Fire in the Sky: The Australian Flying Corps in the First World War

441 Pages·2010·40.175 MB·English

by  Michael Molkentin

T
h ‘... a book you will find hard to
e
A put down ... accessible, and
u
s unfailingly interesting.’
t
r
a Michael McKernan, Canberra Times
l
i
a
n

F
l
y
i
‘I half rolled, and there before my eyes was as perfect a target as I had n
g
M I C H A E L M O L K E N T I N
ever seen in my life. A pressure of a thumb, a short burst, a puff of smoke, C
o
a flash of flame, a hole on the clouds—and it was over.’ r
p
s
Lieutenant Robert McKenzie, No. 2 Squadron Australian Flying Corps
i
n

t
When the First World War began in August 1914, aeroplanes were a h
e
novelty, barely a decade old. Despite this, Australia was one of just a few F
i
nations outside Europe to establish a military flying school and corps. rs
t
From a first class of four student pilots the Australian Flying Corps would
W
grow to number almost 4000 by the armistice. Its young volunteers were o
r
pioneers in a completely new dimension of warfare as they struggled for ld

control of the skies over the Western Front and Middle East. W
a
r
Using private letters, diaries and official records, historian Michael
Molkentin reveals, for the first time in over 90 years, the remarkable story M
The Australian Flying Corps in the First World War
of the airmen and mechanics of the Australian Flying Corps. It is a tale I
C
of heroism and endurance; of a war fought thousands of feet above the H
trenches in aircraft of timber and fabric. Fire in the Sky takes readers up A
into this chaotic tumult and into the midst of a war from which only one E
L
in two Australian airmen emerged unscathed.
M
O
Michael Molkentin is a prize-winning historian, teacher and battlefield
L
tour guide. He has a degree in history from the University of Wollongong. K
E
N
T
I
N
Cover design: Lisa White
MILITARY
FIRE_B.indd 1 26/09/12 11:43 AM
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 1 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 1 25/09/12 4:27 PM
This page intentionally left blank
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 2 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 2 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 3 25/09/12 4:27 PM
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 3 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 2 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 3 25/09/12 4:27 PM
First published in 2010
Copyright © Michael Molkentin 2010
Contents
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior
permission in writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968
(the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever
is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational
Maps vii
purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has
given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.
Foreword ix
Allen & Unwin Text notes xi
83 Alexander Street
Crows Nest NSW 2065 Prologue: 5 September 1918, Douai sector, France xiii
Australia
Phone: [phone] ‘This portentous omen’
Fax: [phone]
The birth of military aviation in Australia 1
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.allenandunwin.com
2 ‘A merry life while it lasts’
Cataloguing-in-Publication details are available Life and death in the Australian Flying Corps 25
from the National Library of Australia
www.librariesaustralia.nla.gov.au 3 ‘This God-forsaken country’
Egypt and Sinai, 1916 54
ISBN 978 1 74237 072 9
4 ‘An intense rivalry in the air’
Cover photographs: Two Bristol Fighters of No. 1 Australian Flying Corps in Palestine in
1918, Australian War Memorial Negative Number B02209; Airmen and mechanics of No. 3 War above the trenches, Gaza, January to August 1917 78
Squadron Australian Flying Corps with an RE8 at Villers-Bocage in July 1918, courtesy of
Les Parsons and the Crawford family. 5 ‘A regular God damn aviator’
Internal design by Lisa White
No. 1 Squadron’s coming of age 106
Maps by Mapgraphics
Set in 11/16 pt Minion by Post Pre-press Group, Australia
6 ‘An extraordinary fighting force’
Printed and bound in Australia by Griffin Press
Battle for the skies, summer 1918 130
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 7 ‘Nine miles of dead’
The Battle of Megiddo, September and October 1918 152
The paper in this book is FSC certified. 8 ‘Survival of the luckiest’
FSC promotes environmentally responsible,
Training in Britain, 1917–18 177
socially beneficial and economically viable
management of the world’s forests.
v
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 4 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 4 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 5 25/09/12 4:27 PM
First published in 2010
Copyright © Michael Molkentin 2010
Contents
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior
permission in writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968
(the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever
is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational
Maps vii
purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has
given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.
Foreword ix
Allen & Unwin Text notes xi
83 Alexander Street
Crows Nest NSW 2065 Prologue: 5 September 1918, Douai sector, France xiii
Australia
Phone: [phone] ‘This portentous omen’
Fax: [phone]
The birth of military aviation in Australia 1
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.allenandunwin.com
2 ‘A merry life while it lasts’
Cataloguing-in-Publication details are available Life and death in the Australian Flying Corps 25
from the National Library of Australia
www.librariesaustralia.nla.gov.au 3 ‘This God-forsaken country’
Egypt and Sinai, 1916 54
ISBN 978 1 74237 072 9
4 ‘An intense rivalry in the air’
Cover photographs: Two Bristol Fighters of No. 1 Australian Flying Corps in Palestine in
1918, Australian War Memorial Negative Number B02209; Airmen and mechanics of No. 3 War above the trenches, Gaza, January to August 1917 78
Squadron Australian Flying Corps with an RE8 at Villers-Bocage in July 1918, courtesy of
Les Parsons and the Crawford family. 5 ‘A regular God damn aviator’
Internal design by Lisa White
No. 1 Squadron’s coming of age 106
Maps by Mapgraphics
Set in 11/16 pt Minion by Post Pre-press Group, Australia
6 ‘An extraordinary fighting force’
Printed and bound in Australia by Griffin Press
Battle for the skies, summer 1918 130
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 7 ‘Nine miles of dead’
The Battle of Megiddo, September and October 1918 152
The paper in this book is FSC certified. 8 ‘Survival of the luckiest’
FSC promotes environmentally responsible,
Training in Britain, 1917–18 177
socially beneficial and economically viable
management of the world’s forests.
v
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 5 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 4 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 5 25/09/12 4:27 PM
FIRE IN THE SKY
9 ‘A red kangaroo on the cowling’
The Australian Flying Corps on the Western Front, 1917 195
10 ‘Absolute hell let loose’
The German spring offensives, 1918 222
11 ‘The nearest thing to a holiday is a wet day’
From German offensive to British counter-offensive, April to July 1918 249 Maps
12 ‘Down where the war is being won’
The British offensive, July and August 1918 277
13 ‘Good sport to the man in the air’
Map 1: Mesopotamia 14
Fighting to the finish, September to November 1918 302
Map 2: Egypt–Sinai, 1916 60
14 ‘It will surprise most people to find that the Australians did so much flying’
Legacy of the Australian Flying Corps 330 Map 3: Palestine, 1917–18 118
Notes 341 Map 4: The Western Front, 1917–18 196
Note on sources and further reading 373
Acknowledgements 379
Bibliography 383
Index 396
vi vii
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 6 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 6 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 7 25/09/12 4:27 PM
FIRE IN THE SKY
9 ‘A red kangaroo on the cowling’
The Australian Flying Corps on the Western Front, 1917 195
10 ‘Absolute hell let loose’
The German spring offensives, 1918 222
11 ‘The nearest thing to a holiday is a wet day’
From German offensive to British counter-offensive, April to July 1918 249 Maps
12 ‘Down where the war is being won’
The British offensive, July and August 1918 277
13 ‘Good sport to the man in the air’
Map 1: Mesopotamia 14
Fighting to the finish, September to November 1918 302
Map 2: Egypt–Sinai, 1916 60
14 ‘It will surprise most people to find that the Australians did so much flying’
Legacy of the Australian Flying Corps 330 Map 3: Palestine, 1917–18 118
Notes 341 Map 4: The Western Front, 1917–18 196
Note on sources and further reading 373
Acknowledgements 379
Bibliography 383
Index 396
vi vii
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 7 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 6 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 7 25/09/12 4:27 PM
Foreword
In the years leading up to the First World War, aviation was in its infancy.
It was a novelty practised by gentlemen enthusiasts who, despite their zeal,
had difficulty convincing governments and militaries of the usefulness of
aircrafts to national defence.
Australia was among a very small number of nations outside of Europe
in ‘making a start’ with military flying before the war. In the two years pre-
This page intentionally left blank
ceding the conflict, the government of the day showed great foresight by
investigating the implications that ‘flying machines’ (as they were then
quaintly known) might have on the nation’s defence. The Central Flying
School was established in the sheep paddocks of Point Cook, Victoria, in the
months leading up to the war. Its first four student pilots began their train-
ing as the nations of Europe mobilised.
From these humble beginnings, the Australian Flying Corps came
to field eight and a half squadrons overseas during the war. Over 500
Australian airmen served in the units, flying in Mesopotamia, Palestine,
Britain and on the Western Front between 1915 and 1918. By the Armi-
stice, they had distinguished themselves in the full gamut of operations
demanded of the flying services: reconnaissance, bombing, artillery obser-
vation, ground attack, offensive patrolling and even battlefield resupply
from the air. Two officers came home having commanded wings; nine had
led squadrons. There were 57 Australian aces. One Australian received a
Victoria Cross and 40 had received the Distinguished Flying Cross. Two,
in fact, received this award three times, being among just four British and
dominion pilots to do so during the war.
ix
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 8 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 8 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 9 25/09/12 4:27 PM
Foreword
In the years leading up to the First World War, aviation was in its infancy.
It was a novelty practised by gentlemen enthusiasts who, despite their zeal,
had difficulty convincing governments and militaries of the usefulness of
aircrafts to national defence.
Australia was among a very small number of nations outside of Europe
in ‘making a start’ with military flying before the war. In the two years pre-
ceding the conflict, the government of the day showed great foresight by
investigating the implications that ‘flying machines’ (as they were then
quaintly known) might have on the nation’s defence. The Central Flying
School was established in the sheep paddocks of Point Cook, Victoria, in the
months leading up to the war. Its first four student pilots began their train-
ing as the nations of Europe mobilised.
From these humble beginnings, the Australian Flying Corps came
to field eight and a half squadrons overseas during the war. Over 500
Australian airmen served in the units, flying in Mesopotamia, Palestine,
Britain and on the Western Front between 1915 and 1918. By the Armi-
stice, they had distinguished themselves in the full gamut of operations
demanded of the flying services: reconnaissance, bombing, artillery obser-
vation, ground attack, offensive patrolling and even battlefield resupply
from the air. Two officers came home having commanded wings; nine had
led squadrons. There were 57 Australian aces. One Australian received a
Victoria Cross and 40 had received the Distinguished Flying Cross. Two,
in fact, received this award three times, being among just four British and
dominion pilots to do so during the war.
ix
Fire in the Sky_B Format.indd 9 26/09/12 9:57 AM
finalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 8 25/09/12 4:27 PfinMalpp_Fire in the Sky_Prelims.indd 9 25/09/12 4:27 PM