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Aviation History
1916
1916 - 1018.PDF
[/OGHTJ NOVEMBER 16, 1916. AIRCRAFT WORK AT THE FRONT. OFFICIAL INFORMATION, British. Admiralty, November 10th. - " An attack was carried out in the early hours of this morning on the harbour and submarine shelters at Ostend and Zeebrugge by a squadron of naval aeroplanes. A great weight of bombs was dropped with satisfactory results." General Headquarters, November loth, 9.49 p.m. " As the result of the improvement in the weather there was great aerial activity yesterday and much useful work done. Many bombing raids were carried out on the enemy's communications, billets, and stores. Air fighting was almost continuous. One of our squadrons of 30 machines encountered a squadron of from 30 to 40 machines, and an aerial battle took place. The enemy's squadron was broken up and dispersed. Six of his machines were seen* to commence to fall out of control, but owing to the severity of the fighting it was not possible to watch them to the ground. As a result of other fights nine more hostile machines were driven down in a damaged condition. Three of these are known to have been destroyed. A hostile kite balloon was also attacked and sent down in flames. " Seven of our machines are missing." Admiralty, November nth. " With reference to the attack on Ostend and Zeebrugge, carried out by a squadron of naval aeroplanes on the 10th inst., one of our machines—Flight-Lieutenant Geoffrey G. G. 1 lodge, R.N.—has failed to return. A Berlin official report states that he has been taken prisoner. All the other machines returned safely." General Headquarters, November nth, 9.57 p.m. " Yesterday there was again considerable activity in the air. During the day bombing raids were continued with effect against enemy hutments, aerodromes, and headquarters, and at night the enemy's stations and trains were success fully attacked. Two trains were hit with bombs, while a third was set on fire, and a number of explosions followed. In the course of numerous air fights three enemy machines were destroyed, and a fourth was forced to land in our lines. Many others were driven down in a damaged condition. One of our machines is missing." Admiralty, November 12th. " On November 10th a squadron of naval aeroplanes, operating against the Bulgarian coast, successfully bom barded enemy aerodromes and stores at Drama, Porna and Angistra. Excellent results were achieved. " The bombardment of the enemy's steel works at Volk- lingen by British aeroplanes referred to in the French communiqui of November nth was carried out by a squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service." War Office, November 12th. " Salonica.—Enemy aerodromes at Drama and camps near Porna were successfully bombed by our naval aircraft. Admiralty, November 13th. "At noon yesterday (12th inst.) a squadron of naval aeroplanes carried out an attack on the harbour at Ostend. A considerable number of bombs were dropped on the Atelier de la Marine (naval workshops) and on war vessels in the harbour." War Office, November 13th. " Egypt.—The G.O.C.-in-C, Egypt, reports two successful air attacks on Maghdaba and Birsaba. At Maghdaba the enemy's camp and store sheds were bombed, and a number of direct hits caused much damage. At Birsaba a 100-lb. bomb hit the aerodrome ; an Aviatik whilst being brought from the hangar was directly hit, the hangar also being damaged. Bombs were dropped on the railway station, sidings, and rolling stock, which suffered much damage. Two hostile Fokkers were driven down in a damaged condition. Bombs equivalent to a ton of high explosive were dropped during the two raids. All our machines have returned safely in spite of very heavy fire from anti-aircraft guns and attacks of enemy aircraft." " Mesopotamia.—On November 7th two British aeroplanes bombarded, with good results, the headquarters of some Turkish irregulars near Al Ain, on the Euphrates, 45 miles west of Nasiriyeh." " Salonica.—On the Doiran front our aircraft carried out reconnaissances, during which three enemy aeroplanes were forced to descend behind their lines." French. Paris, November 6th " In telegrams of yesterday's date the Germans declare that they have shelled Rheims as reprisals for an allege.; bombardment by the French of inhabited places behind the German front. At no time have the people who are French been subjected to a bombardment by French airmen, win. strictly follow the instructions they receive and only drop bombs on military establishments, bivouacs, or enemy railway lines. The truth is that the Germans have fired a! Rheims since October 26th, the day following their defeat at Verdun, and that out of revenge they continued the bom bardment on October 27th, 28th and 29th, and November 4th, in proportion as their defeat was aggravated. That is tin truth, and all other pretexts which they invoke to justify their barbarous acts are absolutely lies. "German aircraft dropped several incendiary bombs on Nancy yesterday towards 10 p.m. There were no victims, and no damage was done.'' Paris, November jth. " Salonica.—-Our aeroplanes bombarded several localities in the valley of the Vardar. An enemy aeroplane was brought down near Monastir during a fight by one of our pilots." Paris, November 8th. " North-west of Pont-a-Mousson two enemy aeroplanes were brought down in air fights by our pilots. One fell near Vieville-en-Haye and the other in the direction of Vilcey-sur- Trey. " On Monday night eight of our bombarding aeroplanes dropped over a ton of projectiles on the aerodrome of Frescaty. and a similar quantity on the military railway station of Chambley. The objectives were struck. " Salonica.—Our aeroplanes bombarded the military camps in the*region north of Monastir." Paris, November 10th. " There was great reciprocal aviation activity yesterday. Our aeroplanes engaged in 77 fights, in the course of which a Fokker biplane was brought down in our lines near Auberivc, a Rumller was forced to descend near St. Hilaire-le-Grand (the two aviators are prisoners), another machine was certainly brought down, and seven came down in the German lines on the Somme. " Our bombing squadrons dropped 700 bombs or shells on the communications and cantonments behind the front, especially on the railway stations of Lens and Vouzieres, and 270 bombs on the blast furnaces of Algrange, near Thionville, the aerodrome of Dieuse, the railway station of Courcelles- sur-Nied, and the aircraft sheds of Frescaty." " Salonica.—British aeroplanes bombarded the stations of Porna and Puljovo." Paris, November nth. " During the day of November 10th three German machine-- were brought down by our pilots in the Somme region. Two of them were brought down by Lieutenant Guynemer, one south of Nesles and the other near Morcourt. This brings up to 21 the number of enemy machines destroyed up to date by this pilot. Two other German aeroplanes, attacked by ours, fell smashed to the ground, the first in the Cham pagne, north of Auberive, and the second in Lorraine, south of the Gremeceyr Forest, where it fell in flames. During the night of November 9th.-ioth our bombarding squadrons dropped 2,205 kilos. (4,860 lb.) of projectiles on the stations, bivouacs, and enemy parks on the Somme front. One of our aeroplane > flew over the Rhine between Neuf Brisach and Strassbour", and dropped six bombs on the station of Offenburg, which suffered important damage. " Between 10 and n o'clock in the morning of November 10th a group of 17 British aeroplanes bombarded the steel works of Focklingen (north-west of Sarrbruck) ; 1,000 kilo grammes (2,204 tt>.) °f projectiles were dropped on the build ings, which suffered great damage. In the course of tlv operation the British aeroplanes fought -"Several actions against enemy machines, of which three were felled. " The following night, between 8 and 9 o'clock, eight (•> our aeroplanes carried out a fresh bombardment of tie factories, in the course of which 1,600 kilogrammes of pro jectiles were dropped. Several fires were observed. All o11 machines returned safely. "During the night of November loth-nth our squadron- IOIO
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