Air Power Over the AegeanToday's headline records the start of the allies' ill-fated Dardanelles campaign and the British Royal Navy's failure to 'force the narrows', which began 19 February 1915, with the bombardment of Ottoman forts at Cape Helles and Kum Kale. In the hundred years since, scholars have debated this military action's unintended impacts on world history, but today our focus on a very small part of the first day's enthusiasm. This article only vaguely references 'aeroplanes and seaplanes' but, thanks to the surviving logbook of the newly christened HMS Ark Royal (which arrived on scene two days earlier), we know the identities of the planes that saw action on this day. Nestled in the hold of the two-month-old purpose-built seaplane carrier were one Short Folder, three Sopwith Type 807's, a couple of Sopwith Tabloids, and my personal all-time favorite: two Wight A.1 Improved Navyplanes. With the war just six months old this gaggle were envisioned and employed primarily for observation and artillery spotting, but ultimately also light bombing.
(from the Bryant Daily Eagle, 20 February 1915):
Several of of Ark Royal's seaplanes were in the air that day. Troubles began immediately and continued for the duration of the campaign. The March 19 entry from the Ark Royal's logbook (original here:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/oldweather/ADM53-34098/0046_0.jpg), along with the following recollection, gives evidence of the Royal Navy's struggle to bring new technology and tactics to war:
"
On 19th February Flt Lts N S Douglas and E H Dunning take Ark Royal’s third “Type 807” folder floatplane No.922 on a first Sopwith mission against Turkish land forces defending the Dardanelles. Their orders are to reply ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the question ‘Are two guns of No.1 battery nearer to barracks than cliff?’, then spot onto No.1 Fort for HMS Inflexible at 4,00ft if possible but 3,00ft further off if necessary. The mission is not a success as the wireless telegraphy set short-circuits probably due to spray getting into the set during the take-off. Photograph... shows the machine and crew being hoisted back aboard Ark Royal. " (text and image via kingstonaviationorg)
Only twelve Sopwith Type 807 'Folders' where built. Though little remembered today they saw action across the British Empire. Below is my 1/72 Joystick vacuform build of Sopwith #920 that was featured in the March 2004 issue of
WWI Aero Magazine (my 15 minutes of scale-modeling fame). This particular plane was constructed ten days before #922; it served in East Africa with the RNAS and in Mesopotamia with the RFC.
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