OTT CYM Mission 3 - ShadowDragon's Oxymoron of Military Intelligence July 19th 1916
The Oxymoron of Military Intelligence - July 19th 1916: Part 1
“It’s time, Grandad, it’s time for another one.”
“Another one? Okay, but only if you can convince your grandmother to join us on the veranda to watch the sunset?”
“Just a minute, Jacques,” called Angelique. Soon Angelique was seated next to Jacques and the children. “Tell them the one about the experiment. That’s a good one since it’s not all about you, dear.” Angelique gave Jacques a wink and poked him in the ribs with her elbow.
“The experiment, eh? You know what’s an experiment, kids? It’s where technical types, called boffins these days, poke and prod you to see if you bleed or not. A most nefarious group – especially when they’re from your side.”
“Jacques!!!!”
“Alright, dear, I won’t go on about boffins and their prodding.”
It was in mid-July of 1916, the time of that terrible Battle of the Somme. It was a warm, sultry evening. We were all seated outside the shack we called our wardroom, enjoying a G&T, when Sir Henry, our squadron commander approaches, beaming from ear to ear.
“We are indeed in luck, gentleman. We have the honour of being chosen to test a new concept of operations. The mission briefing will be in an hour.”
I don’t think the Royal Navy ever lost it’s appetite for new fangled things since Sir Winston, God rest the great man’s soul, was First Lord of the Admiralty. Apparently this novel concept of operations was that we would fly two missions in one day. We’d normally just do one mission but this was an ‘honour’; so it would be twice the danger for the X-Men during the experiment. The first mission would be a routine photo-reconnaissance flight to confirm the location of a couple of well camouflaged supply depots that our military intelligence had picked up. There’s a good one – military intelligence – probably the same intelligent blokes that had planned the Somme. We’d fly back and there’d be a field lab for developing the photographic plates real jiffy like and a bevy of ‘intelligence’ officers that would pore over the photographs and decide which targets were the real deal and then off we’d go to bomb the ‘genuine’ ones before the Hun got wind of the danger. The had a name for this concept – the Rapid Assessment and Targeting System”.
“That would R.A.T.S.” remarked Fergis, our Irish comrade. “It’s fitting since we will be the laboratory rats tomorrow.”
“Aye, and about as welcome as a bee up your kilt”, said Jock.
Jock was well respected in the squadron and seen as the informal second-in-command for the scout flight by everyone including our Flight Commander, Flashman. I think that was settled in back of the wardroom after a rough mission and a few to many drinks. All we knew is that both had black eyes the next morning and were acting the best of bosom buddies. I suspect that was front for the rest of chaps, but whether the friendly cheer was real or not, the respect and trust in combat they had for each other after that seemed real enough.
Soon after a couple of trucks showed up and out fell the most unsoldierly looking bunch of fellows. Those were the boffins. Our scout flight commander, Flashman, and the tandem flight commander, Arthur Percy Hastings, had a chin-way with them and then drew up the flight plans for the next day.
The first mission would be just four aeroplanes to avoid drawing attention into our goings on. Two photo tandems and two scouts. The Sopwith Strutter tandems were crewed by Steve and Joe in one and Ian and Chuck in the other. Flashman, the mission commander, and Uncle Bruce would fly the two escort scouts, our beloved Neuport Bébés.
[Editor’s Note: The German line up for the scenario.]
The plan was that each Sopwith, escorted by one Bébés, would photograph two targets and then get the hell out of there as fast as they could. Flashman would protect Steve and Joe while Uncle Bruce would do the honours for Ian and Chuck.
They might have hoped that the Hun would have been completely surprised but whether he was or not there were two of those Fokker monoplanes the Huns called eindeckers. Ugly, ungainly looking beasts. Nothing like our elegant Bébés.
Those eindeckers turns on us with a fury. It seems the X-men had beaten up their squadron, or jasta as the Hun called squadrons, so they had it in for us. The grey eindecker headed for Steve and Joe. They know that the tandems were the ‘high value’ aeroplanes. But Flashman, for all of his annoying behaviour at the station, was a good, brave pilot and he headed off the Hun. Put a few rounds into the eindecker and soon enough, what every pilot hates to see, flames were flickering along the eindecker’s wings. If that wasn’t bad enough for that Hun, his own archie mistook him for one us got the most lucky hit I ever saw from archie….lucky for us. It wasn’t lucky for the Hun. He was done for and would be lucky to get his burning crate safely on the ground.
To add insult to injury Joe got a few rounds in as that poor Hun tried to keep his Fokker in the air, twisting this way and that way to keep the fire from spreading but it wasn’t of much use. He went down behind his own lines. According to the rules for air combat scores, Joe got the ‘kill’ to the chagrin of Flashman as he had done more. Personally, I always thought the Hun archie should have got the credit.
That pretty much cleared the way for Steve and Joe to get their photographs taken. Well except for the occasional how-do-you-do from archie. According to Joe, every time there was a nearby blast from archie, Steve would chant, “Archibald, certainly not.” That was a music hall song popular at the time, sort of like your, what are they called, The Bugs? No, the Beatles. We also called the Hun anti-aircraft fire ‘archie’ after that. Steve said the chant was a charm for warding off archie and that he was told this by one of the Royal Flying Corps chaps.
While Flashman was dealing with the grey eindecker, Uncle Bruce tangled with the other, beige or CDL, eindecker.
But Uncle Bruce, Ian and Chuck were in for more trouble than just one eindecker. Two more Huns appeared – a green eindecker and a light blue Bébé the Hun must have captured. It didn’t seem fair using our own aeroplanes against us. A real shame to have to shoot down one of those Bébés.
As Uncle Bruce was occupied with the CDL eindecker, these two new Huns had a free run at Ian and Chuck. The Hun flying the Bébé was the better pilot and he hit Ian’s and Chuck’s Sowith dead centre – badly wounding Ian. They had to abort – just shy of their first target. In fact, Chuck was all set to take the photograph.
Ian and Chuck tried their best to fight off the two Huns but Ian was injured and only managed to jam his Lewis. Chuck did better. He probably hit an oil line and got the captured Nieuport smoking. At least that would draw the attention of Uncle Bruce and Flashman.
Sure enough, Uncle Bruce noticed and managed to take advantage of the disoriented Hun in the green eindecker. Flames started lick around the Fokker. A second Hun aeroplane was on fire.
It wasn’t just Uncle Bruce that noticed the smoking Nieuport, with the grey eindecker finished, Flashman had headed over to help protect Ian and Chuck. It was too late to save their mission but not too late to keep them from being shot down by the Hun Nieuport. Flashman was on a roll with his aim – one burst and the Nieuport exploded.
Flashman tried to finish off the green eindecker but his Lewis wasn’t part of the same program as it jammed and the eindecker headed for safety. There were no reports of the Fokker crashing so we assumed it got home okay. Not that this didn’t stop Flashman from claiming a victory for the green eindecker as well as the grey one.
That just left one Hun, the CDL eindecker, who pounced on Flashman giving him a smart wound in the arm. Not enough to send Flashman packing but enough to put him out of the game for a few moments.
The pilot of the CDL eindecker knew what was what – he saw that Ian and Chuck had aborted. So had Steve and Joe. Steve should have turned around and headed for the station but since three of the Hun aeroplanes had been taken out and the other Sopwith had failed in its mission, Steve tapped Joe and said, “Let’s finish the job, Joseph.” A blast by archie acknowledging Steve’s new plan did nothing more than get an, “Archibald, certainly not,” response from Steve. The CDL saw the Steve turn his Sopwith not for home but towards the other targets. This was his opportunity to take out the tandem and totally defeat our mission.
Uncle Bruce was the only one that could stop the CDL eindecker. He opened up his throttle to catch the Hun. His first blast with the Lewis and the Hun was on fire – the third Hun aeroplane to catch fire. They were the enemy but no one liked to see another pilot with a flamer.
The Hun tried to dodge Uncle Bruce but Bruce hugged him like fleas hug a dog. Even archie couldn’t warn Uncle Bruce off.
The Hun dodged this way…..
And he dodged that way….
But it was to no avail. Uncle Bruce had his number that day. Down went the third Hun and the last one over the targets.
[Editor’s note: I forgot the +1 for tailing. If I had put those in the eindecker would have gone down in the previous photo, but I thought this photo was cool so I kept it in the story.]
As for Steve and Joe, it was almost as they were on a training flight – well, except for archie and Steve’s, “Archibald, certainly not”, chanting.
One last target, one last photograph, one last blast from archie and one last, “Archibald, certainly not,” and the mission was done. All four aeroplanes made it back; although both Flashman and Ian were both wounded.
“Eh bien, mes enfants”, said Angelique, “it’s your bedtime. Off you go to say goodnight to your parents”.
“But what about the second mission, granddad?”
“ À demain!”
“As your grand-mère says, kids, tomorrow.”
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Results for part 1:
4 target photographs brought back safely (+4 points)
3 enemy scout airplanes shot down (+3 points)
1 seadog (RNAS) tandem pilot and 1 seadog (RNAS) scout pilot wounded
Total for part 1 = 7 points
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Originally Posted by Baxter
Well that was a Fiery encounter to be sure Paul.
If you make it back down here you must visit the Hunter Valley Wineries. Apart from Lakes Folly, Rothbury & others there is Tulloch's & Tyrrells two family owned vineyards both over 100 years old who make some magnificent wines both Red & white. The Hunter is only about 2 hours drive North of Sydney.
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