With the spring offensive looming, High Command demanded that the sky above the rear areas be kept clear of prying eyes. It was imperative that the assembly areas must be kept secret from Entente observation.
Major Buttner scratched his head as he read the latest orders. “How can we do this without enough aircraft”? The late winter had taken its toll on the Fliegertruppen and more so on their aircraft.
Buttner spent the afternoon calling on all the connections he had with acquiring new aircraft. Two hours, three hours went on and no aircraft could be found in the depots anywhere along the front. Then when all seemed lost, an old acquaintance with direct connections to a factory found three new Siemen-Schuckerts that were immediately available from the factory.
Time was of the essence so they had to be delivered as soon as possible. With all the Eagles flying the few airplanes they had practically all day no one could be spared to ferry the planes forward. Three of the factories test pilots were willing to ferry the planes to the Eagle’s Aerodrome. They were very good pilots but not they were not combat pilots, so they asked for an escort for protection when they neared the front.
Having to keep enough planes in the air to keep any enemy observation planes away was nearly impossible on its own but Buttner squeezed the schedule as much as he could to free up one pilot, Ltn. Franz Kohler.
The next morning at the SSW factory it was a clear for flying so the three go off as scheduled. The Eagles aerodrome was called to tell them when to expect the delivery. Kohler would go aloft half an hour before their expected arrival and guide them in.
Willi Meier, Gustav Hartman and Jakob Bauer were expert test pilots but were not confident at flying so near to the front. All seemed well for an hour and thirty or so minutes…
From the south came 2Lt Archie Joslyn and 2Lt Charles Daley. They were to rendezvous with 2Lt Fitzgerald Muns and 2Lt Bently Seymour who were coming from the north.
Kohler couldn’t believe his eyes. Just as he spotted the delivery group, two EA came in from the south, and then two more from the north. “This will not turn out well”, he thought.
Before they could try to evade the trio were bounced. Hartman, frozen at the stick, was pummeled by two Camels. He barely got off a wild shot as he winced in pain when he was hit.
Bauer and Meier did their best to fight off the attack but Meier’s guns quickly went silent.
The two planes coming from the south were on a course to cut off the path of the new planes. If the veteran EA got between the novice factory pilots, they wouldn’t stand a chance.
Kohler immediately engaged the two knowing he must keep them occupied at all cost. The initial volley gave Kohler’s plane massive damage but he did set one of the two on fire. So far the morning was looking bleak.
To keep their attention off of the novices Kohler made a daring pass extremely close to the second Camel.
Meier was in a panic. His guns were jammed. He knew how to clear them but didn’t have any practical experience. Thinking only of the guns he took his eyes off of the EA immediately on his left. It flashed right before his eyes and startled the scheiss out of him. He didn’t even realize that they had brushed wing tips.
As Hartman flew directly for the landing field Bauer tried to cover his back. A Camel with red hearts on it closed in on Hartman’s left wing. Bauer pulled the trigger….nothing.
Bently Seymour had been well into setting up his Immelmann when he caught fire. Coming out of the reversal the fire flared up and ate away a fair amount of his canvas.
He could see the German that caused his dilemma straight ahead. How to deal with the fire and keep after the German…he thought.
Turning sharply, he briefly wafted the flames away from his Camel.
With one EA burning and another thrown off course, Kohler saw the eminent threat to the trio as another Camel closed in. He had to do something fast.
As the Camel threaded between the toothless novices attacking one, Kohler tried his best to engage while avoiding his countrymen.
Kohler succeeded in distracting the red hearted foe but to his horror from lead from behind splattered all about his engine, setting it ablaze!
The distracted Camel didn’t see Seymour coming and paid dearly for it. Somehow Seymour’s burning Camel absorbed the blow without flinching.
Muns now maneuvered to close in on the trailing German. ‘Strangely these Huns were not fighting’ he thought, so this should be easy….click.
As Kohler turns to keep between the EA and the novices disaster struck. That damned burning EA was persistent and made a wreck of his triplane with deadly precision. Kohler spun to earth like a falling leaf, but a falling leaf that was a more like an Easter bonfire!
Seymour’s fire wasn’t going away easily.
The race was on. The three delivery pilots tried for all they were worth to outrun the EA.
Muns cursed as he worked his jam clear. He would have had such a lineup of clear shots if not for the jam.
The airfield was close, now to dive down to land.
It was all up to Muns if any more Germans were to be downed. Seymour and Daley were too out of position.
Seymour’s fire finally goes out.
As they line up for landing Bauer hears an EA closing on his tail. He knows he cannot fight three EA so he must go through with the landing.
Muns closes in and Bauer’s DIII billows out a thick black smoke as Hartman lands first.
Hartman, hearing the shooting behind him lands a bit fast and nearly runs out of field. When his DIII stops the propeller destroys a raspberry bush on the edge of the field.
Meier now makes his landing. Even under pressure he lands expertly. He quickly drives his plane to the corner where ground crew are setting up machine guns.
Lastly is Bauer with a brow covered in nervous sweat and an EA on his tail.
Bauer dives down to land. Just as he can feel the cushion of air between him and the ground gunfire erupts very close behind him.
The ground crew get their machine gun tattering but it is too late. The third plane has disintegrated upon landing setting a burning trail along the grass field. As the burning remains of the plane comes to a stop there is no motion from Bauer.
Knowing there is machine gun fire coming from the ground, the trio of Camels can’t see clearly through the smoke so leave well enough alone and head west.
Butcher’s Bill
2Lt Archie Joslyn SD EXP ET 0 kills
C 8 – 3(exp) = 5, injured 1 = miss 1 mission
E 2 -1(ecp) -1(wic) -1(bel) = -1, captured, the war is over for you!
2Lt Charles Daley RTB 0 kills
2 Lt Bently Seynour RTB 1 kill
Fitzgerald Muns RTB 1 kill
Ltn Franz Kohler SD EXP FT 0 kills
C 12 -3(exp) = 9… OK!
Factory pilot Gustav Hartmann WIA RTB
C 6 -1(wia) +3(rtb) = 8 injured… he won’t be heading directly back to the factory
Factory pilot Willi Meier RTB RTF (return to factory)
Factory pilot Jacob Bauer SD EXP
C 4 – 3(exp) = 1 KIA
If I counted it up correctly it appears to be a draw at 31 points.
Even if Bauer had landed the third plane with no more damage, it still would have been a draw.
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