on Nov. 28th, when Flight Sub-Lieutenant J. B. P. Ferrand, with Air Mechanic G. T. Oldfield, was on submarine patrol in an F.B.A.*flying-boat and encountered a German torpedo-boat off Westende with an escort of four seaplanes. Despite the odds against him, Ferrand at once dived to attack and three of the seaplanes, having no liking for so determined a foe, promptly turned tail and fled towards Ostend. The fourth man, however, was made of sterner stuff and accepted combat; but within a few moments he had stopped a full burst from the flying-boat’s observer and disappeared nose-first into the sea. Not yet satisfied, Ferrand then turned upon the torpedo-boat and only drew off after he had released all his bombs without apparently scoring a direct hit. The second encounter took place the following month, after the Wing had received news that two enemy aeroplanes had been attempting to bomb a British merchant steamer which had stranded on a sandbank near the Whistle Buoy several days earlier. Thereafter, the Wing * F.B.A.: Franco-British Aviation Co. 54 maintained regular patrols in her vicinity and in the afternoon of December 14th, a large enemy two-seater came bumbling along straight into the trap. The patrol at the time was being carried out by Flight Sub-Lieutenant C. W. Graham on a Nieuport, with Sub-Lieutenant Ince as his observer, and they waited until the enemy ’plane was almost above the stranded ship before springing their surprise. Three times Graham came plunging down on the seaplane, each time flattening out beneath its belly to give his observer a chance to pour in a hail of lead from below. On his third dive the two-seater fell, a flaming mass, into the sea, where it was blown to pieces by the sudden explosion of its bombs. The Nieuport, however, was also due for a ducking. Its petrol tank had been holed during the fight and within a few minutes of the German seaplane’s down- fall, the Nieuport’s engine stopped abruptly. Fortunately, Graham was able to glide towards a minesweeper, the ‘* Balmoral,’’ which had been attracted to the scene of the firing but the Nieuport turned turtle on striking the water and the pilot, strapped to his seat, was carried under the wreckage. With great difficulty he managed to free himself and shot to the surface and, soon afterwards, both he and his observer were picked up by the minesweeper. Early in 1916, the Wing, now re- equipped with Nieuport fighters and two-seaters, as well as several B.E.2cs. and Caudrons, found itself busily engaged in a variety of duties which included bombing, fighting and reconnaissance raids, spotting for the guns of the Fleet, anti-submarine patrols and numerous special patrols, carried out both by night and by day in all kinds of weather and over an area extending from the Belgian coast to well inland beyond the front-line trenches. Another of their side-lines was an attempt to introduce a continuous system of anti-Zeppelin patrols off the coast and on one occasion ten of the Wing’s Nieuports took-off at three- minute intervals and patrolled at 10,000 feet six miles out to sea, hoping to inter- cept airships returning from raids on Co OO