Tross - In my experience, all two seaters are handfuls to be honest. At least Baptiste is still alive, so eh. The Squadron is at least trying to make a recovery so far. Well, flightmates don't seem to be particularly bright in tactical situations so not surprising really. So long as Sigmund gets by at least! So, some good times for Sigmund then. Despite some tough fights with those camels he manages to overcome the challenge and becomes an ace! Well congratulations on that! Well, 'bubi' here is enjoying the benefits of his youth to be a better drinker, can't be helped. So now he got himself a painted crate, the main thing now is just to keep it together and in one piece. Quiet sorties like that first one are one way of it, the tangle with the RE8s is a bit more risky but that worked out well. Congratulations on number 7.
Carrick - So getting jumped on such a mission is unfortunate, but at least it got turned around by Cecil. Shame the kill got stolen but that too was rectified and another one took his place, good! All the more kills for the Squadron too. Hopefully there's a confirmation.
Fullofit - Well, the AI still has it easier at least so there's that. Stupid machines, they gonna take away our planes soon too, I tell ya! The uprising! That side though, remains to be seen how long Baptiste will survive anyway. Guess not, but still it's quite some luck. For you anyway, less so for the farmer though I'd imagine, especially if it was /his/ field. As for fighting the entire war alone, seems like this sortie seems like one such example. They certainly didn't seem to be of any help when Klaus got such a brutal pummeling, good god. He's lucky to have made it out alive out of there, those Americans were definetely set on killing him. At least he made it. As for Baptiste, he might develop a phobia of two seaters at this rate. Not a long wait though, so that is a relief indeed.
RAF - It being sooner than later is probably the biggest relief there for Baptiste. So Freddy gotten there alright, albeit at a rather late hour and got himself a bit of an awkward surprise, or rather surprised the sergeant. Well, so long as one can laugh it off! Unfortunate to hear the other major got himself a bit of a misfortunate situation , to put it lightly. In the meantime though, hopefully Freddy can get some rest and prepare for a proper introduction!
Raine - So this is a most interesting change of pace. Scraps with fokkers are normal, and killings of lone Hannovers are much like that are too. Sudden transfers to single seaters are a bit more sudden though. The time at the new place has been spent with some ups and downs it seems. Getting forced on the defensive and taking bursts isn't pleasant and is certainly a down, be it from a Fokker or a Pfalz A lack of confirmations isn't very fun either. Still, getting some kills and and dropping... a watermelon on the Huns oughta be a highllight of ups.
Time at the squadron in the past few days have been boring. Even getting admitted to some mild administrative duties has been harder than I thought, turns out there were more competent people around, who knew. Instead I was given some responsbility in form of having to help orientate new arrivals at the squadrons, which were now being sent to replenish our losses. Trying to provide them in some tips was a fruitless experience though, as for one they were for the most part either flying a different SPAD model which I despite my yearnings still got no permission to fly, or for a greater factor of myself hating this damned crate and not having many good tips besides 'stall out and hope you don't die'. Thankfully I'll be able to resume flying soon so this nonsense will be over, I hope. I'm not some kind of a teacher.
"Those who survive a long time on the battlefield start to think they're invincible. I bet you do, too, Buddy."
Albert, Klaus was lucky the rest of the Schwarm had finally engaged. If not, he’d be collecting American bullets in his back. Another lesson not to underestimate the mighty SPAD. So, Bubi can drink with the best of them. With all the shortages there probably aren’t too many occasions to test his skills. A quiet mission in the morning, which most pilots considered a godsend. Then the two-seaters again. Looks like Sigmund has figured them out. Congrats on the two confirmed kills.
Lou, ironically the Americans seem to be the easiest meat in WoFF. It was Raben’s own fault for not paying attention to the rounders and not acting accordingly. Now, put those same American pilots in Camels and SE.5’s and it’s a different story. It’s a shame they had to fly in inferior equipment. It’s like the Germans in Pfalzes. Now, on to Abbott. Our Freddy is lucky he wasn’t shot on the spot for ransacking the C.O.s office. Y’know, shoot first, ask questions later. On second thought, he probably wishes he’d been shot. That’s probably preferable to commanding a squadron blindly, but knowing Freddy, he’ll land squarely on his feet (and his hands, and his head.)
Raine, once the Schwarm engaged getting away was easy. All the SPADs were busy clearing their tails. Well, that was an interesting encounter with a blind as a bat Hannover driver. How can you mistake such a distinctive piece of airframe as the tail. He must have seen it didn’t look anything like his own. Oh well, I guess we’ll never know for certain. So, a transfer to single-seaters. Well now, this should be interesting. Drummond will have to remember there is no more Buckingham in the rear to watch his six. So, new machine, new squadron, new people and new tactics that Robert needs to learn. The stunt with the watermelon surely won’t help making friends with the Huns. It is rather a lot of bad luck to have all claims rejected off the bat. Hopefully more luck will follow soon.
NR, the machines are already taking away the best planes from Baptiste, letting him fly the VII. This cannot be! Then there are those two-seaters that seem to continue to thwart his progress. Same with Klaus, he fears and loathes the two-seaters identically. So, they’ve made greeting hostess out of poor Baptiste. What’s next? Latrine guide?
Patrolling enemy front lines between Malzeville and Flirey was the order of the day. On their way to the Front they were jumped by a formation of Bréguet Fighters. That’s right, they fly and fight like scouts. Klaus could only keep an eye on them and react to their attacks. They seem to have concentrated on Raben and the rest of his Schwarm could easily engage them and one by one set their engines on fire. As he dodged the attacks Klaus counted at least 4 of them trailing black smoke. He was finally able to go on the offensive and fire on one diving for cover. He nearly had him when he was spooked by more fire. He quickly turned around to see where the attack was coming from, but there was no one there. It must have been the fire from the rear gunner of the Bréguet in front. Klaus turned back to his target in front, but the plane was gone. Raben looked in vain for it, but had no luck. In the end he spotted another Bréguet being attacked by Fokkers and doing a good job of it. The French machine was already trailing grey smoke. Klaus caught up to it and joined the fun from further away. He sent some long range shots at the enemy and must have registered some hits. The Franzose went into a dive which allowed Klaus to get closer. He could now punish his foe at his leisure. The Bréguet’s engine caught on fire and the entire machine went down near Verny. Klaus and the rest were forced back to base with various degrees of damage.
20 August, 1918 13:00 afternoon mission Montingen, Verdun Sector Jasta 18 Hauptmann Klaus Gustav Raben PLM HHO EK1 EK2 Fokker D.VII 76 confirmed kills Awaiting one claim confirmation
In the afternoon the Schwarm was ordered to patrol friendly front lines near Flirey. Klaus was certain this would be another one of those contactless missions. With the rain and the thick cloud cover there was little chance of spotting … wait! What’s that down there glittering against the mud? SPADS! Klaus circled around until the enemy came struggling up to his level. After some circling around Raben was able to get on the enemy’s tail and after some coercing brought him down. He then joined the main fight and picked his next victim. It was a low flying SPAD. Klaus was annoyed with this one. The more he fired at the enemy, the higher the Frenchman could climb. It was only after the additional weight of Raben’s bullets lodged in his airframe that the contraption finally went down. The battle was over after that and the Schwarm returned to base.
"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."
Cecil P Fawnsworth Sgt, Rfc, 54 Sqn Fienvillers, AF.
Aug 18 , 1918.
4 Victory Confirmed 1 Unconfirmed 2 Pending
I say good show, 54 knocked down 4 e/a+a Balloon for 1 Loss + 4 damaged out of 2 flights of 4 Camels. 2 kills were mine the balloon and a 3 wing. I landed with some holes and under 100 rds left in the guns after chasing and seeing him crash near the enemy AF Lieramount My Albatross from the day before was confirmed.
NR - A boring few days for Baptiste was only to be expected and with too much time on his hands his mind does some thinking. Dreaming about a XIII whilst showing newbies the ropes. It's frustrating when all he wants to do is fly and down the enemy. It won't be too much longer thankfully.
Fullofit - That attack by the Breguets was an interesting one. For a short while it looked like Klaus's tactic of allowing the rest of the Schwarm to take the brunt was working a bit too well and there were smoking Frenchmen all over the place. His patience paid off though and the Breguet's fabled toughness helped as one fell into his trap. He was able to finish him off and bring it down. Then a complete reversal of yesterday's SPAD masterclass. Catching them slow and low was a dream come true and Raben made two of them pay a heavy price. As for Sigmund, you know what it's like at any military organisation, someone always finds a way to get some supplies in from somewhere, even if it is just a few bottles of beer.
Carrick - Cecil is on a roll. Another confirmation and then a balloon bust with a bonus in the shape of a Dreidecker. He's making good progress and hopefully a couple more confirmations around the corner.
"A great deal of an aeroplane could be holed without affecting its ability to fly. Wings and fuselage could be—and often were—pierced in 50 places, missing the occupants by inches (blissfully unaware of how close it had come until they returned to base). Then the sailmaker would carefully cover each hole with a square inch of Irish linen frayed at the edges and with a brushful of dope make our aircraft 'serviceable' again within an hour."
Carrick - Despite the damage to their Camels, it looks like it was a very good show for the boys of 54. And two more for Cecil on top of it - nice!
Fullofit - "The Case of the Disappearing Bréguet", sounds like a Perry Mason episode. At least that second one stayed temporal long enough for Raben to finish it off.
NR - Ah yes, the curse of temporary desk duty, keeping in mind the operative word there is "temporary".
Albert - A good day for Sigmund with both his victories confirmed. Drinks in the kasino methinks!
Raine - Fergie in a Wolseley SE5a? Watch out air Huns! Too bad that first blood with his new mount was unconfirmed, but your man knows he got 'em.
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21 August 1918 43 Squadron R.A.F. Fienvillers, France
Despite the rather awkward introduction to Sergeant Bellows, Major Abbott soon discovered the man was an absolute godsend, in particular since Freddy hadn't a clue as to what he was doing in regards to his new position. After the sergeant had gotten Abbott settled into the CO's hut very early on the morning of the nineteenth he'd given the major a brief rundown of who the squadron staff officers and flight commanders currently were, and also when the briefing for the first sorties of the day would be. At Freddy's request Bellows returned a few hours later, shortly past six, and woke him so that he could drop in at the briefing and begin meeting the lads. Major Abbott spent the remainder of the nineteenth and all of the twentieth getting to know as much as he could about the officers and men he was now in charge of, as well as the general layout and workings of the camp, all with the much-needed and much-appreciated assistance of Sergeant Bellows. Shortly before dusk on the second day Freddy also managed a brief cook's tour of his AO, taking one of the spare Camels up for a turn. The surrounding terrain and situation was all very familiar to him as things had not changed much since he'd been at Bertangles, (a few miles to the south), three months prior.
Today was more of the same in terms of sorting out just what it was he was meant to be doing as the officer commanding. He was coming to the conclusion that the main expectations of him, by both HQ and the squadron, were as follows: first, ensure the success of 43's overall mission; next, to look out for the well-being of all those under his command; further, to make sure the outfit had everything it needed to do it's job as best it could; and finally, to implement whatever improvements he believed would be in the best interest of his outfit in particular and the RAF in general. A tall order, but fortunately Abbott already had a well-trained staff in place, thoughtfully left there by the previous CO. And Freddy, not being a proud man, and knowing quite well his own limitations, had no issue at all relying on that staff.
This afternoon, the new Major informed the leader of B Flight, Captain Charles 'Sandy' Banks, that he would be tagging along on their sortie, an OP of the lines directly east of camp. Abbott had already visited with the AMs about trimming up the spare Camel he'd flown the day before and having the ID letter 'A' painted on it, (his usual 'F' already assigned to another pilot). It was raining fairly heavy when the flight lifted off at 1:35, but it lighten as they alted toward the front lines. They'd hardly begun their patrol when the six Camels were bounced by seven V-strutters sporting yellow-and-green striped tails. The King's airmen wasted no time in taking the fight to the enemy and Freddy was quite excited about being back in a furball after three months away. He quickly latched onto one of the Albs that itself was on the six of one of the Camels. Abbott lined up and unleased a long volley from the twin Vickers and watched with satisfaction as the Hun broke off his own attack. Freddy gave chase and continued to send hate into the hostile plane, which then fell into a spin. He followed it down some distance to ensure it wasn't a trick - it was not. The V-strutter slammed into the ground and burst into flames. Major Abbott rejoined the rest of the flight to find they had things well in hand, with two other Huns falling OOC and the rest running east. It was a most successful return to battle for Freddy, and he was feeling quite good about life in general as he sat at the desk in his office and filled out his AAR and claim form. Perhaps being the man in charge would not be as daunting a task as he'd first imagined.
Lifting up from Fienvillers on the afternoon sortie, Abbott's first combat outing in three months.
The Major lined up and unleased a long volley from the twin Vickers and watched with satisfaction as the Hun broke off his own attack.
Freddy gave chase and continued to send hate into the hostile plane, which then fell into a spin. He followed it down some distance to ensure it wasn't a trick - it was not.
The V-strutter slammed into the ground and burst into flames.
Albert, I find it strange that even with the other Schwarm ahead, the Bréguets still preferred to attack Klaus. It’s like a personal vendetta. Raben will no longer dismiss SPADs and attack with extreme prejudice after the going ons from the day before. And you’re right, supply of alcohol to military is more vital than supply of fuel or spare parts. Fighting sober ain’t fun.
Lou, looks like some things never change, like management that knows nothing of managing. At least Freddy knows how to bring down Huns and that’s all that matters.
One of the SPADs had been confirmed out of the three claims from yesterday. Better than nothing, I keep hearing. Today it was back to supporting ground forces, this time between Marbache and Malzeville. Klaus was leading the Schwarm and brought them up above the clouds, rain and murk. While en route he spotted a trio of two-seaters and braced himself for a tough fight. Thankfully, as he came closer, he realized they were friendlies and decided to escort them to the front. It was nice not getting shot at by the bombers for once. When they reached the Front they’ve separated from the large birds and commenced their patrol. It didn’t take long for them to be accosted by another flight of large planes coming out of the clouds at a higher altitude. This time there were more of them than just three and this time they weren’t friendly. A gaggle of Bréguet Fighters came down on them north of Marbache. As usual, Raben had to avoid the initial attacks while the rest of the Schwarm was still pulling their thumbs out of their arses. Once they realized they’re supposed to help, the Bréguets had to deal with more than they could handle and Klaus could finally join the fight. After spotting one flying low, Klaus latched on and let go only after the enemy bom … scout lost its wing. The Schwarm was rather mauled by the opposition and it was decided to return to base. The repairs commenced anew.
"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."
Lou - Freddy is finding his feet it seems both as a CO and just as importantly as a fighter pilot again. Sergeant Bellows sounds like a useful chap to have around and hopefully someone Freddy can delegate to. Then to his first outing in a very long time but he fought like he'd been doing it every day in between. He's clearly not lost any of his prowess and clobbered that Albatros good and proper. As for Sigmund, the claim gods are with him at the moment as today's outings will confirm, it won't last.
Fullofit - That was one (or several actually) tough mother of a Breguet. I was beginning to wonder if someone had put blanks in Klaus's guns. He was banging away like a barn door in a gale. Finally the French bird had it's feathers plucked and fell from the sky. I agree with calling them fighters, as I would do for the DH4 as well. They're flown as fighters and seem to fancy themselves as fighters....so fighters they shall be.
"A great deal of an aeroplane could be holed without affecting its ability to fly. Wings and fuselage could be—and often were—pierced in 50 places, missing the occupants by inches (blissfully unaware of how close it had come until they returned to base). Then the sailmaker would carefully cover each hole with a square inch of Irish linen frayed at the edges and with a brushful of dope make our aircraft 'serviceable' again within an hour."
Oberflugmaat Sigmund Winterhart Seefrosta II Vlisseghem airfield Flanders
7 confirmed kills
21st August 1918
Early Morning sortie
Leutnant Huecker took the early morning briefing and confirmed today would be a busy day for Seefrosta II. Thanks to a marked increase in air activity over the lines over the last few days, the Jasta had been tasked with three sorties today as well as remaining on alert in the meantime.
First up was a jaunt down to Passchendaele and the lines north west of that point. The weather was still bad, it was still raining and massive cloud formations would make accurate spotting something of a lottery.
Sigmund et al took off and climbed up to 4000 meters before heading south west. They'd reached Passchendaele without incident and were turning north west along the northern part of the Ypres salient. Suddenly Sigmund heard what sounded like a car crashing and looked directly above. He saw several aircraft but at least two of them had clearly collided and were hurtling down in flames.
He saw they were enemy Camels and what remained of their flight were flying around above Seefrosta II and seemingly unable to decide if it was still worth attacking.
Sigmund began climbing up towards the enemy as they continued to dilly-dally. He'd almost reached the three remaining Englanders when one of them finally realised what was about to happen and dived at Sigmund.
The enemy was skilled and worked at getting behind Sigmund whilst keeping some height advantage. A tight turning match ensued which seemed to go on for a long time. The two foes lost a lot of height as they circled down and down. Whilst Sigmund was lower than the Camel, it was all happening over German lines, at some point something would have to give.
It was Sigmund who decided to try something. He rolled and dived down steeply but then pulled up and over to the right in a turning Immelmann maneuver. The flummoxed Camel swung right and for a moment flew across Sigmund's sight. Bubi fired into the Englander who now tried to flee. "Keine hoffnung in der hölle!" exclaimed Sigmund as he fired again.
A final burst and the Camel was in flames. He nosed down and smashed into the ground.
Sigmund looked around but could only see another Fokker and together they headed home.
On landing, Flugmeister Kairies who was the other pilot, came over to Sigmund as he climbed down and clapped him on the back. "Good work Bubi! I saw that schweinhund go down." said Kairies.
As everyone else landed only Sigmund had downed anything, it seems as if the other Camels ran.
Mid morning sortie (awaiting one confirmation)
After the aircraft had been refuelled and rearmed and the pilots had had some refreshment they were to go again. Leutnant Freymadl explained that Schwarm Zwei would be heading back towards Passchendaele on a patrol. Schwarm Eins was to remain on alert at the airfield.
They took off in the constant rain with their tailskids digging ruts in the airfield. After forming and climbing they headed back south west.
The sortie passed without incident and all aircraft returned safely about 80 minutes later.
Afternoon sortie (awaiting one confirmation)
Leutnant Huecker took the briefing for the final planned outting and explained the whole Jasta would be flying to the lines south of Nieuwpoort.
The weather remained bad and Sigmund wondered how much more the airfield could take. Thankfully everyone got airborne safely and after climbing upto 4200 meters they headed out west.
As they progressed Sigmund froze for a second as he saw a very large formation of aircraft to the right stacked across several thousand feet. Thankfully he realised they were friendly.
As they reached the lines Sigmund looked down and saw something silhouetted against a cloud. He focussed his eyes and saw it again, several aircraft below and coming across the lines.
He signalled and started down towards them. As he neared he realised they were a flight of DH4's. He dived down at the leader and before the two seater could react effectively he fired a good burst into him.
The enemy formation broke up and Sigmund worked to keep his six clear whilst keeping an eye on his original target.
He closed in for another pass and took some hits from the gunner but poured bullets into the Englander.
He was tearing chunks out of the DH4 but it wouldn't go down. The gunner hit Sigmund's aircraft again and he pressed the triggers down and blasted the two seater, he kept firing until the left side wings were nonexistent. The stricken Englander finally went into a vicious spiral and went into the ground.
Sigmund could see other DH4's running for home but also saw another two seater going down to his left.
He formed up and headed home. They landed safely some 20 minutes later.
On landing, he found that Flugmeister Kairies had downed the other DH4 and although three Fokkers were damaged, none were serious.
Leutnant Huecker was able to confirm both of Sigmund's claims today. Kairies' claim was also confirmed bringing him to 4 kills. Sigmund was on 9.
"A great deal of an aeroplane could be holed without affecting its ability to fly. Wings and fuselage could be—and often were—pierced in 50 places, missing the occupants by inches (blissfully unaware of how close it had come until they returned to base). Then the sailmaker would carefully cover each hole with a square inch of Irish linen frayed at the edges and with a brushful of dope make our aircraft 'serviceable' again within an hour."
Cecil P Fawnsworth Sgt, Rfc, 54 Sqn Fienvillers, AF.
Aug 19 , 1918.
5 Victory Confirmed 2 Unconfirmed
Had the Duty last night, I was off to the Town on the Motorcycle after 4 hrs sleep. I say smashing Pubs after I down a few everything was looking up. I got back in the wee hours and was informed The Balloon was confirmed, but all anyone saw that I was swawing about after na 3 wing No witness or wreckage no Kill. Sqn Rules
Carrick - I see Cecil has gone to his happy place. Cheers! And just out of curiosity, where exactly is this pub? I've a feeling Freddy and his men may like to pay a visit, given what it has to offer.
Albert - Sigmund just keeps right on raising his score. Gongs are coming soon I do believe. Great screenies, my fav is the camp shot with the planes and men out in the rain.
Fullofit - An outstanding dogfight video! That final shot of the two smoke trails curling down is pure, unadulterated Hollywood.
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22 August 1918 43 Squadron R.A.F. Fienvillers, France
It was Major Frederick Abbott's fourth day as CO, and with each one that passed he felt more confident about his newfound responsibilities. The officers and men under him were all first-rate and eager to do their bit to bring a final end to this gawdawful war. The most recent counter-offensives had knocked the Germans back on their heels, kicked off by the British 4th Army's massive tank attack a fortnight ago near Amiens. And the last two days had seen the French 10th Army capture the Aisne Heights, while the British 3rd Army had launched its own offensive south of Arras in concert with the British 4th resuming its push in the Somme. After the Hun's frightening advance in March the tide was at last turning back firmly in favour of the Entente, aided in no small part by the influx of American troops. Nearly a million of them were now doing their part along the Western Front, with thousands more arriving every day. Perhaps this was the year that peace would be restored.
And to that end, Freddy tagged along this morning with the lads on a combined OP of the lines southeast of Amiens. Every available Camel was sent out, in two flights of eight planes each. B Flight, led by Captain Charles 'Sandy' Banks, took the lower position to act as bait; while A flight, led by Captain Augustus 'Orly' Orlebar, served as lookout and top cover. The Major went with the latter, his Camel now dressed with his signature blue wheel spats and tail plane. It was a wonderful day for flying in terms of weather, however the massive white billowy clouds were offering far more hiding places for the air Hun than Abbott would have liked. And it was from one such hiding place east of Amiens that a gaggle of D.VIIs suddenly pounced on B Flight. However, in their haste to kill, two of the Fokkers collided. One of the D.VIIs lost its entire lower wing and fell like a stone, while the other, which was covered in black-and-white stripes and likely the leader of the crew, carved up and away, leaving half its undercarriage behind. Chaos among the Kaiser's remaining flyers ensued, which resulted in the superior number of Camels devastating their would-be attackers. Freddy tore after the striped Hun as the fellow quite literally cut right in front of him. Despite damage, the Boche pilot still had control of his mount and attempted to evade Freddy, but it was too late. The Vickers of the Camel quickly found their mark and the top right wing of the D.VII broke away. Abbott watched briefly as the gaudy kite tumbled earthward before he himself swung round to rejoin the battle. But the bruhaha was already wrapping up and there were no more targets to chase. A quiet remainder of the patrol and return to camp thereafter. Along the way they passed over the Major's old digs at Bertangles and he realized upon seeing it that it seemed ages ago since he'd last been there, though it was really little more than three months. Time is a tricky thing, especially when one is living it sixty seconds to the minutes in such life-or-death circumstances.
Upon landing back at Fienvillers, the lads of 43 turned in claims for no less than six of the Fokkers, all without loss or damage to any of their own. It had been a fine flip for the Major and his men.
The Camels of 43 Squadron heading out on morning patrol. It was a wonderful day for flying.
Approaching Amiens, B Flight took the lower position of the formation to act as bait. Massive white billowy clouds were offering some fine hiding places for the air Hun.
A gaggle of D.VIIs suddenly pounced on B Flight, but in their haste to kill two of the Fokkers collide.
Freddy tore after the striped Hun as the fellow quite literally cut right in front of him.
Despite damage, the Boche pilot still had control of his mount and attempted to evade Freddy, but it was too late.
The Vickers of the Camel quickly found their mark and the top right wing of the D.VII broke away.
Abbott watched briefly as the gaudy kite tumbled earthward before he himself swung round to rejoin the battle.
On the return to camp they passed over the Major's old digs at Bertangles.
Upon landing back at Fienvillers, the lads of 43 turned in claims for no less than six of the Fokkers. A fine flip.
Carrick - Cecil got one confirmation at least and it's turned him into a bonafide ace. He then celebrated in auspicious style, she's my type of barmaid that one she's got quite a pull.
Lou - Another fine day for Freddy. The good news from the front was matched by the great performance of the squadron, 6 without loss including one for the CO. Good to see 'Orly' Orlebar survived his time flying BE12's in 19 squadron. He even had time for a reminisce over Bertangles (great picture of the area btw). As for Sigmund, he's in good form at the moment but with the news from the front, he's going to have to be on top form from now on in.
"A great deal of an aeroplane could be holed without affecting its ability to fly. Wings and fuselage could be—and often were—pierced in 50 places, missing the occupants by inches (blissfully unaware of how close it had come until they returned to base). Then the sailmaker would carefully cover each hole with a square inch of Irish linen frayed at the edges and with a brushful of dope make our aircraft 'serviceable' again within an hour."
Albert, Bréguets, Strutters and DH.4’s feel like they have AI and FM routines accidentally mixed with that of a scout. I will call them fighters, just as I will call BHaH a game and not a sim until it gets fixed. I see Sigmund doesn’t have too many problems with bringing down those infernal two-seaters. For that matter, no real problems with bringing down single-seaters either. Just give him a target and he’ll take care of it. The Camels tripping over each other also helps. Congrats on two more confirmed victories. One more and he’ll be a Kanone! Oh, and I’ve just heard the latest news. Congrats on EK2!
Lou, that Hollywood shot is brought to you by one of Raben’s idiot wingmen developing the Sturmbock technique. As you can see, it’s working too well. As for Freddy, a fine display of force this morning, making the Huns trip over each other. Putting that hurt Hun out of his misery was just a formality. A shame to put an end to such a nice paint job. Thank you also for the latest bling. Kaiser is too kind … and the Gong Fairy as vicious as ever. Gird your loins, friend and foe alike!
With the C.O. flying so close to Klaus when he took out the Bréguet last morning there was no way it would not have been confirmed. Another good news was that his Fokker was repaired in time to take part in this morning’s patrol of the friendly lines near Nancy. As they were making their way to the Front the Schwarm ran across a formation of SPADs at a higher altitude. Klaus waited for them to attack while making sure the attack wouldn’t come from behind. Finally, one of the Franzose came after Raben and Klaus avoided the attack easily and in turn sent a greeting of his own in his foe’s way. The enemy took it badly and took a dive towards the ground. Klaus had no intention of following and getting separated from the main fight. He soon found another playmate and ended up on his tail. Plenty of spent ammunition later the SPAD was careening down to smash into the ground. Klaus didn’t watch his enemy’s final moments and was already scanning for another victim. He found one immediately and observed it trying to get away from the pursuing Fokker. Klaus took advantage of the situation and poured a volley into the exposed belly of the looping SPAD. It looked fatal. The French machine spiralled into the ground, followed by the other Fokker just to make sure.
Raben checked his surroundings, but didn’t find any more enemy planes nearby. Instead, he found a few dots heading south. Most likely the enemy planes were retreating and were followed closely by the rest of the Schwarm. He headed after them not expecting to catch any of them. Then, some movement below on his port side caught his attention. A SPAD! He would surely catch up to this one. Klaus put his Fokker in a shallow dive and felt the speed building up. The engine was howling and he could see the enemy growing in front of him. The Franzose realized he wasn’t going to get away before reaching the Front and instead chose to face Raben head on. After the merge, the SPAD dove, trying to trick the German into following him, but Klaus was too smart to fall for this trick. He’d lose the only advantage of speed and certainly be left behind by the speedy SPAD. He stayed up and observed the enemy’s moves. As predicted, after trading height for speed the French pilot was on his way towards friendly lines, but the Fokker didn’t fall for this ruse and was still above with plenty of height to catch him again. The two had to fight it out. There was no running away and the enemy pilot knew it. He faced Klaus once more and was ready to fight to the death. The Spandaus chattered and there was nothingness. The SPAD nosed down and went straight into the ground. The well aimed burst surprised even Klaus. He turned his machine around and headed north.
22 August, 1918 12:00 noon mission Montingen, Verdun Sector Jasta 18 Hauptmann Klaus Gustav Raben PLM HHO EK1 EK2 Fokker D.VII 78 confirmed kills Awaiting three claim confirmations
A top-priority call cam in at noon to intercept enemy planes heading for the troop camp near Pont-à-Mousson. There was a sense of urgency about this outing. Only Schwarm Zwei was able to scramble in time. They were on their way north of Verny when they were spotted by a flight of SPADs high above. “- We don’t have time for these games now! Have to catch those bombers.” Klaus protested, but it wasn’t up to him. The SPADs were coming down whether he liked it or not. He had the rest of his formation already scattered and ready to accommodate the uninvited guests. One came close by, guns blazing. He couldn’t even tell where he’d come from and where’d gone to. He continued to circle to make himself a difficult target. The enemy planes continued to hang high above his machine. That’s fine, he’ll come down even lower. This way, if they follow they’ll be that much easier to get at by the rest of his Schwarm. Wouldn’t you know it? They fell for it. Now the fight was on. The confused SPADs were now being ripped apart by the Fokkers that found themselves suddenly at the same altitude. That was the moment Klaus was waiting for. With all the confusion he was able to jump one of the enemy planes and respond in kind. Raben took note of the roundels. Amerikaner. Klaus was on him and firing mercilessly. First, part of the top port plane came off, then the engine began to smoke. Klaus continued to fire until the SPAD went into a dive and his Spandaus jammed. He continued to follow the enemy in a dive while attempting to unjam the guns. One was now working again. He fired a few rounds to test it, then cleared the jam of his other machine gun. With both guns working again he renewed his attack. It seemed that the enemy pilot has had enough and was going to crash, but Klaus was livid and wanted to hurt his foe more, much more. He continued to fire to just before the stricken plane hit the ground. Klaus made a half-turn and looked for another Indianer to punish. He hound one immediately. He was being followed by three other Fokkers with Klaus just in front and below. The enemy pilot tried to turn hard and make his followers collide with each other. It didn’t work and only managed to place his plane in front of Raben’s guns. More brutal fire from Klaus’ Spandaus and another Amerikaner was diving in a stricken machine. Just like before, Klaus continued to fire until the enemy hit the ground and disintegrated into a thousand pieces.
The fight was over but the damage was done. When the Schwarm arrived over the troop camp they knew right away they were too late. Columns of smoke were rising in parts of the camp. Soldiers running around trying to salvage what they could, while others tried to douse the fires with buckets of water. Klaus failed and despite his best attempts it was the Americans who succeeded in intercepting the Schwarm and accomplished their mission.
"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."
54 Sqn Rules: Never discuss How many kills U have .. Never discuss How much money U owe to your Taylor Never discuss The location of the Sqn's Pub as fellow Flyers cannot be trusted Never discuss Your Pub Tab or a fellow Flyer's bar Tab.
Fullofit - A fresh portion of SPADs for Klaus to gobble up in the morning and he did not disappoint. He didn't follow the first one down and instead kept his height which was a neat trick which paid off. Then in the afternoon, an important intercept mission but the clever Amerikaner got themselves in-between Klaus and his destination. He had no option but to engage but at least was able to do so on his terms eventually. A tough blow for the army camp but it's doubtful Klaus and ko would have stopped the bomb run anyway. A great day for Klaus, kills galore, confirmations and a shiny new gong from Saxony no less etc etc etc. As for Sigmund, he's enjoying himself against the Camels, those DH4's are tough though, they take some heat and have the same incredible gunners that the Breguet and Strutters are blessed with.
Raine - Well down to 'Fergie' on his gong.
"A great deal of an aeroplane could be holed without affecting its ability to fly. Wings and fuselage could be—and often were—pierced in 50 places, missing the occupants by inches (blissfully unaware of how close it had come until they returned to base). Then the sailmaker would carefully cover each hole with a square inch of Irish linen frayed at the edges and with a brushful of dope make our aircraft 'serviceable' again within an hour."
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And just out of curiosity, where exactly is this pub? I've a feeling Freddy and his men may like to pay a visit, given what it has to offer.![[Linked Image]](https://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/download/Number/34644/filename/Frederick%20Abbott%20mission%208-22-18%20001.jpg)
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