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Here are the September News of the World for Intrepid Fliers:
September 1 The German Government accepted the United States' demands for limitation of submarine activity. September 2 On the Eastern Front German forces captured Grodno and attacked Vilna. September 3 The Second Battle of the Isonzo ended with an Austro-Hungarian victory over Italian forces. September 4 The British passenger ship Hesperian was torpedoed by German submarine U-20 near Fastnet off the Irish coast. September 5 Tsar Nicholas II took personal control of Russia's armies at the military headquarters In Mogilev (Mahilyow) in Eastern Belarus. September 6 US newspapers published secret documents reporting that Austrian Ambassador Dr Konstantin Dumba was involved in a scheme to sabotage the American munitions industry. September 7 Russian troops began a counter-offensive on the Sereth River at Tarnopol in Galicia. September 8 Two Zeppelins successfully attacked London, dropping bombs on the docks of the capital city. September 9 American Secretary of State Robert Lansing requested that the Austro-Hungarian government recall its ambassador Dr Konstantin Dumba as his presence was no longer acceptable. September 10 Four Allied warships rescued more than 4,000 Armenians from Musa Dagh in Armenia and took them to Port Said in Egypt where they remained in Allied refugee camps until the end of the war. September 12 The three-masted Norwegian sailing ship Bien was sunk in the North Sea by German submarine U-6. September 13 Following another Zeppelin raid on London, Admiral Sir Percy Scott was tasked by the First Lord of the Admiralty Arthur Balfour to establish the London Air Defense Area to defend England's capital city from the increasing threat of air attack. September 15 German submarine U-6 was attacked and sunk by British submarine HMS E16 off Stavanger in Norway. September 16 German troops captured Pinsk in Belarus on the Eastern Front. September 18 German forces capture Vilna (now Vilnius) but suffered heavy casualties. September 19 The Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive ended when the Russian lines collapsed and the Russian troops retreated. September 21 The Bulgarian government ordered a partial mobilization of its forces. Greek Premier Eleftherios Venizelos asked for a guarantee of 150,000 British and French troops as a condition of Greece's intervention in the war. September 22 French airmen dropped bombs on the Royal Palace at Stuttgart in Germany. September 23 The Greek Government ordered precautionary mobilization as a "measure of elementary prudence" in view of Bulgarian actions. September 24 The French and British Governments informed the Greeks that they would be prepared to send the troops requested. September 25 The Great Allied Offensive focused on Loos and Champagne when the British 1st Army, commanded by General Douglas Haig, attacked German positions at the start of the Battle of Loos. September 26 General Sir Archibald James Murray was appointed Chief of the Imperial General Staff replacing Sir James Wolfe-Murray who had resigned the previous day. September 27 Greek premier Venizelos obtained the secret consent of King Constantine I to the proposed Allied expedition to Salonika. September 28 Austrian Ambassador Dr Dumba was recalled from the United States. The Greek Government refused the Allied offer of troops. September 29 French troops attacked in Champagne and progressed towards Tahure on the Western Front. September 30 Lord Derby assumed responsibility for recruiting in Britain.
(From The Great War - Unseen Archives by Robert Hamilton)
"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."
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January News of the World for Warbirds Rising:
January 1 Under the command of Canadian General Charles Macpherson Dobell, British forces captured Yaunde in the Cameroons. January 2 The P&O British cargo ship SS Geelong sank in the Mediterranean Sea following a collision with a British steamer. She was on a voyage from Sydney via Port Said to Gibraltar and London with a general cargo which included tea and lead. January 4 A relief force started out from Ali Al-Gharbi to save the besieged defenders of Ku-alAmara. January 6 The Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad began along the banks of the Tigris River between the AngloIndian Tigris Corps and the Ottoman Sixth Army. January 5 An Inter-Allied Conference was held in Rome. January 7 British forces captured the forward Turkish positions at Sheikh Sa'ad. January 8 Under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Fenton John Aylmer the Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad ended - the first in a series of assaults by the Tigris Corps to attempt to break through the Ottoman lines to relieve the besieged garrison at Kut-al-Amara. January 9 The Allied evacuation of Helles marked the end of the Gallipoli Campaign which resulted in an Allied defeat and an overwhelming victory for the Ottoman Empire. January 10 General Sir Archibald Murray succeeded Sir Charles Munro as Commander of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. January 11 Corfu was occupied by Allied troops. Russian forces began an offensive into Armenia. January 12 An Armistice was drawn up between Montenegro and Austria. January 13 The Battle of Wadi took place. The conflict was an unsuccessful attempt by Lieutenant General Sir Fenton John Aylmer to relieve beleaguered forces under siege by the Ottoman Army at Kut-alAmara. January 14 Lieutenant General Sir Percy lake was appointed as Commander-in-Chief in Mesopotamia, replacing Sir John Nixon. January 16 French General Maurice-PaulEmmanuel Sarrail assumed command of all Allied forces in Salonika. January 17 Montenegro surrendered to the Central Powers. January 20 The Armistice between Montenegro and Austria ceased as negotiations broke down. January 21 As part of the attempt to relieve Kut al Amara, a British assault against Turkish positions was launched at the Battle of Hanna and was once again repulsed. January 23 Austro-Hungarian forces captured Scutari on the Southern Front. British forces attacked Senussi tribesmen at Halazin near the Mediterranean seaport of Mersa Matruh. January 24 German officer Reinhard Scheer was promoted to Admiral and given control of the High Seas Fleet. January 25 The personal envoy of US President Wilson, Edward House, met with German officials in Berlin on a mission for peace. January 26 A communique was sent from Sir Charles Townshend to the Kut Garrison in order to boost the flagging morale of his garrison troops. January 27 The Military Service Act 1916 was passed by the British Parliament to introduce conscription. The law required that all unmarried men and widowers 18-41 years of age without dependents should make themselves available for national service. January 28 Louis Dembitz Brandeis was controversially nominated by PreSident Wilson to become a member of the US Supreme Court. January 29 Paris was bombed by German Zeppelins. January 31 East Anglia and the Midlands were bombed in a raid by several German airships.
(From The Great War - Unseen Archives by Robert Hamilton)
"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."
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I'll let you tally the score, Thanks!
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Journal Entry: January 31, 1916 St. Pol-sur-Mer By all rights, I should be lying dead in a smoldering heap right now, but yet I live. Today, I finally met an adversary that by all accounts should have been victorious and had he not made one fatal mistake, he would have been. Ronald, Roderic, and I were ordered to fly an escort mission for a lone BE.2c that was tasked with an artillery shoot. We had just reached the front when a pair of Fokkers dove out of the clouds making a play for the old BE. We dove and placed ourselves between the Huns and our charge and that was enough to convince one of the Huns to turn and scurry home. Turning and running for home is blood in the water for me and the lads, so naturally, we gave chase. The other Fokker turned to chase us, but he was far enough behind so that he no longer was a threat. Eventually, I caught the first Hun and gave him a burst, which sent him into a spin. I went into a wide turn so that I could watch the first Fokker, but in doing so I enabled the second to close the distance and I was forced to change my attention from the first to the second. I made the almost fatal mistake of assuming this Hun would fall as quickly as the ones before. This pilot was made of sterner stuff and twice he managed to get onto my tail, but I flitted out of the way just in time. At one point in our duel, we were circling each other in a tight circle with my enemy just opposite of me, I looked at him and noticed that he was staring back at me. At that moment, it became a test of wills, who would break this dance first. We both knew that who broke first would probably not survive this encounter. We twisted and twisted until the strain was almost more than I could bear, it was at that moment he made his fatal error. He broke for home and in retrospect, I should have let him go, but my blood was up and I turned and gave chase. I caught him and gave him a good burst after which his engine burst into flames. It saddened me greatly to see such a valiant foe die in that manner. I only hope that when my time comes, it comes quickly.
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Nice tale, Banjoman. Your fight reminded me a little of Hawker's duel with von Richthofen.
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Thanks, I actually felt bad about finishing him off.
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Hope He is confirmed and is an HA !
Dolf also had a scare today. He was patrolling the front lines with three EIIs and wound up in a scrap with four N10s. The trouble came when the DF descended to mountain top level. He happened to be over enemy lines and the army guys let him have it, they were actually shooting down on him as he chased the last Nupe home.
Fortunately he wasn't wounded and his engine wasn't hit, but he had to fly home with the stick jammed all the way to the left. Landing was abit spooky, but he made it down and filed a claim as did two of the EII pilots. One lucky Nupe might have made it home
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He was, and it turned out to be my good buddy Gustav Leffers. I've shot him down about a dozen times and by now we are on a first name basis. There was one spooky thing, I saw this crawling out of the burning wreckage.
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Journal Entry: October 6, 1915 Bertincourt
Today's sortie was an unmitigated disaster from the very beginning and I am fortunate to being writing this report. We had the pleasure of having an escort of a lone Fokker, so I felt that we would manage to complete our mission without interference from those damned French and their Nieuports. We had just arrived at our patrol sector when two Nieuports arrived which sent our escort scurrying for home. I was completely shocked at the cowardice of the man and sent some choice phrases his way as he fled the scene. I signaled Koehler and notified Hans to get ready. While I was watching the French approach, a brilliant idea came to me. When they were almost in range, I quickly turned toward them as if I were attacking them. My sudden move threw both Frenchmen into confusion which actually allowed Hans to fire a couple of bursts into the Nieuport that dove under us. Hans must have hit him hard because he immediately disengaged and headed home. After dealing with the first Frenchman, I quickly surveyed the sky and saw the other one was chasing Koehler. I was shouting "Turn" as loud as I could, but to no avail. In no time, Koehler's machine burst into flames and they plunged earthward. The Frenchman turned towards me wanting seconds, but he wasn't expecting an enemy so aggressive. I immediately turned towards him which once again confused him and that gave Hans the opportunity to start firing. From that point one, I was the one chasing him and eventually Hans hit his engine. He was able to pull away and crash landed just on the enemy's side of the lines. I filed a claim, but I don't have much hope in it being confirmed because Hauptman von Schoenebeck was about a kilometer away.
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I know a few French Aces like that.
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Sgt. Arthur Much, RFC18, February 5th 1916.
Jolly happy to be out of that beastly BE2C. Not a bad old kite to fly, but it seems like a flame to a moth, so to speak, attracting those beastly single-wingers that the Bosch keeps flitting about in up there.
Well, I'm in new digs now with a jolly fine new craft. This DH2 thingy has a wonderful forward view, and I have my own gun, too! I'd better learn how to shoot the bally thing I suppose. I'll potter around locally for a bit while I get used to her, then off to the front to extract a spot of revenge on those little brown buzzing mosquitoes!
H
System: i5 8600K @ 3.6GHz,16GB DDR4 @2666MHz. RTX2080, MSI Z370 mobo, Dell 27" G-SYNC @ 144Hz. 2560x1440
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Oh Man, The DH2 is deadly at this time of the war!
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SGT. Brent Baskerville RFC-3, Morane-Saulnier February 6, 1916Lieutenant Norton took me aside today and complimented my bombing skills. I should be grateful, and certainly I enjoy recognition as well as the next bloke, but has that brought me back to my rightful place in the officer's mess? Of course not. I hounded the adjutant, who was of no help whatsoever, but at least he did intercede with the Lieutenant who let me take 24 hours on February 3 to drive to the nearest command and plead my case. Drive? Only commoners drive. So I asked Sergeant Foster to accompany me and he agreed. Once in Loos he went off to find a maypole party or something while I spoke with a Captain Hart. Hart said all the right words of course, apologizing for the irregularity of my commission, promising to look into how it was defaced with the words 'Bugger the King', agreed the allegation that I wrote that words was ridiculous, and so forth. I asked him at least for a note to show Norton to let him know this was all rubbish and he demurred. "We must not go against the system," the loaf said. Sigh. I did get a number of flights in this week - all bombing, mostly harassing the front line troops. Usually Norton led himself. I certainly can't fault his bravery (though perhaps his sense) as he seemed to take pleasure in flying low over the lines to get a good look at everyone. Especially artillery duels. I have said Norton complimented my aim. It's improving steadily. On the 4th instant I dropped my two 20 pounders on a hangar at I believe Haubourdin and my observer, Richardson, said I inflicted shocking damage. Earlier today I helped pummel a railyard into submission. Naturally this has stirred the Germans out of their beds. In those same two flights Fokker eindeckers showed up to challenge us. Fortunately both times we were escorted by Frogs flying their Nieuport 10s. Beautiful aircraft. It seems both times all but one of the Eindeckers would be lured into a duel, and I watched one unfold below me: Two of them versus our two Nieuports engagine in spins and turns that would probably snap the Parasol in two. Brave warriors, these French, and I'm sure they would have cleared up any paperwork about my commission long since. Still, that would leave one chasing us vainly. A few shots from Richardson or another would send them packing. That is how Lt. Norton earned his first kill. I have cried about my fate, with some justification I might add, but other than this startling irregularity about my rank Norton is quite the civil bloke. For example, once I just could not bear the tedium of our slow, spiraling landing platform and had some fun. He didn't say a word. Still, I hope this war ends soon, or failing that I am allowed to transfer out. Perhaps another squadron will remember my rank. Perhaps another squadron will give me a chance to earn some glory. No one cares how many hangars you destroy. Other planes are another matter, and I would like to shoot down a few more Eindeckers before this is through.
Last edited by CatKnight; 02/07/16 05:50 AM.
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Here is the latest status report.
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Fellow pilots, at the beginning of each month it is my intention to post the report of our fallen comrades.
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Excellent. I was wondering what happened to that section last time.
"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."
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Journal Entry: October 12, 1915 Bertincourt
Those naval pilots with their Fokkers are rank cowards and I'll say as much if I should ever meet one. Today Manfred and I were to fly an artillery shoot and were told we could expect an escort from the naval unit to the north of us. We were told to expect three of the new Fokkers, so we felt sure we would be able to perform our mission without interruption. As it turned out, we were both right and wrong. We had just arrived when I spotted two Nieuports sneaking along below us attempting to get behind us for an attack. I turned and fully expected to see the Fokkers diving to engage, but instead they turned as one and ran for home. Hans and I just shook our heads and prepared for the enemies attack, but much to our surprise the French instead turned and began to chase our fleeing comrades. The cowardly naval pilots had inadvertently drawn the enemy away and we were able to complete our mission unmolested. I can only guess that the French must have assumed that the machines fleeing would be the easier prey. Anyway, we made it back to our aerodrome safely and I can honestly say that I don't really care what happened to those cowards.
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At least they're consistent. When I encounter Eindeckers, usually one runs while the other one turns to fight. Go figure.
"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."
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HarryH, good luck with the DH2. It is one of my favorites. Nice stories gents. Thanks for the update Banjoman! Still digging the new chalk board! Adalwolf Becker had a rough day. One a line patrol with 2 other flight mates they ran into some RE's. Coming up below and behind one, thinking he was safe he had his butt handed to him. The savvy pilot pulled up and to the left and his observer did the rest. In the hospital for 3 weeks!
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!
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I think I'll be creating another DID pilot here, if there's still room for more. I'll have to read the instructions carefully and decide which period I'll be joining.
"Upon my word I've had as much excitement on a car as in the air, especially since the R.F.C. have had women drivers."
James McCudden, Five Years in the Royal Flying Corps
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