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Aviation History
1916
1916 - 0231.PDF
AIRCRAFT WORK AT THE FRONT. OFFICIAL INFORMATION. British. General Headquarters\ March loth. " Yesterday we carried out a successful aircraft attack against the hostile railhead and bidets at Carvin. It is believed that con siderable damage w«ts done. Thirty-one machines took part in the raid and all returned safely. " As the result of a fight in the air a hostile machine and one of our own machines were brought down near Tournai. •' Last night the enemy made bombing attacks against two of our craters near the Hohenzollern Redoubt. Both attacks were repulsed. To-day there has been much artillery activity on both sides about Loos, the Hohenzollern Redoubt, and between Ojinque Rue and Fauquissart. North of the latter place we damaged a hostile mine shaft by our artillery fire." General Headquarters, March ijth. "Yesterday there was much aerial activity on both sides. Thi'ti'-two hostile machines were engaged. One was driven down near Lille, and a second shot down in our lines. To-day another German machine was forced to descend in our lines." French. Paris, March 7th. Evening. " In the Argonne, in the region of Avocourt, our special tuns brought down a German aeroplane, which fell in our lines. Both aviators, who were wounded, were taken prisoners." Paris, March 8lh. Evening. " Aeroplan; bombardment quadrons, consisting of 16 machines, dropped 124 bomb; of every calibre on the station of MetzSablons, where there were several trains. The projectiles found their mark. A squadron of enemy aeroplanes attempted to pursue our machines, which returned to their starting point, with the exception of one aeroplane, which was compelled to land as the result of engine trouble." Paris, March loth. Afternoon. " Contrary to German assertions, the aerial bombardment of Metz effected from French aeroplanes is understood to have been productive of good military results. A munition train and a troop train are state! to have been destroyed. " On March 8th, our aircraft displayed particular activity. Numerous actions were fought by our machines mostly over the enemy's lines. During these aerial encjunters 15 German aero planes were put to flight. Ten were seen to plunge vertically into their own lines, and, according to definite information, two German machines, one of which was a Foklier, were brought down in Champagne and three in the region of Verdun. Thee machines fell into the German zon'.." Paris, Ma'ch wih. Evening. " To-day in the region of Douamont one of our aeroplanes b ought down a Fokker, which fell in flames in the German lines." Paris, March 12th. Evening. "This rcornirjg Sub-Lieutenant Gujnemer brought down a German aeroplane, which fell in flames in our lines near Tbiescourt. This is the eighth aeroplane brought down by this pilot. Six of these fell in our lines and two in the German lines. " Another of our aviators also brought down an enemy aeroplane in oar lines near Dombasle, in the Argonne. The passengers of the two machines thus destroyed were killed. "The same day our squadrons of fighting aeiop'anes fought eighteen actiors in the air in the region ef Etain, putting their adversaries to flight." Paris, March 13M, Afternoon. " One of our bombarding air squadrons, during a night flight, dropped thirty bombs of heavy calibre on the railway station of Conflans. Five outbreaks ol fiie were noticed. In spite of a violent cannonade all our machines returned safely." Paris, March l^t/i. Evening. "During to-day our army corps and I .attic air squadrons displayed remarkable activity in the whole of the Verdun region. A squadron, composed of six aeroplanes, dropped 130 bombs on the strategic station of Breulles, north of Verdun. " Very numerous actions were fought, in which the advantage lay indisputably with us. In the course of these actions three German aeroplanes were brought down, one in our lines and the two others in the first German lines. Other aeroplanes were seen falling, but their destruction could not be verified." Russian. Ptfregrad, March pA. "The enemvs artillery violently bomliarded the region south west of the island of Dalen, his fire being dincted by means of five balloons." German. Berlin, March 7th. " One of our airships heavily bombatr'ed during the night the railway establishments of Bar le-Duc.'' Bitlin, March 8//;. "Our air squadrons bombarded the villages west of Verdun, where troops are concentrated. " The railway line from Ljichowitchi (south-east of Barano- vitschi) to Lunienice, along which considerable tr.rtic had Ireen observed, was attacked by our aviators with good results." Berlin, March g!h " In a series of aerial engagements in the neighbourhood of Verdun our aviators remained victors. It is certain that three enemy aeroplanes have been shot down. All our aeroplanes returned safely, but several ol their brave pilots were wounded. The enemy troops in the villages to the west and south of Verdun were heavily bombarded. " By an attack delivered by a French aeroplane squadron within the radius of the fortress of Metz two civilians were killed and seveial private houses damaged. In an aerial battle the machine of the commander of the squadron was shot down. He was taken prisoner. His observer was dead." Berlin, March loth. " Our battle-aviators shot down two English aeroplanes j namely, one monoplane near Wytschaete (to the south of Ypres), and one biplane to the north-cast of La Bassee. The occupant of the first machine is dead. " In the month of February the activity of our air-units as regards attacks and the number of their far-reaching reconnoitring and nociurnat squadron expeditions behind the enemy front were considerably greater than ever before. The following schedule not only again proves our superiority, but also refutes the assertion so belovtd by our opponents, that our losses in aerial warfare are so small because our aeroplanes do not dare to fly over the enemy lines. " The German lo-ses on the western front during the month of p'ebruary amount to :—None in aerial batiks, none by being shot from the guund, six mUsing. Total six. "The French and English have lost:—Thirteen in aerial battles, five by being shot fr<.m the earrh, thiee by forced landings within our lin?s. A total if 21. "Withregardtothis.it must be observed that we lave based our figures only on the machines which have fallen into our hards, or which have been observed to fall down in flames, and not the numerous other machines of the opponents shot down Lehind the enemy linCi." Berlin, March nth. "A French aeroplane hit by our antiaircraft guns fell in a bun.ing condition south-west ol the Chateau Salins, between our lines and thoae of the enemy. The occupants, who were dead, were secured by us, together with iht debris of the aer< plane." Berlin, March 13M. " Owing to the favourable conditions for observation, artillery activity on both sides along the greater portion of the front has been very lively, and has increased in violence on both tides of the Mm e and up to the Moselle. " After considerable reconnoitring activity our airmen have suc cessfully attacked railway buildings and dugouts, especially on the railway from Clermont to Verdun. Three enemy aeroplanes were destroyed, two in Champagne and one in the Meu>e district." Turkish. Constantinople, Maith Hth. " The activity of our aviators prevented reconnoitring flights over the Dardanelles by enemy aviators, who fled as soon as they saw the apptoaching aviators." Constantinople, March 13th. " Two enemy aeroplanes unsucces fully bombed two transports in Akbach Bay." From Other Sources. writing to the Daily Mail from Paris on has been persistently bombarded by French airmen, resulting in Mr. W. L. McAlpin. Monday regarding the fighting round Verdun, says :— " To supply the thousands of tons of material, most of which comes from Metz—the military forwarding station of Metz-Siblons considerable damage and delay—takes time, and, despite the marvellous efficiency of the German transport fervicc behind the lines, some such interval as the present became imperative. .... 331
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