by Griff Hosker
Dawn broke and there was still no sign of his lordship. I saw Ted and Gordy working on their aeroplanes. I strolled to the engine. In theory it worked the same as the Lanchester and the Singer although it was driving a two bladed propeller. I knew how to check the oil and the fuel. I did so and they appeared to be full. I knew that lines could wear and, although this was a new aircraft, I checked that all the lines had neither kink nor crack. I saw Gordy checking the cables and struts on the wing of his F.E.2b. I walked over to him.
“What are you checking for?”
“Just make sure that the cables are tight and that there is no damage to the struts. That landing yesterday might have shaken them loose. Just tighten them.” He nodded over to Ted. “Poor Ted has a harder job. That is our oldest aircraft and every bugger has bumped that down at one time or another.”
I nodded, “Where do you stow the tool kit. I imagine it is too heavy for the front.”
“There’s a compartment behind the roundel. It goes under your seat.” He laughed cynically, “It is armour for your arse!”
My struts, wires and cables were all sound and so I stowed the tool kit and donned my balaclava, great coat and checked the maps while I waited for the officers. It seemed straight forward. I would fly along the river and then the coast until I reached Dover. I knew that you could see Calais from Dover so that short hop over the Channel wouldn’t be a problem. Once there we could fly down the coast and follow the river up to Amiens and the aerodrome. It might not be the quickest route but it would be both the most reliable and the safest.
The three officers finally strolled out. Four privates strolled behind them with equipment which they loaded into the cockpits. I hoped they loaded it well. “Ah good morning, Flight Sergeant Harsker. Everything ready?”
“Yes sir.”
“Route all planned?”
“Yes sir.”
“Jolly good. Well let’s hope we see France and not Belgium eh?” The two young lieutenants who looked to be about fourteen years old both laughed. He turned to them. “You two keep on my tail. If you have a problem get your observer to fire his Lewis in the air to attract my attention.” He grinned, “Not that I will be able to do much about it but at least I can write your people a nice letter eh?”
Their faces fell at the prospect. When we reached our aeroplane the captain showed me how to attach the rubber tubes which enabled us to speak with each other.
“Right then. I’ll go and get ready.”
It did not take him long and I heard, “Contact!”
This time I knew what to do and I put all my weight behind it. There was a cloud of smoke and then the engine coughed into life. I waited until it achieved a steady rhythm and then ran to the front. I clambered in and then attached the tubes into my flying helmet which I then donned. I saw one of the privates waiting with the chocks. In my ear I heard a muffled voice say. “Everything good there Harsker?”
“Yes sir!”
He must have waved his hands for we started to move forwards. I was about to fly to war. My life had changed, forever.
Chapter 14
The aeroplane seemed slower to climb but then I realised we now had a full load of fuel and our baggage. “Well Flight, have you our route all ready?”
“Yes sir. Straight down the river and turn south at the coast and then a hop over to Calais.”
“Good. I don’t fancy having to climb over the hills and waste fuel. This way we can keep low.”
We did keep low. To me we appeared to be skimming over the rooftops but, later when we landed, I was told we were four hundred feet in the air. The warm boots certainly helped as did the balaclava. It was cold and overcast. I was pleased that we were flying low.
I had the map folded so that I could trace our course. I kept checking for the different landmarks and I told the captain time we passed one. “You are doing a fine job. Could you stand and check that the others are still following?”
I couldn’t refuse an order but I was petrified. I undid the seat belt and then held on to the two sides as I stood. I tried to crane my neck around but I could see nothing. I turned myself in the cockpit. I was terrified. The sides barely came to my knee. I could be tipped out at any time. Eventually I faced the rear. I could see the grin on the captain’s face. “Scary eh William?”
“Yes sir. I’m just glad that the uniform trousers are brown.” I heard him laugh. I could see the two planes. They were echeloned back from our port wing. The Avro was slightly lower than the F.E. 2b. “They are both there sir!”
“Right then face the front and tell me when to turn.”
The journey was uneventful until we struck the coast and then flew over Dover. “Dover sir. We need to head due east.”
“Right Flight. Cock and arm the Lewis.”
“Sir?” I could not keep the incredulity from my voice. This was the English Channel.
“Intelligence has it that there are a couple of Huns around. They sometimes fly over Dover. Keep an eye out eh?”
I knew that I would never be able to discriminate a German from a British plane. I had to unfasten my seatbelt to stand and to cock the gun. I quickly sat down and fastened my seatbelt again. I pulled out my rifle and loaded it. It may sound cowardly but I worked out I could fire the rifle from a seated position. I was not ready to fight quite yet!
The water looked grey and cold from our lofty position. I stirred myself. I was supposed to be watching for the enemy. I was happy when I saw the old Medieval Tower of Calais appear ahead.
“Calais, Captain Burscough. Turn south and follow the coast.” I knew that I would need a compass to give him more precise directions in future. So far we appeared to be on course and, I think, making good time. I knew that we were faster than the Avro and so the captain could go faster if he had to.
We reached the river and I told the captain to head south east. We were almost there. I saw what looked like a bird in the distance. The hairs on the back of my neck told me it wasn’t and I took no chances, better to appear a fool than be killed the first day on the job.
“Sir, I think there is an aeroplane ahead.” I took off my belt and stood. I pointed directly ahead. Putting both hands on the Lewis gun I braced my knees against the side of the cockpit.
“I see it.” There was a pause. “I can’t tell yet whose it is. Signal to the others.”
I half turned and waved at Gordy. I saw him stand and wave back. He waved to Ted. I looked ahead again and saw that the single bird had become two and they were closing with us. They were biplanes but I could not see any markings as they were head on.
“Keep an eye on them, Flight. If they are the Hun then they will try to climb and drop down on us.”
I looked at the map and saw that we had less than twenty miles to go to the airfield. How could the Germans operate this close to our lines?”
Then I saw them begin to climb and as they did I saw the black crosses on their wings. They were Germans. “They are the Hun sir.”
“I can see. Don’t fire until we are much closer and only use short bursts.”
“Sir!”
Even though they were some way away I tracked them with my gun. I knew you had to lead a target but these aeroplanes could travel at almost a hundred miles an hour. That was faster than any target I had fired upon. My only consolation was that there were three of us. We outnumbered them.
“What kind are they sir?”
“Albatrosses I think. I am not sure if they are armed but if they are climbing to attack then they must think they can.”
Suddenly the climb stopped and I saw them swoop down towards us. They were heading for Gordy’s aeroplane and they were in one line. I aimed ahead of the screaming German. I heard Gordy fire and so I did too. The bullets missed the tail of the first aircraft. I tried a second burst with the second aircraft and this time I saw a couple of pieces of fabric detach themselves from the tail.
The gun jammed. I took off the magazine to clear the blockage and the captain
banked the aeroplane at the same time. If I had not been holding on to the Lewis gun I would have been over the side. I cleared the blockage and replaced the magazine. I looked for the Germans but could not see them. I heard the captain’s voice in my ear. “The cunning blighter’s are going overhead where the Lewis can’t fire.”
I sat down and brought out the Lee Enfield; my rifle could. I felt much more comfortable seated and I raised the gun. I could hear the Albatros’ engine as it moved above us less than fifty feet away. I wondered why they hadn’t fired on us. As soon as I saw the engine and propeller in my sights I emptied the magazine and then reached down for the Luger. As I looked up I saw two things: the pilot aiming a rifle at me and then smoke and oil coming from the engine. I aimed the Luger and emptied the magazine at the pilot. I didn’t hit him but as he had been flying at the same speed as us, I had managed to hit his aeroplane and I saw the holes appear just behind him. The pilot banked and headed north, away from us. The second one followed the damaged leader.
“Good show William! You are a bag filled with surprises. And just in the nick of time too. It looks like our airfield is right ahead.”
I risked a look to the left and saw that both aeroplanes were still there although the Avro had an oil trail coming from its engine. As we came in I noticed that there were clusters of aeroplanes around the field. It looked to be the base for a number of squadrons.
The second landing was much smoother than the first and we rolled to a halt close to the other aeroplanes from the squadron. When the engine stopped I closed my eyes and said a quick prayer of thanks. We had been lucky. I was only a novice airman but I knew that the day could have ended badly for us. If Gordy had not advised me about the gun then it might have gone ill for us.
I clambered out of the cockpit and I have to admit I was shaking. It had been both exhilarating and terrifying.
Lord Burscough slapped me on the back. “I say, well done. I didn’t know you had a Luger.”
“A souvenir from Flanders but at least it made him shift.”
“It did indeed.”
We turned as the Avro limped in. “Looks like Lieutenant Devries had a few problems there.”
I looked around. There were tents laid out and a mess tent. I could only one wooden building. It was in the far corner of the field and looked to have nothing to do with the aircraft parked on the grass. It was back to the life in the cavalry. I knew I would cope. If I ever felt sorry for myself I would think of Doddy and Tiny; they would happily change places with me.
Two privates ran over with chocks. They saluted both of us. I returned the salute but I was not used to it. We had been much more informal in the Yeomanry.
“Right, I’ll go and report. Bring my stuff to the main tent and I will see where we are billeted.”
I realised then that I was a servant still. “Sir.”
I took out my gear first and then found the bags the captain had brought on board. When I had collected them all Gordy and Ted wandered over.
“Nice shooting. Those Huns can climb better than we can. You did well.”
I turned to Ted, “Did you get hit?”
“Nah, it was just a seal which went. It looked worse than it was but I will have to strip it down tomorrow.”
Gordy nodded with his head. “Come on let’s go and get our tents sorted. We can service the aircraft later.”
I was surprised. “We have to service them as well as fly them?”
Ted grimaced, “Technically, no. But the blokes they have servicing them don’t have to fly them so we do it. They can refuel them and do the magazines.”
Gordy held his hand up, “I do that myself.” He looked at me. “Your Lewis jammed?”
“It did. “
“Strip it down, clean it and reload the magazines yourself. That way you know it is done right.”
“The mechanics have an easy time then?”
Red chuckled, “We make them spin the propellers. It’s about all they are good for and it saves us struggling into the front.”
We found three tents together and we dumped our gear. I was glad to take off my warm weather gear now that we were on the ground. I dropped the captain’s bags at the main tent. I saw him inside with the two lieutenants talking to another captain.
I returned to the aeroplane. There were a couple of bullet holes in the wing. I would need to get them repaired. I took the magazines from the Lewis and laid them on the ground. I then stripped and cleaned the Lewis gun. It was still filled with the factory grease. The ground crew had done nothing but fit it. I became angry. That could have cost the lives of a valuable pilot, an aeroplane and me! When it was fixed I went to the engine and checked everything that could be checked. I heard “Jippo!” yelled. They obviously had no bell here yet. I went to my tent to get my mess tins and nipped into the latrines to wash down a little. I was hungry. Fear did that to me.
Ted and Gordy had saved a place for me. It was a much more crowded sergeant’s mess than the one we had left in England. I sat opposite the two of them.
“Looks like there are three squadrons here.” Gordy leaned over and spoke more quietly, “Better watch your stuff. Our lads are all right but these others are thieving bastards!”
I smiled. It was the same in the cavalry. No one trusted another regiment. After we had eaten, Ted and Gordy lit up and I leaned back. “What happens next then?”
“The next couple of days should be easy until the C.O. and the rest of the lads arrive and then all hell will break loose.” Ted nodded at me. “Get his lordship to give you a lesson in the Avro.”
“Hang on Gordy. The bloody thing is knackered as it is.”
“You’ll get a new one soon enough. The sooner it is wrecked the sooner they get you a new aeroplane.”
Ted almost brightened, “I hadn’t thought of that. It’ll be right by tomorrow, son.”
“Do you think I am ready?”
“Listen Bill, the only way we will survive this war is if we become officers. That means becoming a pilot. Ted and I will soon be ready to fly and when someone pops his clogs then we will be made up. It is cheaper than training a fresh faced young toff in England.”
“You are right, Ted, and those two Beer Boys will not last a week over here. I thought they were going to fill their pants when those two Huns arrived.”
I wondered what they would think of me. I had been as a scared as anyone. I had been lucky no one had noticed.
The next day was strange. I heard reveille and, after my wash and shave, took my mess tins for breakfast. The only people in the mess were our squadron. I sat next to Gordy and Ted again. “Where is everyone?”
“On patrol. That’s why we make the most of this quiet time. The C.O. won’t be here for a couple of days. Make hay while the sun shines.”
After I had checked the aeroplane again I sought out Captain Burscough. He smiled at me. “It will be quiet for a couple of days. It’ll give you the chance to get to know people.”
“Thank you sir but I was wondering if I could have a flying lesson.” He gave me a strange look. “Flight Sergeant Hewitt thought it might be a good idea.” I thought he might say no and so I made something up. “If I knew how to fly then it might help me to work the gun better as I would know what you were going to do.”
He smiled and I was relieved, “Good idea but the Avro is Kaput at the moment.”
“No sir, Ted, er Flight Sergeant Thomas said it would be fixed.” That was an outright lie but I hoped that Ted would have made the crate airworthy.
He paused and then a smile split his face, “Very well. It will give me a chance to get the lie of the land.”
Ted had, by the look on his face, only just got the aeroplane ready. “Well done, Flight Sergeant Thomas.”
“No problem sir, it’s what we do.” Ted rubbed his thumb and first finger together. I knew what that meant- I would have to pay him in tobacco for his work. I nodded. “I even reloaded the guns, sir. If you like I’ll start her for you.”
“Good fellow.”
They had the same rubber pipe system in the aeroplane and when I had connected it up I heard his lordship’s voice in my ear. Before he starts it up I’ll take you through the controls. You have a joystick in front of you. Push it forwards to go down and pull it back to go up. On the floor in front of you are a couple of pedals: right banks you starboard and left banks you port. That is about it. I’ll take us up and then I’ll let you have a bash eh?”
“How do I make it go faster?”
I heard a guffaw from behind me. “Let’s just see if you can keep us in the air first eh?”
“Yes sir.”
“Contact!”
I saw Ted spin the propeller and it caught. This was different for a start. I had a propeller in front of me. The F.E. 2 had been open. Captain Burscough took off smoothly enough and headed west towards the sea. I could see that I had dials in front of me and I had some idea of the height of the aeroplane. It took him some time to get to a height where he was happy but eventually I heard his voice. “Get hold of the stick. Forget the pedals for the moment. Let’s just try to fly straight. Just tell me when you are about to do something eh?”
“Right sir. I have the stick.”
“You have the aeroplane.”
There was no difference. We kept on heading west. This was easy. After a few minutes I heard the tone of the engine change. It sounded as though it was struggling.
“Flight, you are climbing. Look at your gauges. You are about to stall the aeroplane. Put the nose down a touch.”
I panicked and pushed forward on the stick. Suddenly we were heading down in a dive and going much faster.
I heard a chuckle. “A bit too much stick. Try to keep it in the middle eh?”
I pulled back slowly and, gradually, our speed slowed until the engine sounded better. I checked our height and we had dropped about two hundred feet.