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Ken, I'm really enjoying your letter from Alvin. It looks like Alvin will be joining me on the dark side pretty soon, because that's the mindset that Arthur has taken. If we want to go home then we must kill all of the enemy.

Patton:
Now I want you to remember that no b*d ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb b*d die for his country.

EDIT: Hmmm, I didn't realize there was a profanity filter so I put in the * in place. Oh well, you still get the meaning.

July 1, 1915
Adj Achille Renard has suffered a system failure during his approach to the airfield. Was unable to maintain altitude and had to land immediately. Unfortunately this meant hitting the fence, which appeared out of thin air. Fortunately he survived the collision but will spend a week in hospital under the loving care of nurse Jaqueline. Titanium fences are so 1914.

Kuroken;

Very poignant letter from Alvin! Much to think about!

Journal Entry: July 1, 1915
St. Pol-sur-Mer

Just got back from a few days leave and I spent it basking in the sun with my first love, the ocean. Nothing like three days of fishing, sailing and swimming in the ocean to clear one's head of all the stress and strain of this never-ending war flying. I really don't know how Thayer spent his leave, but I'd be willing to bet that there was wine, women and song involved. Thayer likes to live on the proverbial edge, if you will, of life, while I much prefer a calmer pace of life. You might not think that if all you had to go by was our war record, but the fact is that most of our victories were at the prompting of Thayer. While I'm pleased with what he and I are accomplishing, I don't know if I would have the same level of success if I was on my own. Anyway, things to ponder while lying on my bed.

Our mission this morning was a line patrol, which is Thayer's favorite because these translate to hunting missions. He really loves the Morane because of the larger field of fire and he also can perform his photographing duties much easier. I on the other hand, really don't like our bus. I can't see anything above me or behind me and I'm constantly yelling back to Thayer for guidance. At any rate, we were leading the flight which consisted of Lt. Epps (pilot) and Capt. Rogers (Obsrv). We had reached the southern end of our patrol area and were turning north when Thayer tapped me on the shoulder and informed me that we had company. I turned and began to climb and that is when I saw the two Hun machines flying from our side of the lines heading back home. I waggled my wings to signal Epps and turned to close with the Huns. Lt. Epps had seen them as well and he also began to close. It is much harder to get our bus into a good firing position because I can't see a blasted thing, but with the assistance of Thayer I finally managed to place our bus where Thayer could use his Lewis. Thayer fired a really short burst and then ceased firing. I turned slightly and could see the Hun plunging on fire to Earth. I surmised that Thayer had hit the fuel tank and the engine, which caused the aeroplane to burst into flames. Afterward, Thayer told me that he had only fired thirty rounds. It is most disquieting to see that funeral pyre falling, spiralling ever so slowly to Earth, lucky for us, there is whiskey back at St. Pol and tomorrow we will have forgotten. Apparently, while we were busy with our Hun, that sneaky fellow Epps had just been putting the finishing touches to his Hun. I turned us back to St. Pol and we landed without incident. The CO was very pleased when we reported that we both had been successful. By the way, both victories had been confirmed by dinner time.

Banjoman;

You are really tearing up the skies with that bus.

Robert, my motto is 'Get while the getting is good'. When the Huns get the E series I imagine my success will quickly dry up.

Now that one of my pilots is resting in a hospital I have some time and I thought it would be nice to know what's been happening around the world during the last month.
Here are the events for February 1915 - Intrepid Fliers:

February 1
A Turkish attack at El Quantara on the Suez Canal was repulsed by fire from British ships.
Russian forces counterattacked against a German advance in continued fighting at Bolomow.
February 2
Forward elements of Turkish forces reached the Suez Canal.
February 3
Turkish troops attacked El Firdan and crossed the Suez Canal but were beaten back by Indian and Ghurka troops along with French ships.
Three of the conspirators involved in the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were hanged by Austrian authorities.
February 4
The commander of the German High Seas Fleet publicly declared a war zone around the British Isles and announced that all merchant ships would be sunk without warning when a submarine blockade of Britain begins on 18 February.
February 5
The British, French and Russian Governments agreed to pool their financial resources.
February 6
British ocean liner RMS Lusitania arrived at Liverpool flying the flag of the United States.
February 7
The Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, also known as the Winter Battle of the Masurian Lakes, begun between German and Russian forces.
February 9
After being stationed at Salisbury Plain in England, units of the 1st Canadian Division embarked for France.
February 11
US President Woodrow Wilson warned Germany that attacks on US ships breached US neutrality whilst simultaneously protesting to Great Britain about the misuse of the American flag on British ships.
February 12
French troops began an offensive in Champagne on the Western Front.
February 14
German troops captured British trenches near St Eloi on the Western Front.
February 15
Allied governments suggested to Greece that it should intervene in support of Serbia and promised military support at the port of Salonika.
The sepoys of the Indian 4th Light Infantry mutinied against the British in Singapore.
February 16
The British Government decided to send the 29th Division to Gallipoli.
February 17
Two German Zeppelins were forced down by high winds in north-west Denmark.
February 18
The German submarine blockade of Britain came into force.
French forces made slight gains near Verdun, in Artois, Champagne and Vosges.
February 19
The Allied naval bombardment of the Dardanelles and Gallipoli began.
The Norwegian ship SS Belridge was torpedoed by a German submarine near Folkestone in Kent - the first victim of the German blockade.
February 20
The British Government issued orders for the deployment at Gallipoli of Australian and New Zealand troops who were in Egypt.
February 22
Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes ended in a German victory with the Russians suffering heavy losses.
February 23
The Royal Marines landed at the island of Lemnos in the Aegean Sea.
February 24
The First British Territorial Division left England for France.
February 25
British ships resumed their bombardment of the Dardanelles forts.
February 26
German troops employed liquid fire for the first time against French troops in the Verdun Sector.
February 27
The Russians recaptured Przasnysz during the First Battle of Przasnysz in Poland.
February 28
The troops of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry staged the first trench raid of the war near Ypres, Belgium.

(From The Great War - Unseen Archives by Robert Hamilton)

News for the Warbirds Rising - June 1915:

June 1
French troops captured the trenches at Souchez, north of Arras on the Western Front.
June 2
The British Government announced a blockade of the coast of Asia Minor.
June 3
Przemysl was retaken by Austro-German forces.
San Marino declared war on Austria-Hungary.
June 4
The Third and final Battle of Krithia began at Gallipoli as the Allies attempted to push inland from their beach-heads.
June 5
The First Franco-British ministerial conference was held at Calais in order to coordinate war policy and strategy.
June 6
Zeppelin L9 bombed Hull on the east coast of England causing considerable damage.
June 7
The German airship LZ37 was destroyed in the air near Ghent in Belgium by Lieut Warneford of the Royal Naval Air Service - the first time an airship was successfully shot down by an aeroplane.
June 8
William Jennings Bryan resigned as United States Secretary of State in disagreement with President Wilson's policy towards Germany.
June 9
Italian forces captured the town of Monfalcone along the Isonzo front.
June 10
Allied forces captured Garua in the Cameroons.
June 12
German troops attacked north of Shavli and at Mosciska in Galicia.
June 13
Greek statesman Eleftherios Venizelos won in the Greek elections. His party of Venizelists won 193 out of 316 seats.
June 15
The Zeppelin L10 was involved in an unsuccessful bombing raid on the north-east coast of Britain.
June 16
British troops advanced in Bellewarde, a small hamlet north of Hooge and east of Ypres in Belgium.
June 17
The Russian evacuation of Lemberg began as Austrian forces pushed forward in Galicia.
June 18
The Second Battle of Artois ended in stalemate in the final Allied offensive of Spring 1915.
June 19
South African forces begun an advance on Otavifontein in German Southwest Africa.
June 20
The Royal Navy cruiser HMS Roxburgh was damaged by a torpedo from German U boat U-38.
June 21
British troops reached the Euphrates in Mesopotamia and reoccupied Aden.
June 22
Austro-Hungarian forces recaptured the city of Lemburg from the Russians.
June 23
The First Battle of Isonzo begun when Italian troops attacked the Austro-Hungarian army on the Italian Front.
June 24
Robert Lansing was appointed Secretary of State in the USA following the resignation of William Jennings Bryan earlier in the month.
June 25
The German press published an official statement addressing the German use of poison gas at the start of the Second Battle of Ypres two months earlier.
June 26
Montenegrian forces captured San Giovanni di Medua in Albania.
June 28
The Battle of Gully Ravine begun at Cape Helles on the Gallipoli peninsula between Indian and British troops and the Ottoman army.
June 29
A bill was introduced in Britain for the creation of a National Register.
June 30
The Royal Navy destroyer HMS Lightning sank after striking mines off the Kent coast of England.

(From The Great War - Unseen Archives by Robert Hamilton)

Sgt, Almost There
3 RFC
Flanders


1 July 1915.


Our 3 a/c section struck the enemy at Haubordin AF this morning. My bombing improved by dropping down to 1500 meters. They exploded on the flight line in front of a Recon type. The other a/c got close hits. ( 3 points)


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Sgt, Almost There
3 RFC
Flanders

2 July 1915.


The section bombed the trenches today. The 3 of us dropped from 2000 meters and great piles of dirt flew up in the air. I doubt if we hit any place close or on the trench line. However, the C.O. was happy said Well done chaps.

{points 3 ?}


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[/b]Fullofit[b], it truly was a world war, wasn't it? Before I fly in WOFF, I like to check the daily timeline ( I use http://www.greatwar.co.uk/timeline/ww1-timeline.htm )to get the bigger picture, and see how it matches with the sim's newspaper (I use the news mod from 77scout)

LoftyC: With all this flying who's got time to read the news? Maybe the observer could read all the more interesting articles to us while en route to target, instead of pointing the gun at our forehead. I use the news mod as well, but it still doesn't come often enough. The most frequent news is the weather report.

Sgt, Almost There
3 RFC
Flanders


4 Jul 1915.

Fireworks today. I was posted as acting flight commander on a 2 a/c Arty spot. We had just finished up and spotted 2 Hun Recon machines. Bang up little fight, we did a lot of slow turns in front of the Huns as our gunners banged away. the followed one Hun down towards his side. His prop stopped and was last seen gliding off to Hunland. On the bad side, We had to cross the lines at 300 meters took 3 hits in the wing and another that killed my gunner. Put down at friendly airfield.
Ammo Rpt: Lewis Gun empty. Wing man a/c shot off 62 rds.


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Sgt, Almost There
3 RFC
Flanders

5 July 1915.


Troop Bombardment

3 a/c

0500 hrs.

I flew as #3 on this one shot hop and lots of Dirt an d rocks blowing skyward. All 4 of my 20lb bombs Undershot missing the trenches completely. All a/c back safe.


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The war is beginning to heat up for the July crew. The Fokkers are starting to wake up.

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