OTT CYM – Mission 1 – Back to the Front – July 5th 1916 – Mike’s AAR
“Ye Gods, will yer look at the mess they made of those beautiful new DH2s!”. The Ack Emma making that wry statement, stood there, by the hangar, with his hands on his hips and a look of horror on his face. He was watching the return of the morning patrol; three Airco DH2s, flown by Lt Mick Taker, the aussie 2nd Lt Bo Fletcher, both experienced pilots, and the new boy 2nd Lt Simon Hawker.
The birds flew, rather ungracefully, down onto the grass covered landing strip, each making an accident free touch down, despite the mess they were in. What canvas covered the nacelle buckets and wings was pretty much torn to shreds and great lumps and splinters could be seen already, with the naked eye, to have been torn from wing struts and fuselage frames, together with a few wires waving about where they shouldn’t have been.
“I think we can safely say that the hun have given those three a warm welcome back to the front, wouldn’t you agree?” said his mate. “Best get ready for a long night and hope the spares have caught up with us – come on Ted, time to do some serious work again.”
The squadron had not long since returned from Blighty and Mick Taker’s flight had been the first to go out on morning patrol. Sure enough they had run into trouble and Uncle, also watching the spectacle from the step to his so called office, smoking his favourite pipe, as always, was anxious to know more. He walked, briskly to meet them as they rolled drunkenly up to the hangar area.
“Anyone hurt?” was his first question to Mick Taker, once the engines had ceased their roaring protests.
Mick climbed down, with a big grin on his face.
“Not amongst us, this time!” he said. “Can’t say the same for our “friends” back east though.”
“That makes a nice change, Mick! Ok, over to my shed in ten minutes. Grab yourselves a cup of tea and sort out a brief report between yourselves. You can save the lurid detail for the mess tonight. I’m sure everyone will want to know why your machines went out looking like they just came from the manufacturer, only to have you return them looking like what the Germans might call “Klapper Kistern”.
“Right o, ten minutes it is.”
That evening, the lurid details certainly did do the rounds, embellished, no doubt, by the warm feelings of intoxication resulting from the imbibing of too much whiskey.
The tale went something like this, adjusted somewhat for the slurring of speech and occassional use of foul language.
Mick Taker’s flight had flown across the lines and well over enemy held territory. The intention had been to familiarise themselves with the terrain, much changed by martial activity since they were last here and apart from a small amount of archie, the patrol had been particularly uneventful. They’d spotted the odd two seater here and there, but those had run for cover as soon as they had realized they’d been spotted.
With orders to turn for home on reaching the only untouched church landmark in the area, the heading west had just been made when they had finally run into a flight of four Fokker EIIIs, themselves using the self same church as a landmark point to turn east for their barn.
“It was like this, you see...” announced Bo Fletcher, who then took up the story, him being very good at it.
“I spotted the church first and waved to the boss to let him know. So then we turned west and as we did that I noticed young Simon here, waving his arms frantically!”
“Well, I seem to have keener eyesight than most.” the said 2nd Lt Simon Hawker blurted out, interrupting Bo’s rhetoric, “and I spotted a bunch of Fokkers heading our way.”
“Exactly” added Bo. “They were cruising over their own trenches and not, apparently, in the least concerned with anything else. They calmly turned in our direction, presumably heading home, like us. But, of course, that brought them into a head on brush with us.” and Bo grinned at the recollection.
“Turning towards the hun, I found myself a little ahead of the boss, sorry Mick …..” and Mick just shrugged his shoulders and took another gulp of whiskey. “...with young Simon here bringing up the rear.
“And by this time, it was clear that our neighbours had every intention of taking us on. Four of them to three of us. Fair odds I call that”
“I’m not sure you’d have said that if you’d met any of the new Albatros those buggers have equipped themselves with recently”, someone muttered.
“Maybe, but they weren’t, were they?” added Bo. So he continued his tale:
“Their lead and I opened up at each other a bit too early I guess, ‘cos we both missed by a mile I reckon.
“But, as you all know, things happen like a flash of lightening up there. Next thing you know, there are bullets flying every which way. Except, my bloody gun jammed, didn’t it! I’ve lost count of the number of times that has happened to me!”
“Should check your bullets more carefully then, shouldn’t you Bo?” piped up Dubh Beard, who had just joined the party. And Bo was not about to argue the toss on that score. So he just continued.
“But the boss hit his target ok, so he said after. And the poor bugger copped it good. First he caught fire, then he blew up in mid air. And off down he tumbled. No idea what happened to him, ‘cos we were too busy with the rest of them to watch.”
Mick Taker briefly interrupted at that point. “Too busy is a bit of an understatement I think. Their shooting, at that short range, was too damned good for comfort. I took a whole lot of hits and how they all missed me personally is known only to the Gods!”
“Me too” added Simon Hawker. “But I know I hit one of them in return, because I saw him flinch. And then my gun also jammed.
“Which is why we collided, I think! He and I hit one another quite hard, although luckily no serious damage was done to my aircraft. Not so sure that was true of his though. And I’m petty certain another of the hun’s own flight damned near collided with us at the same time. I was bloody scared by that I don’t mind admitting it!”
“It was then that I about turned and caught their back marker,” said Mick Taker “although my rudders went slack at the same time, which almost cost me later. Anyway, green his Fokker was and it was a good shot too because next second there were flames coming from his engine and I thought to myself – he’s done for then!
“But not so apparently, because he flew on for a bit and I lost sight of him.”
“But I finished him off for you.” Bo Fletcher added smugly. “Sorry Mick, but I’m claiming that one. A green Fokker came from nowhere, straight at me. I could see he was struggling to keep flames away from himself, but that was his problem, I’m afraid. I let him have it at long range and boom. Down he went. Not before he’d had a pop at me too though. But the flames must have put his aim off and very few of his bullets came my way”.
“Well done Bo” Mick said and he meant it. They were good friends and Mick valued Bo as a wing man watching his back. He continued “Meantime, it was my turn to have my gun jam. Missed the hun at long range too, just to add insult to injury. Really got to address this bloody problem of gun jams!
“Added to which, as I just said a minute ago, my bloody rudders had gone slack and I was busily trying to sort that out and flew right under the gun of one of the remaining Fokkers. It was only by the grace of God that he missed!”
“Well I think I did better than that.” Piped up Simon Hawker once more. “I caught a red Fokker right on the flank and I’m certain I hit his engine.”
“Well done you too” was the general chorus from everyone in the mess. Which made Simon feel pretty good.
“Well that left the hun with just two of their flight against us.” Said Bo, whose voice, by this time, was well raised, as happens when the whiskey takes effect . “The little green Fokker spiralled out of control and headed down to the ground at some speed, I can tell you. Don’t think he’ll be bothering us again for a while, if he made it out alive that is!”
“A sobering thought indeed”, said one of the others and briefly the room went quiet.
Not for long though. Too much alcohol was flowing for their spirits to be dampened for very long, right at that moment anyway.
“Well, that was pretty much the end of it, bar the shouting” said Bo.
“Yea, I had one last go at one of them” added Simon, “But I definitely got the worst of it. Bits were flying off my machine left right and centre and I was really ready to call it a day”.
“Me too.” added Mick. I finally got the rudder thing under control and was turning for home, because my machine was pretty shredded and I was concerned I wouldn’t even make it over to our own lines. Then this bloody Fokker had another go at me from up close. How he missed, again, I don’t know. Or maybe all his bullets simply went through the holes he’d already made in my poor old Airco!”
At which observation there was general alcohol induced laughter.
“I did have one last long range shot at one of them, but the damned gun jammed on me, yet again. Enough said I think.”
“After that, we all just drifted off towards our own homes.” finished Bo Fletcher. “It was like we all had had enough and our machines were barely holding together still, anyway.
“Quite a dust up. I wonder what happened to the hun pilots. Any news yet Uncle? Do we get the confirmations through?” added Bo and the room went qiet again.
The End
Butcher’s Bill
Entente
Lt Mick E Taker / FRTB-D / 1 Kill
2nd Lt Bo Fletcher / RTB / 1 kill
2nd Lt Simon Hawker / FRTB-D / 0 kills
Result – All good for all three
Central Powers
ObLtn Josef Jacob / FRTB-D / WIA / 0 kills
Roll 2D6 = 7 + 1 RTB – 1 WIA = 7 Injured Roll 1D2 (D6 = 3) – Skip 1 scenario.
Result Skip 1 scenario
Ltn Heinrich Gabriel / EXP FT / 0 kills
Roll 2D6 = 8 – 3 EXP = 5 – Injured, roll 1D3 (D6 = 4) – Skip 2 scenarios.
Result Skip 2 scenarios
Ltn Xavier Döring / EXP FT / 0 kills
Roll 2D6 = 11 – 3 EXP = 8 – Injured, roll 1D2 (D6 = 5) – Skip 2 scenarios
Result Skip 2 scenarios
Ltn Gerhard Keudell / RTB / 0 kills
Result – All good
Victory points
Given the points left on aircraft I have awarded a “Forced to Return to base, even though an aircraft may still have been on the mat at the end of the mission.
Entente
EA shot down x 2 = 6 points
EA forced home x 1 = 2 points
Total = 8 points
Central Powers
EA forced home x 2 = 4 points
Total = 4 points
Result – Entente Victory
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