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Thread: Mission 14: Hot Water In Cold Weather!

  1. #1

    Default Mission 14: Hot Water In Cold Weather!

    France, January 1918

    Dear Mother and Father,

    My first few weeks serving with Jasta 6 at Marckebecke were relatively quiet. After New Year's, the cold winter weather brought several days of cloud and heavy wind, most unsuitable for flying. However, yesterday the weather cleared up sufficiently to put a patrol in the air...and immediately I found myself in hot water, if you will pardon the expression!

    Myself and three of my squadron mates took to the air late yesterday morning around 1000 hours. Though the weather had eased somewhat, heavy cloud cover made visibility difficult. Imagine our shock when only after a few minutes into our patrol, we found ourselves practically on top of a group of British planes that suddenly broke through the cloud layer on top of us!



    Both sides immediately scattered and broke off into one-on-one dogfights. I found myself facing a British S.E.5, and realized immediately this encounter would push me to my utmost. The S.E.5 is one of the best aircraft fielded by our foes. It is fast, highly maneuverable and in the right hands is more than a match for my own Albatros D.Va, "Lotti." Balancing that out, however, was my own familiarity and experience-as you know from my previous letters home, Lotti and I have been through many challenging fights together, and have survived everything the foe has thrown at us so far!

    Still, at first fortune did not seem to be with me in this encounter! As soon as the S.E. 5 and myself found ourselves racing toward each other, we opened up with simultaneous bursts of machine gun fire. My satisfaction at seeing my foe's plane turn away abruptly as I riddled it with bullets was swiftly replaced by alarm a few minutes later as I saw licks of flame, smoke and steam begin to sputter from my own fuselage! The enemy's bullets had struck my radiator and the sparks from the ricochet had started a small fire!



    Banking away from my foe, I put Lotti through a series of rapid sideslips and turns in the hope I could extinguish the flames before they consumed Lotti's engine or frame! Seeing me at a disadvantage, my opponent circled his fighter around in an effort to take advantage of my dire situation. However, if there is anything I have learned from my previous missions, it is that Fortune is truly fickle and can change her affections at the drop of a hat. My desperate attempts to douse the flames apparently made my flight so unpredictable that the Englishman turned just a shade too tightly ... setting me up for a second attack against his aircraft! Despite the smoke and heat, my reflexes took over and I was able to successfully fire my guns and strike him several more times.



    My next stroke of luck was that my desperate maneuvers worked-the flames died without doing lasting damage and I was once again able to engage relatively unscathed. Still, whatever else you may say about them, those English engineers know their business-my enemy's aircraft still seemed hale despite the bullets I had put into it, and he was more than willing to continue the fight! We made two or three more circling passes through and above the clouds, neither of us quite able to position ourselves for a decisive advantage. I was deeply impressed not only by my opponent's endurance and durability, but the skill with which he put his S.E.5 exactly where he needed it.



    At last, the end of our encounter drew near...ironically, with us ending as we began, approaching each other from high speed. I think we both sensed that this pass would be the critical one that decided our battle. We each dove forward, guns blazing...but knowing I could not out-turn my foe, I suddenly reduced speed in the hope he would be eager for the kill and overshoot me...and my plan worked! Too late, he realized he had once more swung into my field of fire...



    ...and a few seconds later, I saw him plummet out of control into the clouds. Victory was mine!



    Despite the hits I had taken, I was able to get "Lotti" back to base with no further incidents-much to my relief! It was a chancy affair, but it ended well for me. I credit my victory as much to my plane as myself...there are many other members of my Jasta who have eagerly sought to replace their aircraft with the new Fokkers that have been coming off the assembly lines, but in this situation, my familiarity with the flaws and quirks of my dear old Lotti was as crucial in helping me outfly my opponent as my piloting and marksmanship skills. Experience, they say, is the best teacher...but she is also a powerful ally to have when you are facing the foe above the clouds!

    Your son,
    Wolfram von Thun-Hohenstein
    Oberleutnant, Jasta 6
    Marckebeke

    (Note: It's been several years since I've had a chance to write one of my "Letters Home" AARs, but since my wife and I have recently been getting into WGS games again, I wanted to see if I could get back into the adventures of Wolfram von Thun-Hohenstein again...and I'm glad I got the chance this week! My wife suggested this match-up after we watched a very interesting NOVA documentary about the Vintage Aviators in New Zealand re-creating a dogfight with a reconstructed Albatros and S.E.5. In the documentary, the S.E.5 won easily, so I'm pleased that I was lucky enough to pull off a victory in our game thanks to me narrowly escaping severe damage from an early fire card and my regular past experience flying the D.Va. My wife said she enjoyed trying the S.E.5 for the first time, praising its speed and maneuverability. As she regularly cleans my clock flying a Fokker Dr.I, If I hadn't been familiar with the foibles of the D.Va, and if she had a few more games with the S.E.5 under her belt, things might have gone quite differently! My writing and flying skills may be a bit rusty, but I hope you enjoy this AAR. - Wolfbiter)

  2. #2

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    Nicely done David, a great encounter.

    "He is wise who watches"

  3. #3

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    Nice AAR David - enjoyed reading that. Hats off to you and your wife Rep on the wat.

  4. #4

    Setarius's Avatar May you forever fly in blue skies
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    Dale
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    Nice one. Glad you and your wife are getting back into Wings.

  5. #5

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    Good to see the DVa can work well against a superior plane.

  6. #6

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    Nice match David. Good to see that once in a while a DVa can overcome a superior machine. My wife does not like fast planes like the SE5a. She prefers her Pup and Camel over anything and shoots me down with delight.

  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by Teaticket View Post
    Nice match David. Good to see that once in a while a DVa can overcome a superior machine. My wife does not like fast planes like the SE5a. She prefers her Pup and Camel over anything and shoots me down with delight.
    Thanks! Mrs. Wolfbiter (aka The Baronness) usually prefers the tight-turning dogfighters herself. Her favorite plane is the Fokker Dr.I, and other pilots flee in terror before her kite, lol! She had a lot of praise for the SE5a, though I was surprised that she didn't use the sideslips very often. When I asked her about that, she said, "I prefer to get straight in the fight!"



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