BYM Mission 4 - Flash Flies By Night - 27 October 1916.
"One of our agents is deep in enemy territory with valuable information and material related to unspecified new weapons being developed by the enemy." Started Uncle. "The agent is safe for the moment but it’s highly likely he would be captured if he attempts to move from where he's been holed up, never mind tries to get into friendly territory. HQ has determined that sending an aircraft to extract the agent by air is the only possible solution. Easy for them to say but this is vitally important, so we've been ordered not send just one aircraft but three. Two scouts will accompany the extraction aircraft in case of any problems." He glanced around the room taking in the faces on the three pilots present with a grim smile "And guess who the three lucky volunteers are !"
2Lt Christopher Cross, pilot of a Sopwith Strutter, returned the grim smile and glanced at the two scout pilots Lt Bill Foldes and 2Lt Alan Keye. "Well, this will be interesting."
"It's somewhere we've visited before just off the Dutch coast - a clutch of islands with a large sand bar at low tide" said Uncle then continued the brief "As the aeroplanes will need to refuel, there are agents in enemy territory who will have marked a landing area with lights and will have fuel. You will be able to re-fuel at the same location on the return flight. i will give you the full details presently. The mission is scheduled for later tonight, the first night of the waxing moon they tell me. A near moonless night will hide the extraction from the enemy but it will make navigation difficult. Good luck – you will need it."
The first part of the journey went according to plan, all the machines made it to the refuelling point just as darkness fell and set off as soon as they were all ready. The machines lost contact with each other almost immediately in the dark night but headed for the coast in the hope of meeting up on the way or at the location.
Cross (started near point 4) spotted the coast at a distance - given away by the white breakers and began to let his Strutter down through the dark night.
Unbeknownst to him Foldes had arrived before him (at point 6) and followed the coast around to the headland off which the islands were said to be - he could just make out the sand bar and began to lose height to see if Cross was already there
Below them, lost in the darkness, the sound of their arrival had caused some consternation at the local airfield and a number of Halberstadt machines were scrambling to take off and attempt to intercept them
Obltn Hans Jörke (cdl D.III); Ltn Otto Hengl (cam D.III); Ltn Kurt Drekman (blue D.II)
Alan Keye arrived (point 5)just as Cross passed below him, he sensed rather than saw the Strutter below and to his right and decided he would try and catch up with his comrade.
As Keye made his turn a ghostly coloured machine appeared from below - not one of his so he let rip !
His gun jammed quickly and he wasn't sure he even hit it but he would have known he was there. At least firing his over-wing mount didn't blind him.
Meanwhile a lone German two seater type began his descent to pass over the town in preparation for landing.
Foldes found the island but there was no trace of the Strutter so he performed a Split S with the intent of finding where Cross had got to
Cross had made the coast and was descending - Foldes saw what he thought was the Strutter crossing the surf line below him
The flash of a Lewis gun above them had got the attention of all the pilots in the area but none could take advantage of this information as they'd been just lifting off from the field but at least they had a rough direction to head in. Keye was spotted against the stars moving off to the left by Otto Hengl
The German two seater passes low over the town. The girls a Madame Mimi's would be thrilled, smiled the pilot Fwbl Max Löffler to himself - they said it made the glasses rattle when they passed overhead.
Descending, Cross turns in to land as Foldes wheels round to check if he'd seen his charge or something else. A light flashes repeatedly from the far end of the sand strip - DashDotDotDot - B for Bulldog !
Keye has attracted some unwanted attention - striking off in a best guess direction the Germans close on him in the darkness, he's spotted by Hengl again
Cross lands right on the money - fairly confident he could run out before running out of sand bar and turn round right by the land mass where he'd he'd seen the light & been told their man was hiding out.
"What the..." Rounds slam through Keyes' tail as a Hun climbs behind him, his gun flashing brightly - the pilot, Hengl, keeping one eye tightly closed to preserve some night vision.
Foldes's plane is bumped by the airflow of the passing German tandem which he hadn't seen in the dark, his attention being drawn behind him by the faint sound of gunfire & a muzzle flash.
Keye's plane suffers more damage until the German's gun mercifully jams
Both Bulldogs reverse to have a go at the enemy, Keye's is too close, Foldes' target is swallowed by the darkness
Cross meantime has spun his kite around at the end of the sand strip and his mysterious passenger emerges from the rocks of the island
The dark sky is full of wheeling aircraft as the pilots chased the glimpse they'd had of a target, imagined or not.
Sometimes the difference in altitude is all that saved them from a calamitous end !
Snatch shots were made but no joy was had by either side, if they had hit or missed was unknown.
Cross, his passenger & baggage aboard runs down the sand strip & lifts off cleanly as the battle rages above - he's spotted by one of the Huns, he's sure, but he's too far above to do anything about it ad unbeknownst to him his gun is jammed.
About the same time Max Löffler lands the German two seater safely at the airfield, guided in by vertical searchlights.
The ride home is a torrid time - Cross had instructed his passenger not to fire unless they were shot at so as not to give their position away. The man nodded his understanding an held his composure and his fire the whole way home in spite of the Germans proximity at times
Eventually they all made it away with no further shots fired
Butcher's Tally:
Obltn Hans Jörke: (cdl D.III) RTB 0kills
Ltn Kurt Drekman: (blue D.II) RTB 0 kills
Ltn Otto Hengl: (cam D.III) RTB 0 kills
Fwbl Max Löffler: (Alb C.III) RTB 0 kills
Lt Bill Foldes: N.17-A - RTB 0 kills
2Lt Alan Keye: N17 - RTB 0 kills (shredded tail)
2Lt Christopher Cross: Strutter C2 - RTB 0 kills Pax retrieved.
I found this quite complex to deal with but persisted and I got there eventually. After I'd rolled for start positions I realised it was unlikely I'd pass near the airfield so dispensed with the searchlights rather having another layer of management to contend with. I kept to the simplified night fighting rules (though probably got some of that wrong), There was contact but the card draws let it down some. I flew Cross' Strutter, ran the rest by AI once off the ground.
After a few afternoon sessions to run it through, much effort and 95 images I culled it down to this. I hope it made sense.
No Kills - everyone got home safely - The mission was accomplished.
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for his service to the King and country 
Originally Posted by Stumptonian
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