Post by Dave Homewood on Jan 16, 2018 23:28:24 GMT 12
This comes from the EVENING POST, dated the 20th of August 1941:
UP ALOFT
NIGHTLONG FLIGHT
AIRMEN'S SAFETY COURSE
MIDDLE EAST BOMBERS
A nightlong stay aloft in preference to a forced landing, with the risk of serious consequences, was a new experience for an aircraft crew in the Middle East, and it served as a change — if unwanted, though essential as a safety measure — from the "mail run," as the bombing trips to Benghazi are termed.
Of the enforced sojourn in the air, which came about after other unanticipated happenings, a Wellington airman gives an account in a letter to his parents. He had previously made another trip to Rhodes, and "it was quite interesting to go there again, and also a change from the 'mail run.' With the moon almost full, the trip was not without beauty. And the target? — well, it showed up plainly in the moonlight and the results were satisfactory."
It was on a planned trip to Crete that matters did not pan out so satisfactorily. "We took off at 9 o'clock at night with a full load of bombs and our pitot-head cover on," the writer states. "Failure to uncover the pitot-head meant that the air speed indicator in the machine was not working."
The writer explains that when the air speed of an aircraft falls below a certain mark the machine will go into a spin, and, if it is not high enough, will crash. The speed cannot be judged by the sound of the engines. There are other instruments, however, to show how the machine is behaving — whether it is climbing or diving, or the degree of turn that it may be making. When the machine is flying straight and level with the engines revving at the correct speed there is no danger, but the risk occurs when the machine starts to climb.
AVOIDING TROUBLE.
"As we had to make a flight of over 1000 miles and had to climb to 10,000 ft at one stage on the journey, it would have been just asking for trouble to go on," the writer relates. "The only thing to do was to jettison the bombs and attempt to land. Jettisoning the bombs was necessary, because if we made a slight crash in landing the bombs would probably explode and we would be blown sky high.
"In consequence we climbed very slowly to 2500 feet, from which I jettisoned the bombs 'safe' — seven 250-pounders. By 'safe' it is meant that the safety plate is not withdrawn from the nose pistol of the bomb, and theoretically, it should not explode if it is dropped from a height under 3000 feet.
"As the bombs left, the aircraft lifted appreciably. You do not notice the bombs leaving the machine when they fall off one by one when you are dropping a stick. Believe me, we were glad we had taken the precaution of climbing to 2500 feet before jettisoning. Notwithstanding the safety plates, the bombs went off with a terrific roar and the whole machine quivered. We then went on and dropped a series of lighter bombs. The bombs, by the way, were jettisoned in the desert."
"SO WE PASSED THE NIGHT."
The attempt at landing back at the aerodrome was found by the pilot to be a very unpleasant business. "As we had any amount of petrol it was decided to remain in the air until dawn," the writer continues. "We informed the people on the ground what had happened, and then settled down to-spend the night flying backwards and forwards between a couple of lights. The two pilots took two-hour spells at the wheel, and, while they were 'driving,' other members of the crew took it in turn to sit beside them and keep their eyes on the instruments, too, so that if the pilot should doze there would be someone to wake him up before anything happened. And so we passed the night, flying up and down, up and down, with nothing else to do but keep the marker beacons in sight.
"At six in the morning it was light enough to land. The last part of the business was much more simple in the daylight, but we were not sorry to feel our feet on solid ground again.
"MOST AGGRAVATING."
Of a trip to Benghazi regarded as the usual "bind" of about ten hours in the air, the writer states: "When we reached Benghazi we found the target covered with cloud. Most aggravating, as the cloud was only a few miles in width but it was sufficient to make bombing impossible. We then had to set course for a secondary target, which we found and bombed before returning to a desert landing ground.
"When we landed we were told that we would have to wait and pick up two members of another machine who had baled out near the landing ground. Their machine had had engine trouble and they jumped in order to lighten it and give the captain a better chance of getting it safely back. This he did, and a very good bit of work it was, too. The chaps who jumped quite enjoyed their experience.
"Eventually we arrived back at base at midday. We had left at 9 o'clock the night before, so we had been on the job for fifteen hours without sleep. You cannot wonder at us sometimes feeling tired!
"When the moon is up we have been operating every other night. In order to cope with it I have to sleep nearly all the time I am on the ground. Even then, after all the sleep, one still gets tired on a ten-or twelve-hour flight. Don't think from this that we are worked as hard as I have indicated all the time. It just happened that over a period there were some special jobs to be done."
UP ALOFT
NIGHTLONG FLIGHT
AIRMEN'S SAFETY COURSE
MIDDLE EAST BOMBERS
A nightlong stay aloft in preference to a forced landing, with the risk of serious consequences, was a new experience for an aircraft crew in the Middle East, and it served as a change — if unwanted, though essential as a safety measure — from the "mail run," as the bombing trips to Benghazi are termed.
Of the enforced sojourn in the air, which came about after other unanticipated happenings, a Wellington airman gives an account in a letter to his parents. He had previously made another trip to Rhodes, and "it was quite interesting to go there again, and also a change from the 'mail run.' With the moon almost full, the trip was not without beauty. And the target? — well, it showed up plainly in the moonlight and the results were satisfactory."
It was on a planned trip to Crete that matters did not pan out so satisfactorily. "We took off at 9 o'clock at night with a full load of bombs and our pitot-head cover on," the writer states. "Failure to uncover the pitot-head meant that the air speed indicator in the machine was not working."
The writer explains that when the air speed of an aircraft falls below a certain mark the machine will go into a spin, and, if it is not high enough, will crash. The speed cannot be judged by the sound of the engines. There are other instruments, however, to show how the machine is behaving — whether it is climbing or diving, or the degree of turn that it may be making. When the machine is flying straight and level with the engines revving at the correct speed there is no danger, but the risk occurs when the machine starts to climb.
AVOIDING TROUBLE.
"As we had to make a flight of over 1000 miles and had to climb to 10,000 ft at one stage on the journey, it would have been just asking for trouble to go on," the writer relates. "The only thing to do was to jettison the bombs and attempt to land. Jettisoning the bombs was necessary, because if we made a slight crash in landing the bombs would probably explode and we would be blown sky high.
"In consequence we climbed very slowly to 2500 feet, from which I jettisoned the bombs 'safe' — seven 250-pounders. By 'safe' it is meant that the safety plate is not withdrawn from the nose pistol of the bomb, and theoretically, it should not explode if it is dropped from a height under 3000 feet.
"As the bombs left, the aircraft lifted appreciably. You do not notice the bombs leaving the machine when they fall off one by one when you are dropping a stick. Believe me, we were glad we had taken the precaution of climbing to 2500 feet before jettisoning. Notwithstanding the safety plates, the bombs went off with a terrific roar and the whole machine quivered. We then went on and dropped a series of lighter bombs. The bombs, by the way, were jettisoned in the desert."
"SO WE PASSED THE NIGHT."
The attempt at landing back at the aerodrome was found by the pilot to be a very unpleasant business. "As we had any amount of petrol it was decided to remain in the air until dawn," the writer continues. "We informed the people on the ground what had happened, and then settled down to-spend the night flying backwards and forwards between a couple of lights. The two pilots took two-hour spells at the wheel, and, while they were 'driving,' other members of the crew took it in turn to sit beside them and keep their eyes on the instruments, too, so that if the pilot should doze there would be someone to wake him up before anything happened. And so we passed the night, flying up and down, up and down, with nothing else to do but keep the marker beacons in sight.
"At six in the morning it was light enough to land. The last part of the business was much more simple in the daylight, but we were not sorry to feel our feet on solid ground again.
"MOST AGGRAVATING."
Of a trip to Benghazi regarded as the usual "bind" of about ten hours in the air, the writer states: "When we reached Benghazi we found the target covered with cloud. Most aggravating, as the cloud was only a few miles in width but it was sufficient to make bombing impossible. We then had to set course for a secondary target, which we found and bombed before returning to a desert landing ground.
"When we landed we were told that we would have to wait and pick up two members of another machine who had baled out near the landing ground. Their machine had had engine trouble and they jumped in order to lighten it and give the captain a better chance of getting it safely back. This he did, and a very good bit of work it was, too. The chaps who jumped quite enjoyed their experience.
"Eventually we arrived back at base at midday. We had left at 9 o'clock the night before, so we had been on the job for fifteen hours without sleep. You cannot wonder at us sometimes feeling tired!
"When the moon is up we have been operating every other night. In order to cope with it I have to sleep nearly all the time I am on the ground. Even then, after all the sleep, one still gets tired on a ten-or twelve-hour flight. Don't think from this that we are worked as hard as I have indicated all the time. It just happened that over a period there were some special jobs to be done."
