OTT-FTM -Mission 4 - And Flashes Show Must Go On - 26th April 1917
Well, it was a straight forward job as Uncle had explained in the briefing that morning – take a flight of three and play nursemaid to one of the Bull Terriers as they made a photo run along the lines doing a battle damage assessment for the arty boys. Shouldn’t be a problem at all, unless the Germans take exception to their presence!
2Lt Cameron Paine (he with perfect aim) leads the chaps in a silver Nieuport 17, echeloned to his right in a green Nieuport is 2Lt William Power; echeloned to his left in another silver Nieuport #T is a new boy, 2Lt Peter Sout. He’s had a couple of sorties but seemed a tad off colour this morning. Maybe the pace of operations was getting to him, thought Paine. echeloned to his right in a green Nieuport is 2Lt William Power
Below them to their left plodded a redoubtable RE.8 piloted by 2Lt Christopher Cross with his popular & very capable gunner AM.3 Richard (Rick) Shaw.
And take exception the Germans did as hurtling towards them was a flight of Albatros D.III’s led by Ltn Max Manschott (black tail) with, to his left Ltn Hans Eberhardt Gossner (red) and to his right Ltn Raven Busse (blue). All intent on increasing their personal score at the expense of the Englanders.
Paine spots them almost immediately and signals the chaps to follow as he turns to meet the threat.
Sout is slow to react and carries straight on for a moment. What’s wrong with the lad ?
Manschott signals his wingmen to engage the scouts as he dives toward the RE.8 hard at work over the trenches.
Sout belatedly follows on Paine sees, but has he overcooked his own turn as he looks over his shoulder to track his errant wingman? Looking back toward the enemy he clocks the black tailed Albatros slipping beneath them. Sneaky so and so, he muses, but it’s too late to get after him just yet.
Meanwhile Shaw gets on with the task at hand, snapping away pics of the trenches, as Cross keeps the machine as slow and steady as he can.
As Paine corrects his turn it fortuitously brings him almost alongside Power and they both open up on the onrushing red Albatros before them. Paine employs his shooting skills to good effect and he’s sure he’s hit the pilot, though his own machine shudders under the impact of the incoming rounds sent in treturn..
Manschott, his eye on the prize, slides past unscathed beneath them.
Paine and Power roll to their left – Paine gets in a close-range burst on the Albatros with the blue trim as it exchanges fire with Sout at close range. Sout is really off his game, thinks Paine, he’s normally the first to shoot. The blue trimmed Albatros trails smoke, the red Johnny makes for home.
Sout’s Lewis gun has irrevocably jammed, he’ll have to beat feet or he may be trouble.
Raven Busse clutches his shoulder as he begins to turn his machine in the direction for home.
As Cross and Shaw continue their work, Cross spots the black tailed Hun making a bee line for them and shouts a warning to Shaw who is still fully engaged taking snaps and changing plates.
In a trice the Hun is on them, he drops neatly into their blind spot with Spandau’s chattering, but they get off lightly as Shaw curses their foe, unable to get his gun to bear.
Paine momentarily latches onto the tail of the blue trimmed Albatros adding rudder damage to his woes, but he’s clocked what’s going on below them. Behind him his wingmen take avoiding action
Paine immediately dives on the black tailed Hun menacing his charge sending an accurate damaging burst through its wings (+1 from the dive). Just as well as the blue trimmed machine had Immelled only to find no pursuer but he must make for home, the damage already too great !
Meantime Cross has chopped the power of the Harry Tate causing the Hun to overtake them thus allowing Shaw to engage him from their side.
As Power rolls left looking for his leader his rudder takes a hit from the blue trimmed machine as it pulls out from it's reversal.
Shaw takes another snap shot, but does no further significant damage, as Paine slips widely past the tail of the Hun still struggling top get back on target.
Paine rolls in behind the black tailed Hun and pulls on his shooting boots once again but Shaw has his on too and damages it’s rudder.
(Think I missed a German shot here, or, it may have been just out ?)
Shaw stays on it setting the German machine aflame, their machine is raked in return but Paine claws the German from their tail at the last moment, sending it plummeting earthward to land just behind his own lines.
Above them Power has reversed to chase the blue trimmed machine that took a pot at him but he may be a little too late as it pushes on for home; Sout finding his gun useless points for home too.
Gossner having steadily lost height leaves the battle area
The Harry Tate continues and completes it’s mission unmolested before pushing off home.
Back at the field Paine has a word with Uncle and mentions that Sout seemed to be off his feed that day. It turns out that he’d heard he’d lost his best friend in action the day before and had taken it a bit to heart. Uncle would have a word with him that evening to see if he could pull him out of his funk. At least it was only a gun jam that had kept him from pursuing the fight. The armourer reckons that he’d have it functioning again by days end.
The Butcher’s Tally:
Eagles:
Ltn Max Manschott: Albatros D.III (black tail): FLM-FT / 0 kills
Rolled 10 -2FLM = 8 – Injured – Skip 1 D2 scenarios, rolled 1 = Skip 1
Ltn Hans Eberhardt Gossner: Albatros D.III (red): FRTB-W / WIA / 0 kills
FRB roll 1+6 = Stuck the landing
Rolled 7 -1WIA +1RTB = 7 – Injured – Skip 1 D2 scenarios, rolled 1 = Skip 1
Ltn Raven Busse: Albatros D.III (blue): FRTB-D / 0 kills
FRTB roll 2+2 = Crashed !
Rolled 5 -1FRTB +1RTB = 5 – Injured – Skip 1 D3 scenarios, rolled 3 = Skip 2
Bulldogs:
2Lt Cameron Paine: (perfect aim) Nieuport 17 (silver): RTB / 1 kill (Manschott), 2 probables, FRTB-W (Gossner);FRTB-D (Busse)
2Lt Peter Sout: Nieuport 17 (silver #T): RTB / 0 kill - (Jammed Lewis)
2Lt William Power: Nieuport 17 (green): RTB / 0 kill
2Lt Christopher Cross: (P2) RE.8: RTB / 0 kills (pic run done)
AM.3 Richard (Rick) Shaw: (O) RE.8: / 0 kills
Victory points:
Bulldogs:
3 enemy scout shot down or Forced To Return to Base = 30 points
Artillery spotting patrol completed = 10 points
Total 40pts
Eagles:
No scout shot down or FRTB = 0 points
Spotting mission not terminated before completion = 0 points.
Total nil pts
Lovely little game, Mike, I made a couple of changes you might see. I had the Harry Tate fly as many stalls as I could to take the snaps and I had it turn right at the end of the run to head back just behind the lines – you may not have noticed though as the game was pretty much over by then !
I played the I in AI mostly rather than fly a particular plane which allowed Manschott and Paine to make their dives & use the ace skill, and to slow Sout's initial reaction etc. Paine would have got a second kill if he hadn't dived to protect the RE.8 but then he may have missed that one and lost his charge if he hadn't dived when he did.
I think it may have gone better for the Eagles if they’d had a numerical advantage, either one less escort to contend with or one more German scout but I wanted to give it a run mostly as you’d intended.
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on occasion of his tenth victory for King and country 
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