If anyone is looking for an unusual background for a WW1 aerial game then try the Battle of Lake Tanganyka...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle...ake_Tanganyika

The British commander (Spicer-Simpson) is "a man court-martialled for wrecking his own ships, an inveterate liar and a wearer of skirts" who also 'went native' at one point and got himself tattooed. Despite this he won the DSO and Croix-De-Guerre.
Two of his ships, HMS Mimi and HMS Toutou were named after his wife's pet poodles. These were built in Britain, shipped to Africa in bits, dragged across the African savanna by steam traction engines - at one time braving a bush fire which drove towards them on the track. The solution was to light another bush fire on the other side of the track, let it burn out and away from them, pull the convoy on to the now fire-proofed burned ground and wait for the real bush fire to reach the convoy and fizzle out.
The mission was to take naval control of Lake Tanganyka from the Germans who already had three large gunboats dominating the lake.
A German officer swam ashore to investigate and was captured but managed to smuggle out a report written in his own urine.
You could not make this up!

Spicer-Simpson RN eventually succeeded and the lake came under Anglo/Belgian control.

The sole air component was four Short Type 827 floatplanes which were used to bomb the SMS Gotzen but you would write your own scenario for German and British two-seaters, maybe Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutters and the early Albatros, getting involved in the naval combat. The ship models would be simple to make and might include a rear-gunner with a machine gun.

Amazingly one of the German ships still survives to this day and still steams on the lake even after it was sunk twice. The Germans had greased the parts so well that the engines survived total immersion in the lake for several years. It is now a ferry.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Liemba

This story is also the basis for the book and film The African Queen.

Barry