A quick trip over the lines!
It all seemed so simple in the briefing room. Now that we had gained air superiority Escort a “Biff” over the enemy airfield at dawn and photograph it ready for an attack on said airfield later in the day.
It was just a pity that our friendly neighbourhood Hun commander (Stormkahn) had decided to take his chaps for an early morning jaunt.
As our intrepid pilots arrived at the enemy airfield some machines were already in the air whilst others were taxiing out of their hangers or in the process of taking off from the grass landing strip.
Our first pass was disrupted by the intervention of a very aggressive DVII flown by the Jasta leading Ace Fritz Doberman.
As the Bristol attempted to take his photos, he not only came under a burst of sustained Archie fire, but was in turn attacked head on by Doberman again.
It was only a well judged burst of machine gun rounds that enabled him to drive off Doberman and set his machine on fire.
Seconds later Cpt. Roderick King flying a Sopwith Dolphin accounted for the first of the Fokker DVII in a fusillade of bullets.
Having finally taken his photographs, Sub LT. Checkley in the “Biff” re crossed the airfield, whilst King got onto the tail of another Hun machine without noticing the one dropping down onto his own tail.
With a deft burst of fire from both himself and his rear gunner Sub Lt. Black, Checkley managed to shoot the Hun off the tail of King en passant. King, himself, only sustained some slight engine damage which caused it to start to smoke.
With a good job done, Checkley now turned away and tried to gain some height before running the gauntlet of the lines.
Abandoning the chase, with the mission complete, and still smoking, King joined Checkley in a run for home dodging the farewell salvo of Archie from the German lines.
Rob.
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