On this Day (WWI aviation news), Vol. 2

[PJ Fisher]

State of the Art
An invalided Torontonian aviator, Lloyd Faulkner, reveals the latest tech flying over the western front in this interview excerpt.  Referenced herein are Handley Page, Sopwith, Nieuport, and SPAD (misspelled 'Spat'!).
(from the Northern Argus, 2 March 1917:




More of Faulkner's story over at The Aerodrome archive:  https://www.theaerodrome.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-32400.html

Here's a great build of a speculative SPAD in RFC service by forum member RAGIII: https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=12641.0

[PJ Fisher]

Femmes Fight Fallen Fokker!
Amazing story from the Polish front today, just in time for International Women's Day.
(from the Sydney Mail 3 March 1915):

[PJ Fisher]

Champion of Eagles
Tenente Silvio Scaroni was Italy's second-ranking ace of all time and the second-ranking pilot of the Hanriot HD.1 (behind Belgium's Willy Coppens).  Following the demise of Count Francesco Baracca in June 1918, Scaroni became Italy's L'asso Degli Assi; maintaining that status until his death at age 83 in 1977.
(from L'Italia 4 March 1919):



Rough translation:
"'The coveted title is the pride of Silvio Scaroni from Brescia, who is documented as having shot down twenty-five enemy aircraft. He is therefore the absolute champion of that glorious host of eagles who they have undermined our unconditional supremacy of the air. First of the first among the living "aces"... he is surpassed only by Francesco Baracca who also commands the admiration and gratitude of all Italians: because never as in Silvio Scaroni have heroism and modesty found a more perfect marriage."

Check out forum member andonio64's build of Scaroni's Hanriot: https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=5859.msg144564#msg144564

[PJ Fisher]

Unidentified Floating Object
Despite this derelict seaplane reported as having a British propeller and Gnome motor, the type of machine remains elusive to me.  A peek over on the Aviation Safety Network reveals nothing exactly matching this description near this article's publication date.  However, there is an entry for a White & Thompson No.3 Flying Boat (serial #1199) that was knocked into the sea by anti-aircraft fire on Tuesday, February 16. This seaplane is recorded as having been "forced to land in the Wester Schelde near Deurloo. Towed to Vlissingen by a Dutch torpedo boat".  This would make for a fairly long time on open seas and the W&T was powered by an Austo-Daimler water-cooled engine, so I'm not sure if these two incidents match.  Might anyone have a clue as to this aircraft's true identity?
(from the Cambria Daily Leader, 5 March 1915):


 

The No.3 Flying Boat clearly has a Curtiss influence.  I've long wanted to build a model of this rarity.

[PJ Fisher]

Wrecked and Rescued
Paired with yesterday's post of a derelict British flying boat, today's story recounts the fate of two unlucky/lucky German naval airmen adrift in a snow storm in the North Sea.  The second article paints a particularly vivid picture: "...it was dark, with much frost and fog, rockets were seen some miles away. They made very slow progress for want of wind, but soon after daybreak, when the fog lifted, they saw a seaplane on the water... One of her floats was smashed, and a wing was torn and broken. On one side she was submerged and two men were clinging to the side farthest from the water. They were in a terrible state of exhaustion and had to be lifted into the boat.

(respectively from the Denbighshire Free Press, 6 March 1915; and the Malaya Tribune, 27 April 1915):

[PJ Fisher]

Fünfzehn Flieger
This snippet suggests the Germans have been busy in the skies along the Western Front.
(from the Detroit Times, 7 March 1915):

[Dutch522]

Welcome back, PJ, missed ya! Really enjoyed these posts, and the best part was being presented with an aeronautical mystery, which required two ice cubes, three fingers of Larceny, and a pleasant hour's rummaging about in my Great War aviation library. Tough assignment, but once more into the breach and all that. Anyway, sometimes the oldies but goodies are the ones you should check first, so I started with my precious original copy of Jane’s 1919, moved on to the Putnam books, and finally ended up leafing through what’s probably my favorite all-around favorite WWI aviation book, the Harleyford Marine Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War. It was listed under Norman Thompson (the company was renamed from White & Thompson Ltd. in October, 1915), and you’ve got a good eye, it says The Company held licence to build Curtiss aircraft, and while they both had the typical configuration of Curtiss flying boats, they were completely re-designed with e.g. R.A.F. No. 6 Section wings in place of Curtiss wings...


 
And that top bird is only one serial number off yours.

Dutch

[PJ Fisher]

Hey thanks Dutch!  Bourbon and books... two critical tools for proper research.  I've been mad busy the past week or so but finally made time to catch up with the daily news (and a glass of Bruichladdich).  Great pics you found.  Nice port-mounted Lewis gun on that second one.  I'm also a fan of White & Thompson's 'Bognor Bloater', possibly the most streamlined British fuselage of the entire war... held back by B.E.2 wings and motor.

[PJ Fisher]

Le Cinquième de Pinsard
French Flyer Amand Pinsard achieved ace status this week when he shot down a German Rumpler while piloting, I believe, a Nieuport 17 north of Laval, France.  The lieutenant had been leading the newly formed Escadrille N78 for just under three months.
(from the Cambria Daily Leader, 8 March 1917):



The ever-adventurous Pinsard survived multiple newsworthy encounters before and after this article.  Some early stories: "In October {1914}, he participated in a bombing raid that attempted to kill the German Kaiser. ...in November 1914... he pioneered the use of an aircraft to place an espionage agent behind enemy lines....  On 8 February 1915 he fell into German hands and was held prisoner of war when his plane was forced down behind German lines.... Thirteen months and several attempts later, Pinsard tunneled under a 12-foot-tall prison wall to freedom on 26 March 1916. It took him another two weeks to cross the lines into neutral Switzerland and to repatriate himself on 10 April.

His reward for his daring escape was retraining as a fighter pilot and an assignment to France's foremost fighter squadron, Les Cigognes.  By July 1916, he was flying a Nieuport with Squadron N26. On 7 August, in a pioneering close air support role, he made no fewer than six firing passes on German troops attempting to counterattack a French unit. Then he and his three wingmen went on to strafe a train loaded with German troops. He was made a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur for this action.

On 1 November 1916, he opened his victory roll in air combat. After a winter's layoff, he resumed his winning way on 23 January 1917, flying as Commanding Officer of Squadron N78." (via wikipedia)

[PJ Fisher]

Incendiary Souvenir
Has anyone ever written a book on WW1 German bombs?  I'd like to learn more about them.  The one featured in today's news is somewhat similar looking to one of several incendiaries in the collection of the Imperial War Museum (image below).  They were originally wrapped with cordage covered in flammable tar.  The last image is more recent 3D rendering of one that I made.  Still need to dial in the smaller details.
(from the Australian Town and Country Journal, 9 March 1915):


(image via twitter.com)

[PJ Fisher]

"New Terror of the Skies"
Despite a touch of artistic license with the cover art this article offers an comprehensive understanding of the impact of air power upon traditional military strategy when the Great War was still just eight months old.  Included is a recounting of the fledgling RNAS raids on Cologne, Düsseldorf, and Friedrichshafen.
(from Stead's Review, 10 March 1915):




Here are two past headlines referencing two early RNAS raids:

https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=12930.msg251298#msg251298
https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=13750.msg261014#msg261014

[PJ Fisher]

How to Bust a 'Gasbag'
Way too much math for me. But here's a handy guide to keep with you in case ever needed.
(from the Globe and Sunday Times, 11 March 1916):

[PJ Fisher]

Don't Tell Mama
This two-sentence account is rather fascinating.  It reminds us that French civilians were partly petitioned during the Great War, and that news before internet, television, and radio, could be tough to come by.  Hard to believe today that the mother of one of France's greatest aces was entirely oblivious to his notoriety for years!  The story also suggests a maternal view of war that is often overlooked among military historians but that certainly resonated during this conflict.  Coincidentally, during the same week Charles Nungesser engaged in his first dogfight (April 1915) the number one musical hit over in America was the pacifist protest song 'I Didn't Raise My Boy to be a Soldier', which recounts the potential tragedy of war from a mother's perspective.  Madame Nungesser became a doyenne of sorts among airmen's mothers and made the press a few times amidst her son's great adventures and his ultimate journey into the great unknown (see second article from 1927).
(from the Lakeland Evening Telegram, 12 March 1917):





Have a listen to the Peerless Quartet's version of 'I Didn't Raise by Boy to be a Soldier', which topped the charts in May 1915:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6WwsiJ5co8

[Dutch522]

A friend of mine has a small collection of original Nungesser memorabilia (including his wedding album, to an American heiress), and in one or the other of the scrapbooks he owns is a pair of photos of CN's mother’s home in Paris, which she maintained as a shrine to his memory after his disappearance:





Poor lady. As a father of three, I can’t begin to relate.

Dutch

[PJ Fisher]

Wow, great pics!