Mission 4 OTT EYM - Bombs and Brunettes - 4th February 1917 - Vagabond
I was hunched low in the cockpit, trying to get a little bit of shelter from the biting January cold, hiding behind the small windshield of the Strutter, but it wasn’t helping much. Looking back over my shoulder the sky was clear, almost cloudless and the Observers seat was empty.
High above, in front I could see the new RE8 flown by Jack Cowan and to either side of him were a couple of Pups flown by my friend Taki and our Flight Commander Biff.
We were a long way over the German side of the lines, I hate these long distance missions, you’re forever looking for the enemy but more disconcerting is the constant listening to the beat of the rotary engine. Listening for the slightest irregularity in its note, any change may mean the temperamental thing packs up, leading to a forced landing with not much chance of getting home.
That’s when I saw the 3 black specks in the distance; they could only be enemy planes.
They saw us straight away and as one, turned in our direction. We’d not seen many of the new Albatros Dlll’s in the last few days and rumour had it that there was some fault with them. If this was true these would be older Dll’s or maybe Halberstadts. Either way it made no difference we still had our job to do and that was why I was flying the Strutter solo.
As the Hun, split their formation preparing to attack our targets came into view. Mine was a rudimentary landing strip North West of a large hanger like building, the building was Jack’s target. The rest of the Squadron had been knocking seven bells out of the new Submarine Pens being built in Zeebrugge. They’d been very successful and we had been tasked with the secondary target, the aforementioned large building.
Jack was flying high in the RE8, 10 or 11,000’ with the intention of dropping his eggs and then heading for home as fast as he could.
Why Uncle had chosen Jack Cowan and Joe Ryan for a high level bombing mission I couldn’t understand, they really weren’t very good at it. I guess he didn’t trust the new man Jamie MacNab with something of this importance and while P-S would always have been first choice for this sort of outing he and Podgy were due for a spot of leave, which didn’t give him much alternative I guess.
Biff and Taki were at 8 to 9,000’ which is where we expected the enemy scouts to be flying, the Pups objective was to keep the enemy busy while Jack laid the eggs and I landed.
Yes Landed.
We’d crossed the lines high and together but my job was to land and pick up a Spy. I wasn’t very keen on the idea, the Germans were known to shoot Spies, so were we for that matter, but sometimes pilots picking up Spies were accused of spying as well.
I wasn’t keen to have “SHOT AS A SPY” on my gravestone, assuming I got a gravestone but Uncle didn’t seem to accept my line of reasoning and just asked if he could have my new bottle of Malt if I was disgraced like that.
I said NO.
He wasn’t pleased with my response, but what did he expect, the Malt would go in the raffle with the rest of my things if I didn’t get back. Mind you I was pretty keen to get back, the Malt was my favourite, Bunnahabhain, a present from my Aunt Matilda, and I was looking forward to opening it tonight.
I’d dropped lower and lower and was barely skimming the ground at this point. I hoped to become invisible to the Hun machines who would almost certainly have their eyes peeled for an attack on the building, not for some idiot attempting to land miles behind their front lines.
You might ask what was in the shed and why we were hitting it but to be honest we’d been briefed on what the shed contained but it was late last night and I wasn’t really paying attention, so I can’t remember and it’s probably not really important. It might have just been a decoy so that I could land and pick up the Spy, but maybe not.
Anyway there are two problems flying so low, one was that some lonely infantryman might shoot me, but more importantly, was that now, I couldn’t see the landing site. As I’d dropped the final few hundred feet I’d made a mental note of where it was but my mental capacity is sometimes not what I would wish for.
High in the sky I could see that the fight had started and it looked as though the CDL plane was starting to climb to take on Jack and Joe in the RE8 but I expect he wouldn’t like what he found, when and if he got there. Only last week we’d been celebrating Joe Ryan shooting down his 5th victim and I was sure they’d hold their own against a lone scout.
The fight got more intense as all the scouts joined in and one of the German planes started to leave a trail of smoke in the sky.
It looked like Biff had jammed his gun because he didn’t return the fire from the Hun scout, and as seems usual in these head to head confrontations the planes had flown through the opposition and would need to turn back to re-engage.
The CDL plane was still climbing but only slowly and I didn’t think it would intercept the RE8 before it reached its target.
He must have thought the same thing because the CDL plane turned and attacked Taki’s Pup, the Pup started to smoke leaving a black oily stain in the bright blue sky.
I had my own problems. The landing strip came into sight and I realized I was off by quite a long way. I’d been side slipping to my left but it wasn’t going to be enough. I roundly cursed this business, I knew the Spy had help from the locals but why hadn’t they given me a bigger strip to land on. “Sheer bloody laziness”, that’s all that went through my mind…..that and “oh help”.
Jack Cowan had the big RE8 lined up just perfectly.
A couple of the German Pilots had a close call.
And I had to do something drastic or I would either land amongst the trees or have to fly another circuit. I didn’t want to fly another circuit and so I pulled the stick hard to the left.
And then hard to the right and I could see the strip almost in front of me……Just not quite in front,
Was I close enough?
Dropping the revs and pulling back on the stick to lose speed, I was coming down fast but it was going to be touch and go if I made it onto the runway.
The fight upstairs was still going on but to be honest I was only concentrating on my landing.
One of the Pups was still trailing a plume of smoke but I was only concentrating on my landing.
The fight continued but I was still only concentrating on my landing.
The undercarriage hit the ground, the Strutter bounced and I could see the end of the makeshift runway getting closer, very much closer, far faster and closer than I wanted but you might have guessed that by now.
I nearly jumped out of my flying suit when there was a huge explosion off to my right, yet again I was pleased I always wore my brown fighting trousers, they saved a lot of embarrassments but I held the stick steady and prayed the plane would stop in time.
The fight still continued but I really wasn’t paying attention at this stage. You might think it was because I was concentrating on my landing, but you’d be wrong.
I’d already landed.
With a huge sigh of relief on my part the Strutter stopped just before running off the end of the strip. A fraction longer and I would have been in the brown stuff. That’s when I looked around and saw about 10 figures break cover from the trees and rush towards my plane. Oh bugger I hope they’re not Hun.
They weren’t wearing German grey uniforms and so I risked a glance upward and saw Jack pull the RE8 round and dive, what the hell was he doing, he should be headed for home, I did wonder idly if he’d hit the target. That must have been the explosion I’d heard, the one that frightened me so much.
Of course I’m not going to admit to that.
One of the Pups was on the tail of a Hun machine and making mince meat of it, well that’s what I hoped, but the chaps who had run out of the trees had lifted the tail of my plane and were turning me around. It looked like the chap who was directing events was actually a chapess, her movements looked vaguely familiar.
The RE8 had joined up with the other Pup and they were looking for trouble.
It looked like trouble was looking for them.
Later I learned it was Biff in the Pup and he took a bullet that creased his left arm. “It made me mad as hell” he remarked as he bought the next round in the Mess that night, “but not enough to slow a good man down” he grinned that wolfish grin of his.
I think this was Taki chasing a smoking Hun but I was getting a little frantic as the chaps on the ground seemed to be turning my plane around very slowly. Eventually they managed the task and the Spy jumped in the rear seat of the Strutter and waved a goodbye to her compatriots before smacking me on the head and indicating I should make some effort to take off.
The Spy was Nurse Schultz, if you’ve been paying attention to my past reminiscences you might have heard me mention her once or twice, usually in a very complementary way. What the hell she was doing in Belgium, way behind enemy lines when she should have been in the field hospital looking after the sick and wounded I had no idea. There was no wonder I was a little slow setting off down the runway but the slap around my head started me in motion.
Things had taken on an almost surreal turn of events but confusion is my natural sate of affairs and so I can cope with it easily. We skimmed down the runway, gathering speed and with plenty of room I was able to give some thought to this strange turn of events before the take off took all my attention.
Up in the sky, Jack was finding the RE8 a little more sedate than the FEE but was enjoying having his own gun to extract a bit of revenge for past injustices. Although he wasn’t really using it to best advantage at this stage of proceedings, but he would get better.
Joe Ryan though, was on target, making up for Jacks poor shooting, although the Lewis is notably prone to jamming.
Biff was exchanging shots with the Brown Halberstadt and must have hit something vital because it burst into flames.
Then Taki caught it from behind, a perfect double teaming manoeuvre, and the brown Halbi went down in a ball of flames.
Taki continued to fly forwards and immediately attacked a Dll, he would have been hit and wounded if he didn’t have a lucky Japanese Samurai charm in the cockpit, but as it was he could carry on the fight.
KILL TO TAKI the Lucky Pilot.
The two planes continued to exchange shots as I swung away from the runway intending to sneak off home with my precious cargo.
A close encounter in mid air, as Taki and the cameo Dll pass wing tip to wing tip after their furious exchange of bullets.
Taki observes the plume of smoke with a great deal of satisfaction but would have preferred his enemy to have hit the ground like the brown Halberstadt.
Unfortunately I can see that I’ve been spotted and the Germans must have realized that I’m carrying a Spy. A Spy who will have information that they must prevent reaching our Intelligence Service, although that’s a bit of a misnomer. Anyway the CDL Halberstadt is diving down in pursuit and I don’t think I’m going to out run him.
Well both Jack and Joe have had a shot and it’s not slowed or stopped him. In the near distance Biff is also losing height, presumably to protect us. Well, at least, I hope that’s what he has in mind.
The Hun is getting closer and I look back at my new Observer/Gunner and she raises a thumb before cocking the Lewis and firing a quick burst to warm the gun. I’m heartened by this but still a little nonplussed by the situation.
I’m even more heartened when, in the ensuing exchange of gunfire my Nurse in the back, shoots lumps off the Halberstadt.
3 damage minus 1 because of the scenario writer, damn his eyes.
This quickly turns to dismay as the exchange of fire continues, she is hit and blood stains her jacket, it looks bad but what to do. If I continue to run we’re dead meat and so in spite of the fact that I can see she’s badly hurt we are going to have to turn and fight to stay alive.
We take more damage and I can feel the rudder is stiff to the left but that’s ok.
Partly because I can see my old partner Jack Cowen in the RE8 coming to the rescue.
And partly because I intend to hang a right.
I pull the stick hard over and kick the rudder bar just as Jack and Biff both catch up with my pursuer and blast him from behind.
They continue to fire into the hapless Halbi and Jack hits his engine for a second time and it’s a
KILL TO COWAN
As I pull round I catch sight of the final Hun and open fire at the same time as Joe Ryan.
Joe is a little slow and hits him after my bullets blow his plane apart. He rolls over and flies straight into the ground.
When we get back Joe Ryan jokingly says it must be his kill because he’s the new Ace in town but when Nurse Schultz glares at him, saying she inflicted most damage and if I hadn’t been so unsporting and taken the shot she was ready to finish the job as we flew past. Joe concedes she might be right but I make the claim, although I emphasise the roll played by the Spy, Nurse Schultz in the dog fight.
KILL TO VAGABOND
Nurse Schultz was driven off to her own hospital ward, maintaining bravely that she was alright and we should stop fussing like blessed mother hens.
I shall be visiting her as soon as possible to find out why I had to fly half way to Berlin to pick her up in a field in Belgium. I always thought there was more to this woman than meets the eye and in spite of some scurrilous slander she is not stout, just very well proportioned.
Butchers Tally:
2/Lt Jack Cowan – RTB – 1 Kill (Krause) – In spite of being perfectly aligned Jack dropped the bombs a little too early and they missed the target completely.
2/Lt Joe Ryan – RTB – 0 Kills
2/Lt John Vagabond: – RTB - 1 Kill (Braun)
I’m not sure if because of Nurse Schultz wounds this is FRTB so I rolled 5+2 so no crash. As she's not piloting left it as RTB
Nurse Schultz: – RTB / WIA – 0 Kills, but she maintains she should have.
C&W rolled 8 +1RTB -1WIA = 8 - Injured skip 1D2 scenarios, rolled 5 = skip 2.
Dave I think there’s more to this but I’m in Spain and don’t have the rules, would you mind correcting for me if necessary, thanks. Uncle has it, as always !
Lt Montague “Biff” Anstruther-Browne: – RTB / WIA – 0 Kills.
C&W rolled 7 +1RTB +1ACE -1WIA = 8 - Injured Skip 1D2 scenarios, Rolled 3 = skip 1.
2/Lt Ichiro Takahashi: – FRTB-D 1 Kill (Thiede)
Landing rolled 6+6 crashed.
C&W Rolled 8 +1ACE +1RTB -1FRTB = 9 All’s well when you (crash) land well !
Ltn Johannes Braun: (Thanks Dave) – SD-FT 0 Kills
C&W Rolled 5 -1SD = 4 - Injured Skip 1D6 scenarios, rolled 2 = skip 2.
Ltn Fritz Krause: - SD-FT 0 Kills
C&W rolled 4 -1SD = 3 - Injured skip 1D6 scenarios - rolled 4 = skip 4.
Ltn Wilhelm Thiede: - SD-FLM-FT 0 Kills
C&W Rolled 11 -2FLM = 9 All’s well when you land well
Victory Points:
Entente:
Bomber hits target. 20pts = 0pts
Near miss. 10pts = 0pts
Scout shot down 5pts = 15pts
Scout FRTB 2pts = 0pts
Spy returned to base 10pts = 10pts
Total = 25pts
Central:
Bombs miss target altogether 10pts = 10pts
Bomber SD or FRTB a before dropping bombs 15pts = 0pts
Bomber SD or FRTB after dropping bombs 7pts = 0pts
Scout/2-seater shot down 5pts = 0pts
Scout/2-seater FRTB 2pts = 2pts
Total = 12pts
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to go along with his previous decorations achieved in the other ranks for his service & victories to King & country 
Originally Posted by Stumptonian
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