FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1914
1914 - 1122.PDF
l/ygHf NOVEMBER 13, 1914. AIRCRAFT AND THE WAR. WRITING from "North of the Somme" on November 3rd a Morning Post correspondent said :— " If the Germans have sprung a surprise upon us in the way of heavy guns, they have certainly also done something similar with their aeroplane service, for the activity of these aerial scouts all along the line is simply incredible. All over this Somme depart ment there are daily visits of these pests, sometimes singly and sometimes several at a time. But they are not as expert bomb- throwers as our aviators, and their efforts in this direction leave the populace quite unmoved. As scouts, however, they seem to do good work in giving the range to their gunners, judging by the results of their visits, in the shape of greater precision in the arrival of the shells. In this department, as unfortunately in others, such as the transport of their big guns, the exceptionally fine weather we are enjoying this autumn is in favour of the Germans. In sunshine against a background of blue sky an aeroplane is infinitely less visible than in cloudy weather, and makes a very much worse target." Another correspondent from Amsterdam :— " My correspondent at Sluis telegraphs that yesterday afternoon an English aeroplane dropped some bombs on the railway station at Bruges and caused some damage. In Ostend also bombs were dropped. In Bruges and Ghent evidence of the progress of the Allies is gained by the fact that the gunfire is becoming more audible." ^ In an article in the Echo de Paris on November 4th, General Cherfils made reference to a concentration of German airships now in preparation on the Belgian coast, obviously with the intention of making a raid on London. After pointing out that it is certain the British and French military authorities have taken steps to deal with the menace, he goes on to anticipate a battle between the German dirigibles and the aeroplanes of the Allies. He continued :— " Victory will rest with the fighting instrument which is most mobile, most rapid, most invulnerable, and most audacious. The Zeppelin is a dericate mohster, fragile and condemned to inability to ascend to a great height under penalty of a dangerous condensa tion, which may bring about a catastrophe." Writing in the Journal with regard to the Zeppelin works at Friedrichschafen, M. Georges Prade points out that since the beginning of the war a new Zeppelin has been turned out every three weeks :— " Towards the end of July Z.24 and Z.25 were taken over on completion. Nos. 26, 27, 28, and 29 were sent out on various dates between August 10th and October 15th, and Z.30 was due to be sent out on November 5th. All these Zeppelins are of the same type. In their trials on the lake the dirigibles do not experiment with aerial torpedoes, but trials are conducted night and day with projectiles and searchlights, and the detection of floating targets, which they set themselves to locate on the German part of the lake, between Uberlingen and Constance." " The Belgians very nearly had the joy of bringing down the Zeppelin which flew over Antwerp. A Belgium projectile burst one of the balloons and fouled one of the propellers. A mechanic, who has received an Iron Cross for his resource, was able to make good the damage temporarily, and so enable the airship to get away." Mr. Percy J. Philip, a special correspondent of the Daily News, writing of the possibility of launching submarines from Zeebrugge or Bruges, says :— " One thing might prevent this—our aeroplane service. Near sunset a hydroplane passed high up over our heads along the frontier, and yesterday, so I was told, two chased by two Taubes were seen. It is obvious our air fleet is well alive to what the sea fleet requires of it." A Times correspondent in a message from Flushing on November 4 said :— " Last evening a British hydroplane circled in from seaward almost up to the Dutch frontier and surveyed in leisurely fashion the whole theatre of action ; which does not suggest that the Allies are growing any less aggressive. All indications, indeed, combine to inspire encouragement." News from Bordeaux on November 6th stated that among officers and men mentioned in French army orders for gallantry in the field was Captain Mauger, of the Aviation Corps at Varennes, who devised an ingenious appliance for dropping heavy bombs from aeroplanes; and Pegoud, the aviator, who displayed exceptional boldness and sangfroid since the beginning of the war, and had his machine three times riddled with bullets. Writing to the Daily Mail regarding the arrival of fresh troops in the British trenches Mr. George C. Curnock said :— " In the morning the new draft woke to find itself still in the trenches, and a quaint, penetrating whirr overhead. An aeroplane passed—and a smoke bomb fell. The new draft remarked the ineffectiveness of the smoke bomb ; but did not stir. They had orders to lie still while the German aeroplane passed over. After the aeroplane passed there was a good deal of shrapnel in the air." In the Petit Parisien on Sunday appeared a letter from a reader who had just come back from Rheims. He wrote :— " Last Wednesday a German aeroplane flew over Rheims and scattered proclamations setting forth that if the town did not surrender by five o'clock the following afternoon it would be set on fire with incendiary bombs. Some hours afterwards another aeroplane was seen but it was brought down by rifle fire near the village of St. Charles, both aviators being burnt to death. The next day four German machines flew towards Rheims seemingly with the intention of carrying out the threats of the day before, but six French aeroplanes attacked them and forced them to retreat. The German machines, seriously damaged, flew off to the north, but one of them was so crippled that it fell into a German trench, killing both pilot and observer." A correspondent of the Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant who wandered into the German lines at Roulers, has stated:— "The German aeroplanes now throw out smoke clouds to hide themselves when they are heavily fired upon by the enemy. The Higlish and French aeroplanes took their chance, and though he saw many of them shot at and they seemed to be everywhere, not a single one, during the time he was watching was brought down. As to the fine work they were doing he saw several examples. German batteries which changed their position because they were under too heavy fire discovered, as soon as they found a new point, that they were still under the dominance of the other side." Mr. Leonard Spray, writing to the Daily Telegraph on November 5th from " on the Belgian frontier," said :— ""Important works are being carried out also in Bruges and the surrounding district. The most important of these is the con struction of a Zeppelin shed. This is being erected, with tremendous haste, at a point a little outside the town, to the south-east. In the erection of this shed a serious obstacle has • been encountered. A work of such magnitude necessitates the employment of hundreds of carpenters and other artisans. Civilians were commanded to assist in the task. Most of them, however, refused to do so, their reason being the fear of the shed being made a mark for bombs thrown from aeroplanes. Threats that they would be shot if they did disobey forced a good many to the job. Others managed to escape from the town, and consequently great difficulty is being experienced in finding the necessary labour to complete the construction of the shed. " As a matter of fact, the fear was, to a certain extent, well founded. The Allies' aeroplanes have taken a considerable part in the recent operations. They have been of invaluable service in reconnaissance work. From a distant base which must not be mentioned, both ordinary machines and seaplanes have flown along the coast-line held by the enemy, and made many incursions far inland. Easily locating the German positions, they have been extremely useful, among other things, in directing the fire of the naval guns." " Incidentally, they have done a certain amount of bomb-throwing. Two days ago one airman flew over Bruges with the object of destroying tanks where the Germans have stored a large quantity of oil. Heavy mist made the Operation very difficult, and the bomb missed its mark by about two hundred yards. It was fired at unsuccessfully by machine guns. " It also escaped an aerial enemy. Returning, it was clearly 1122
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
