Ares Games

Lt. S.Kafloc

Chapter 2: Combat Patrol

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Captain Maclaren was getting ready to lead B flight out on an offensive combat patrol. Accompanying him would be 2Lt John Howell and 2Lt Peter Fortymore. Fortymore was younger than Howell by 2 years. 3 months ago he had left his school with Rip Ripley. Found some of his brothers uniforms at home. Then audaciously they had taken 2 camels from Hendon and flew them to France. It was only after a few hair rising missions that Biggles and Major Mullen had learned the truth. However because of their exploits both Fortymore and Ripley had been promoted to 2nd Lieutenants and allowed to remain in France with 266 Squadron.
Biggles watched from the hangars as Mac briefed 2Lt Howell on tactics, just as Biggles had done for young Harcourt before the A flight dawn patrol. ‘Thirty’, so called because his older brother, the Right Honourable Nigel Fortymore, was nicknamed ‘Forty’; was already taking the time to check through the 2 belts of vickers bullets before giving the mechanic the nod that they were ok. He was one of the few who regularly took the time to do this.
Mac gave him a wave before heading out to his camel and the start of another mission. The squadron usually flew 4 missions per day. Each flight took it in turn to fly 2 missions, so that one of the 4 flights could have a rest day. Biggles waved back.
It was not long before Mac was leading B flight across the runway into the light wind and headed for their allotted patrol sector which would see them cross the front line at 10,000ft then patrol south for 30 minutes then back north for 30 minutes before crossing the front line and returning back to Marinique.
The outward leg was uneventful and the patrol was going well. Mac was pleased how quickly Howell had settled into the patrol and he had no worries about ‘Thirty’. He was a real asset to the flight. Mac was nearly ready for him to lead a patrol but not quite. The 3 camels banked slowly left for the return leg when Mac spotted something in front and below. 2 Hun bombers, AEG GIV’s blithely flying on with no thought that there may be enemy aircraft near them.
Mac waggled his wings then dived down followed by Howell then ‘Thirty’.
What Mac had failed to see was the two Albatross scouts trailing the bombers slightly higher and to the right of the 3 camels. As soon as the British camels dived to attack, the Albatross’ were already swooping down to follow.
Leutnant’s Stegner and Schmidt could not believe their luck as they pounced on the unsuspecting camels. The Mercedes engines of their DIII’s were screaming as they increased their dive rate to catch the camels which were nearly upon the equally unsuspecting AEG’s. They both picked their targets and readied themselves for an easy kill.
Leutnant Schmidt knew his work well. Diving down he picked out his target and closed to shorten the range. Pressing the trigger when the target area filled his gun sight. 2Lt Howell didn’t know he was a target until the bullets thudded into the camels airframe and he felt a hammer like blow to his right shoulder.
Captain Maclaren and ‘Thirty’ ploughed on and engaged the bombers. An awake rear gunner got off a passing shot at ‘Mac’ but ‘Mac’ could see him hitting his gun and trying to rework the cocking lever. ‘Mac’ knew then that the gunner had jammed the gun. The bomber should be a sitting duck.
Leutnant Stegner had delayed his final dive but swooped down to engage ‘Thirty’. This was the first indication to the leading camels that not everything was going their way.
‘Mac’ and ‘Thirty’ pressed on with their attack. Mac fired a short burst and then one of his Vickers machine guns jammed. He would press on and fire with his remaining gun.
The lumbering AEG’s banked right as Mac and Thirty flew on. Mac lined up on the second AEG bomber as it crossed the nose of his camel. Trying to free the rear gun from its jam bullets thudded into the rear gunner and he slumped back into the rear well. Mac said to himself one gun is just as good as two.
Mac could see a tell tale flicker of flame as his tracer rounds had ignited something in the rear well. The two albatross’ were picking their time to strike again and were circling to the rear of the 3 camels.
Both bombers out of his line of fire, Mac worked to unjam his gun. Thirty taking advantage of the AEG crossing is front let rip with a close range burst and stitched a long line of holes from tail to cockpit on the unfortunate AEG.
Lt Howell had used his brief respite from enemy fir to dive for the deck and race for home as he’d been told to do by Mac before take-off. The two Albatross pilots were now lining themselves up for another attack.
Suddenly the AEG’s broke to left and right catching out Mac and Thirty. However the other AE crossed Thirty’s nose from right to left and he opened up again a telling close range burst. The AEG’s engine was badly damaged from this burst and was definitely in trouble. Howeve the alert front gunner had time to pepper Mac’s camel damaging his rudder control. The first AEG could be seen streaming flames behind it as it turned away from the combat.
The rear gunner of the AEG on fire came round and let off a telling long range burst at Thirty. Smoke and flames began to lick away at the engine cowling. Thirty had to think fast as he threw his camel to the right to narrowly miss the other AEG which had turned into his flight path. Mac was busily trying to dodge the same bomber as he was infront of its path but gave the front gunner an unmissable shot of his underneath. Mac’s aerobatic move had put the gunner off his aim as all the bullets missed the camel.
The AEG on fire succumbed at last and plummeted into the ground still on fire.
Howell was nearing the lines and only too late did he realise he was too low to escape the Bosche archie. Mac and Thirty banked hard right, Thirty’s camel was still on fire but the flames were small enough for him to ignore for now. The AEG carried on turning left as the two albatross’ now committed themselves to a second attack.
Two archie explosions, one either side of his camel, gave 2Lt Howell little time to think. One shot had blown a big hole in his right upper wing. He was forced lower, skimming over the German trench line.
Mac had turned to re-engage the bomber as the two albatross passed it close by. The AEG rear gunner gave Mac a parting shot and he heard the bullets wang off his engine and effect his rudder controls. Hopefully the rudder control would free itself. Forgetting the bomber Mac gave the lead albatross a long burst and was rewarded with the albatross promptly blowing up.
Thirty was low enough for German troops to take pot shots at him as he skimmed the forward trench line. Luckily he was not hit.
Mac and Thirty were trying to extricate themselves and follow Howell home. Leutnant Schmidt taking advantage of Mac turning in front of him could not fire a burst to avenge his fallen comrade as both pilot threw their aircraft sideways to miss colliding with each other. Mac could feel more rounds from the rear gunner of the AEG slamming into his camel. Smoke began to pour from his engine. Home he thought head for home.
Thirty trying to take the pressure off Mac engaged the albatross as more bullets thudded into his camel from the deadly rear gunner of the AEG. Thirty’s gun jammed at this critical point and he too thought head for home, enough is enough.
With the fire in his camel now out Thirty flew next to Mac who gave the thumbs up and pointed for home. Thirty nodded his head. Leutnant Schmidt, his albatross streaming smoke, turned and headed for home too.
Mac and Thirty were worried as there was no sign of Howell as they flew home. However seeing no wreckage of an aircraft gave them hope that he had made it back ok.
A short while later their battered camels landed at Marinique. There was no sign or word of Howells fate when they landed.

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Updated 07-16-2014 at 10:37 by Lt. S.Kafloc

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Comments

  1. Blackronin's Avatar
    Good writing, Neil. I was able to visualise the whole engagement.