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Aviation History
1949
1949 - 0491.PDF
March ljlh, 1941J FLIGH T 1 in/ 3 Fighter squadron A Bristol monoplane over Stonehenge in 1912. This photograph inspired the unit's first bodge. The Story of Our Oldest "Heavier-than-Air" Unit and its Antecedents *By JOHN YOXALL "FTV The original badge HERE is another and far more im- portant phase of aerial locomotion which in the near future will have to be reckoned with. In a few years we may expect to see men moving swiftly through the air on simple surfaces, just as a gliding bird moves. Such machines will move very rapidly, probably never less than twenty and up to a hundred miles per hour; nothing but the heaviest storms will stop them. They will be small and difficult to damage, and their range of operations will be very large." So spoke Colonel J. E. Capper in a lecture on military ballooning to the Royal United Service Institution in 1906. Within a few short years the accuracy of his forecast was proved by the birth of Britain's first " heavier-than-air " unit, subsequently to be known as No. 3 Fighter Squadron and to form the nucleus from which the Royal Air Force was to grow. As is usual in Britain in such matters, early development was left to private individuals, notably Lt. Dunne (now Colonel Dunne and author of An Experiment with Time), who worked on tailless designs, and S. F. Cody, who essayed building what came to be known as the British Army Aeroplane, a magnifi- cent structure of bamboo, fabric and wire. This was in the winter of 1907-8. These experiments were supported by the Balloon Factory, the forerunner of the R.A.E., and, in February, 1909, on Laffan'? Plain, Cody flew his aircraft for a distance of 400 yards at a height of about 12 feet. A speed of some 12 m.p.h. was recorded against a 10 m.p.h. wind. In 1910 the Bristol company came into the picture. They had produced their famous '' Box-kite '' and established themselves at both Brooklands and Salisbury Plain, in close co-operafion with the military authorities, At the end of September it was arranged with the War Office that for the army manoeuvres Capt. Dickson and Mr. Robert Loraine should each fly a Bristol, and Lt. L. D. L. Gibbs his own Farman. The experiment was a success, and Major Sir Alexander Bannerman, who commanded the Balloon Section, R.E., was ordered to "enlarge the scope of work hitherto carried out by affording opportunities for aeroplaning." By January, 1911, the Balloon Factory had four heavier-than-air craft—a Bleriot, a Wright, a Henry Farman and a biplane pur- &hased from Mr. Geoffrey de Havilland (now Sir Geoffrey, head of the famous aircraft con- cern). Up to then " D.H." had been experi- menting at his own expense at Newbury, but, having come to the end of his resources, had of No. 3 Squadron, sold his aircraft to the Government and joined the Balloon Factory as designer and test pilot. He was also a member of what was then known as the First Reserve of Officers, and later was to be attached for a time to No. 3 Squadron and do some anti-submarine patrols on a 50 h.p. Bleriot monoplane off the Scottish coast early in the 1914-18 war. In March of the same year the War Office decided to form the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers to supersede the Balloon School. It was to comprise headquarters and two companies—No. i to handle lighter-than-air craft and No. 2 to fly heavier-than-air machines. H.Q. and No. 1 Company were at Farnborough, while No. 2, with their aircraft, were at LarkhiU on Salisbury Plain. The officers were to be seconded from other regiments and, among other desirable qualifications, were to be able to read maps, make field sketches, be immune from sea sickness, and be bachelors under the age of thirty. ^The battalion came into being on April is\; and presumably this is the reason for all sub- sequent major changes in the R.F.C. and R.A.F. occurring on this peculiar date. In 1911 there was, of course, no proper schedule of training laid down. Army com- manders had to envisage the employment of entirely new arm, and officers of different ents were bound to clash occasionally ^matters of divided loyalties. Neverthe- less, the air picture was now to be seen fairly clearly, though the new arm was, as yet, regarded mainly as a reconnaissance aid for an expeditionary force. The Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers 3*5
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