Misplaced Pages

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114-676: The Drift Sight was quickly introduced into RNAS service and quickly thereafter by the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) as well. In British service, Wimperis' Course Setting Bomb Sight (CSBS) started replacing the Drift Sight in 1917, but it remained in widespread use in the US Army Air Service into the 1920s. In US use the Drift Sight is often referred to as the Wimperis sight , but this name is more commonly applied to

228-503: A guardhouse . Marham was 80 acres (32 ha). Both these Stations are now lost beneath the present RAF Marham . Similarly, Stations at Easton-on-the-Hill and Stamford merged into modern day RAF Wittering although they are in different counties. The Royal Flying Corps Canada was established by the RFC in 1917 to train aircrew in Canada. Air Stations were established in southern Ontario at

342-706: A German Etrich Taube , which had approached their aerodrome while they were refuelling their Avro 504. Another RFC machine landed nearby and the RFC observer chased the German pilot into nearby woods. After the Great Retreat from Mons, the Corps fell back to the Marne where in September, the RFC again proved its value by identifying von Kluck's First Army's left wheel against the exposed French flank. This information

456-783: A Naval Wing. By 1914, the Naval Wing had become the Royal Naval Air Service, having gained its independence from the Royal Flying Corps. By November 1914 the Flying Corps had significantly expanded and it was felt necessary to create organizational units which would control collections of squadrons; the term "wing" was reused for these new organizational units. The Military Wing was abolished and its units based in Great Britain were regrouped as

570-1048: A Special Duty Flight was formed as part of the Headquarters Wing to handle these and other unusual assignments. Handley Page Type O The Handley Page Type O was a biplane bomber used by Britain during the First World War . When built, the Type O was one of the largest aircraft in the world. There were two main variants, the Handley Page O/100 (H.P.11) and the Handley Page O/400 (H.P.12). The aircraft were used in France for tactical night attacks on targets in German-occupied France and Belgium and for strategic bombing of industrial and transport targets in

684-763: A fixed fin but to find the cause of the tail oscillation, the Admiralty called in Frederick Lanchester from the National Physics Laboratory . Lanchester agreed that simple structural weakness was not the root of the problem and that resonance of the fuselage was the probable cause. Static tests on the third prototype which had a redesigned, stiffer, fuselage structure showed nothing. Lanchester flew as an observer in an amidships crew position on 26 June. The tail oscillations started at 80 mph (130 km/h) and Lanchester observed that

798-578: A large seaplane for coastal patrol and dockyard defence that would also be capable of bombing the German High Seas Fleet at its base in Kiel . The AD Seaplane Type 1000 prototype had already been commissioned from J. Samuel White & Co. of Cowes . Handley Page suggested a land-based aircraft of similar size, and a specification drawn up around his suggestions was formally issued on 28 December 1914 for four prototypes. It called for

912-404: A large biplane powered by two 150 hp (110 kW) Sunbeam engines, which was required to fit in a 75 ft × 75 ft (23 m × 23 m) hangar and would therefore have folding wings. It was to carry six 100 lb (45 kg) bombs and have armour to protect crew and engines. The crew of two were to be enclosed in a glazed cockpit and the only defensive armament planned

1026-419: A pair of 15 imp gal (68 L; 18 US gal) gravity tanks. The new nacelles were smaller and had simplified supporting struts; the reduction of drag improved maximum speed and ceiling. The revised nacelle was tested in 3188 , which in 1917 was flown at Martlesham Heath with a variety of engine installations. An initial order for 100 of the revised design, with Sunbeam Maori or Eagle engines,

1140-514: A powder store and rocked the town, the damage being estimated by the Germans at M1,000,000. Operations were reduced during the last days of the war by weather but several aerodromes were attacked, particularly that at Morhange. After the war, O/400s remained in squadron service until replaced by the Vickers Vimy toward the end of 1919. War-surplus aircraft were converted for civilian use in

1254-644: A royal warrant establishing the Royal Flying Corps. The Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers became the Military Wing of the Royal Flying Corps a month later on 13 May. The Flying Corps' initial allowed strength was 133 officers, and by the end of that year it had 12 manned balloons and 36 aeroplanes . The RFC originally came under the responsibility of Brigadier-General Henderson , the Director of Military Training, and had separate branches for

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1368-564: A tradition. In August 1912, RFC Lieutenant Wilfred Parke RN became the first aviator to be observed to recover from an accidental spin when the Avro G cabin biplane, with which he had just broken a world endurance record, entered a spin at 700 feet above ground level at Larkhill. Four months later, on 11 December 1912, Parke was killed when the Handley Page monoplane in which he was flying from Hendon to Oxford crashed. Aircraft used during

1482-512: A vast scale', he recommended a new air service be formed that would be on a level with the Army and Royal Navy. The formation of the new service would also make the under-used men and machines of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) available for action on the Western Front and end the inter-service rivalries that at times had adversely affected aircraft procurement. On 1 April 1918, the RFC and

1596-957: The 6th Wing had been created and in November 1915 a 7th Wing and 8th Wing had also been stood up. Additional wings continued to be created throughout World War I in line with the incessant demands for air units. The last RFC wing to be created was the 54th Wing in March 1918, just prior to the creation of the RAF. Following the creation of brigades, wings took on specialised functions. Corps wings undertook artillery observation and ground liaison duties, with one squadron detached to each army corps. Army wings were responsible for air superiority, bombing and strategic reconnaissance. United Kingdom based forces were organised into home defence and training wings. By March 1918, wings controlled as many as nine squadrons. Following Sir David Henderson's return from France to

1710-477: The Administrative Wing . The RFC squadrons in France were grouped under the newly established 1st Wing and the 2nd Wing . The 1st Wing was assigned to the support of the 1st Army whilst the 2nd Wing supported the 2nd Army . As the Flying Corps grew, so did the number of wings. The 3rd Wing was established on 1 March 1915 and on 15 April the 5th Wing came into existence. By August that year

1824-488: The Committee of Imperial Defence established a sub-committee to examine the question of military aviation in November 1911. On 28 February 1912 the sub-committee reported its findings which recommended that a flying corps be formed and that it consist of a naval wing, a military wing, a central flying school and an aircraft factory. The recommendations of the committee were accepted and on 13 April 1912 King George V signed

1938-612: The First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force . During the early part of the war, the RFC supported the British Army by artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance . This work gradually led RFC pilots into aerial battles with German pilots and later in the war included the strafing of enemy infantry and emplacements ,

2052-469: The Republic of China as O/7 transports, and following delivery to China were re-assembled at Nanyuan , near Beijing . The aircraft flew their first airmail and passengers between Beijing and Tientsin on 7 May 1920. Civil war disrupted these services and they were taken over by various warlords . Before 1924, Handley Page used an alphabetical system for aircraft designations and the Type O followed

2166-567: The Rhineland . Some aircraft were temporarily diverted to anti-submarine reconnaissance and bombing in the Tees estuary in 1917 and two aircraft operated in the eastern Mediterranean. The Type O made such an impression that for many years after the war any large aircraft in Britain was referred to as a "Handley Page", even getting a dictionary entry. Design work began shortly after the start of

2280-442: The bombing of German military airfields and later the strategic bombing of German industrial and transport facilities. At the start of World War I the RFC, commanded by Brigadier-General Sir David Henderson , consisted of five squadrons – one observation balloon squadron (RFC No 1 Squadron) and four aeroplane squadrons. These were first used for aerial spotting on 13 September 1914 but only became efficient when they perfected

2394-649: The 5th Wing RNAS at Dunkirk in late 1916. At first the O/100s were used for daylight attacks over the North Sea, damaging a German destroyer on 23 April 1917, but the loss of an aircraft to fighter attack two days later resulted in a switch to night operations, usually by single aircraft, against German-occupied Belgian ports, railway targets and airfields. On the night of 16/17 August 14 O/100s dropped 9 long tons (9.1 t) of bombs on Torhout railway station. O/100s from Coudekerque carried out anti- U-boat patrols off

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2508-468: The Army and the Navy. Major Sykes commanded the Military Wing and Commander C R Samson commanded the Naval Wing. The Royal Navy , however, with priorities different from those of the Army and wishing to retain greater control over its aircraft, formally separated its branch and renamed it the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 July 1914, although a combined central flying school was retained. The RFC's motto

2622-454: The Battle of Aubers Ridge. Operations from balloons thereafter continued throughout the war. Highly hazardous in operation, a balloon could only be expected to last a fortnight before damage or destruction. Results were also highly dependent on the expertise of the observer and was subject to the weather conditions. To keep the balloon out of the range of artillery fire, it was necessary to locate

2736-447: The British Army's highly detailed 1:10,000 scale maps introduced in mid-1915. Such were advances in aerial photography that the entire Somme Offensive of July–November 1916 was based on the RFC's air-shot photographs. One of the initial and most important uses of RFC aircraft was observing artillery fire behind the enemy front line at targets that could not be seen by ground observers. The fall of shot of artillery fire were easy enough for

2850-583: The CSBS, especially in Commonwealth air forces. Prior to the introduction of the Drift Sight, bombsights were generally very simple systems of very limited accuracy. The primary pre-World War I device in RNAS service was the "Lever Sight" which had to be held out of the cockpit in one hand by the pilot while flying the aircraft with the other. The Central Flying School bombsight (CFS) replaced this in 1915, but

2964-548: The Calthrop Guardian Angel parachute (1916 model) was officially adopted just as the war ended. By this time parachutes had been used by balloonists for three years. On 17 August 1917, South African General Jan Smuts presented a report to the War Council on the future of air power . Because of its potential for the 'devastation of enemy lands and the destruction of industrial and populous centres on

3078-535: The Drift Sight to build, adding a compass and another adjustment to the sights to account for cross-drift. Hundreds were in use by 1918, and had supplanted the Drift Sight by the war's end. A major difference between the Drift Sight and CSBS was that the latter needed to sight below the aircraft, and was not as suitable for use on the side of the fuselage. This kept the Mk. IA in US Army Air Service use for some time, as they did not have dedicated bomber aircraft until after

3192-749: The First World War following meetings between Captain Murray Sueter , the director of the Air Department of the Royal Navy , and Frederick Handley Page . Sueter requested "a bloody paralyser of an aircraft" for long-range bombing. The phrase was originated by Commander Charles Rumney Samson , who had recently returned from the front. Coastal patrol adaptations of the abortive Handley Page L/200 , M/200 and MS/200 designs were initially discussed but Sueter's technical advisor favoured

3306-641: The French coast to the Bay of the Somme and followed the river to Amiens . When the BEF moved forward to Maubeuge the RFC accompanied them. On 19 August the Corps undertook its first action of the war, with two of its aircraft performing aerial reconnaissance . The mission was not a great success; to save weight each aircraft carried a pilot only instead of the usual pilot and observer. Because of this, and poor weather, both of

3420-488: The HQ, and three Landing Grounds, one per each flight . Stations tended to be named after the local railway station, to simplify the administration of rail travel warrants. Typically a training airfield consisted of a 2,000 feet (610 m) grass square. There were three pairs plus one single hangar, constructed of wood or brick, 180 feet (55 m) x 100 feet (30 m) in size. There were up to 12 canvas Bessonneau hangars as

3534-549: The NPL established that the counter-rotating propellers causing directional instability with the O/100. Only one version was necessary, simplifying production and maintenance and the p-factor was overcome by slightly offsetting the fin. The O/400 had a strengthened fuselage, an increased bomb load, the nacelle tanks were removed and the fuel was carried in two 130 imp gal (590 L; 160 US gal) fuselage tanks, supplying

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3648-470: The RNAS were amalgamated to form a new service, the Royal Air Force (RAF), under the control of the new Air Ministry . After starting in 1914 with some 2,073 personnel, by the start of 1919 the RAF had 4,000 combat aircraft and 114,000 personnel in some 150 squadrons. With the growing recognition of the potential for aircraft as a cost-effective method of reconnaissance and artillery observation,

3762-494: The Royal Flying Corps consisted of a number of squadrons . When the Royal Flying Corps was established it was intended to be a joint service. Owing to the rivalry between the British Army and Royal Navy, new terminology was thought necessary in order to avoid marking the Corps out as having a particularly Army or Navy ethos. Accordingly, the Corps was originally split into two wings: a Military Wing (i.e. an army wing) and

3876-555: The Royal Flying Corps in France was never titled as a division, by March 1916 it comprised several brigades and its commander (Trenchard) had received a promotion to major-general, giving it in effect divisional status. Finally, the air raids on London and the south-east of England led to the creation of the London Air Defence Area in August 1917 under the command of Ashmore who was promoted to major-general. Two of

3990-405: The Type M and Type N. Type Os are frequently misnamed with the numeral "0" instead of the letter "O". The company designations "H.P.11" and "H.P.12" were applied retrospectively after HP switched to type numbers in 1924. An early O/100, which had flown from Manston Airfield , developed engine trouble and landed behind German lines on 1 January 1917. The five crew members became prisoners of war and

4104-559: The UK and nine were used by Handley Page Transport . Eight O/400s were fitted to carry passengers and operated by 86 (Communication) Wing from Hendon, to provide transport between London and Paris for the officials negotiating the Treaty of Versailles . Two were fitted as VIP transports and finished in silver dope , named Great Britain and Silver Star and the others, seating eight, retained their dark green finish. Six aircraft were sold to

4218-535: The War Office in August 1915, he submitted a scheme to the Army Council which was intended to expand the command structure of the Flying Corps. The Corps' wings would be grouped in pairs to form brigades and the commander of each brigade would hold the temporary rank of brigadier-general . The scheme met with Lord Kitchener 's approval and although some staff officers opposed it, the scheme was adopted. In

4332-674: The Western Front against the German spring offensive . In September 1918, the 41st Wing was formed at Manston with the Handley Pages of "A" Squadron RNAS, for night bombing, and flown to Ochey in October. ("A" Squadron was later 16 Squadron RNAS, then from 1 April 1918, 216 Squadron RAF.) On 9 August, 97 Squadron arrived in France and ten days later, 215 Squadron was transferred, then on 31 August 115 Squadron arrived and 100 Squadron

4446-614: The administration section of the squadron. Each flight contained on average between six and ten pilots (and a corresponding number of observers, if applicable) with a senior sergeant and thirty-six other ranks (as fitters, riggers, metalsmiths, armourers, etc.). The average squadron also had on complement an equipment officer, armaments officer (each with five other ranks) and a transport officer, in charge of twenty-two other ranks. The squadron transport establishment typically included one car, five light tenders, seven heavy tenders, two repair lorries, eight motorcycles and eight trailers. Wings in

4560-622: The adoption of a continually offensive stance operationally in efforts to pin the enemy back led to many brave fighting exploits and high casualties – over 700 in 1916, the rate worsening thereafter, until the RFC's nadir in April 1917 which was dubbed ' Bloody April '. This aggressive, if costly, doctrine did however provide the Army General Staff with vital and up-to-date intelligence on German positions and numbers through continual photographic and observational reconnaissance throughout

4674-419: The advantage of being able to directly measure the windspeed by throttling their engines until they lay still over the water. Although the Drift Sight was a significant improvement over earlier designs, it still required the aircraft to fly up or downwind on the final bomb run. For the RNAS this was a serious problem, as a submarine or ship would attempt to maneuver away if it spotted the attack, and thus upset

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4788-482: The aircraft allowed it to quickly equip RNAS forces. By 1917 it was in widespread use in the RNAS, and was selected for the Handley Page O/400 bomber in RFC service as well. However, Wimperis was well aware of the shortcomings of the Drift Sight in terms of flying along the wind line, and was already testing his solution, the Course Setting Bomb Sight . The CSBS was only slightly more complex than

4902-510: The aircraft could not receive. Originally only a special Wireless Flight attached to No. 4 Squadron RFC had the wireless equipment. Eventually this flight was expanded into No. 9 Squadron under Major Hugh Dowding . However, in early 1915 the Sterling lightweight wireless became available and was widely used. In 1915 each corps in the BEF was assigned a RFC squadron solely for artillery observation and reconnaissance duties. The transmitter filled

5016-469: The aircraft was flown in German markings until it was wrecked. No complete example of any Type O aircraft remains. The Royal Air Force Museum Cosford has several relics, including pieces of fabric from an O/100 and various small O/400 components and five O/400 wing sections which had been used as part of a shed roof in Flintshire until their recovery in late 2013. While there are no extant airframes,

5130-615: The aircraft was used to bomb warehouses and ships in the harbour of Pandera on the south shore of the Marmara, and was then used on anti-submarine patrols until 2 September, when it was sent to bomb Adrianopolis . En route the crew dropped two bombs on a submarine as it dived, before dropping two more on Kuleli Burgas and then the rest on the Adrianopolis railway station buildings. On 30 September, (flown by John Alcock ), it raided railway stations near Constantinople and Haidar Pasha but

5244-419: The aircraft, constructed from wood, wire and fabric, were liable to weather damage. Other airfield buildings were typically wooden or Nissen huts . Landing Grounds were often L-shaped, usually arrived at by removing a hedge boundary between two fields, and thereby allowing landing runs in two directions of 400–500 metres (1,300–1,600 ft). Typically they would be manned by only two or three airmen, whose job

5358-469: The airman reported the position of the ranging round using the clock code, the battery adjusted their firing data and fired again, and the process was repeated until the pilot observed an on-target or close round. The battery commander then decided how much to fire at the target. The results were mixed. Observing artillery fire, even from above, requires training and skill. Within artillery units, ground observers received mentoring to develop their skill, which

5472-503: The angle of motion of objects on the ground to the angle of the rod, the bomb aimer would adjust the angle of the rod until the two were equal. A scale at the end of the bar directly read the wind speed. This adjustment also automatically moved sights at the front of the bombsight fore and aft, directly setting the bombsight to calculate the drift of the bombs due to the measured wind. Two sights were used, one for bombing directly upwind, and another for bombing directly downwind. The timing of

5586-424: The armour was deleted and was the arrangement for later production of the machine. After a series of proving flights at Hendon, 1456 was accepted by the RNAS and was flown to Manston for further trials. These revealed that despite a reduced balance area on the elevators, there was still a tail oscillation problem. A lack of directional stability caused by the increased forward side area was partly cured by adding

5700-455: The balloons some distance away from the front line or area of military operations. However, the stable platform offered by a kite-balloon made it more suitable for the cameras of the day than an aircraft. For the first half of the war, as with the land armies deployed, the French air force vastly outnumbered the RFC, and accordingly did more of the fighting. Despite the primitive aircraft, aggressive leadership by RFC commander Hugh Trenchard and

5814-411: The bar outward with increasing values. They would then look past the bar to any convenient objects on the ground, comparing its direction of motion to the line of the bar. Fine adjustments to the wind speed were made until the observed drift was directly along the line of the bar. Changing the setting of the wind speed had the effect of moving the two backlights closer or further apart. This accounted for

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5928-473: The battery they were colocated with. This led to concerns as to who had responsibility for them and in November 1916 squadron commanders had to be reminded "that it is their duty to keep in close touch with the operators attached to their command, and to make all necessary arrangements for supplying them with blankets, clothing, pay, etc" (Letter from Headquarters, 2nd Brigade RFC dated 18 November 1916 – Public Records Office AIR/1/864) The wireless operators' work

6042-429: The bomb aimer's position. A separate "direction wire" ran fore-aft on a plate below the foresight, providing left-right aiming. Altitude was set by moving a lever fore-and-aft against a scale, which rotated the foresight fore or aft, setting one half of the sight's bombing angle. Behind the altitude setting was an airspeed scale and a wheel to finely select the airspeed. This moved the backsights fore or aft to account for

6156-448: The bomb run. Over land, as anti-aircraft guns grew more proficient, this became a serious concern as they would pre-sight for firing along the wind line, and using the bombsight under fire was difficult. There were instructions on how to use the Drift Sight for cross-wind bombing, but this was complex and apparently rarely used. The Drift Sight was introduced in 1916, and the simplicity of the device in terms of manufacture and mounting to

6270-649: The bomber was used to supply Colonel T. E. Lawrence and the Arabs. On the night of 16/17 March 1918, a Handley Page of the Luxeuil Wing bombed a railway junction at Moulins-lès-Metz and in April, individual aircraft bombed a railway junction at Armaville on 5/6 April and a steelworks at Hagendingen and the Chambley airfield on 14/15 April. The Luxeuil Wing was disbanded in May to equip 10 Squadron RNAS for operations on

6384-588: The building of headquarters/administration offices, mess buildings, fuel and weapon stores, wireless huts and other support structures as well as the aircraft hangarage and repair facilities. Narborough and Marham both started off as Night Landing Grounds a few miles apart. One was an RNAS Station, the other RFC. Narborough grew to be the largest aerodrome in Britain at 908 acres (367 ha) with 30 acres (12 ha) of buildings including seven large hangars, seven motorised transport (MT) garages, five workshops, two coal yards, two Sergeants' Messes, three dope sheds and

6498-588: The cockpit normally used by the observer and a trailing wire antenna was used which had to be reeled in prior to landing. The RFC's wireless experiments under Major Herbert Musgrave, included research into how wireless telegraphy could be used by military aircraft. However, the most important officers in wireless development were Lieutenants Donald Lewis and Baron James in the RFC HQ wireless unit formed in France in September 1914. They developed both equipment and procedures in operational sorties. An important development

6612-441: The conduct of operations. Fired at constantly by friend and foe, and not hesitating to fly in every kind of weather, they have remained undaunted throughout. Further, by actually fighting in the air, they have succeeded in destroying five of the enemy's machines." Early in the war RFC aircraft were not systematically marked with any national insignia . At a squadron level, Union Flag markings in various styles were often painted on

6726-544: The conspicuous white circle of the "day" marking. Later in September, 1914, during the First Battle of the Aisne , the RFC made use of wireless telegraphy to assist with artillery targeting and took aerial photographs for the first time. From 16,000 feet a photographic plate could cover some 2 by 3 miles (3.2 km × 4.8 km) of front line in sharp detail. In 1915 Lieutenant-Colonel JTC Moore-Brabrazon designed

6840-673: The crucial observation of the 1st German Army's approach towards the flank of the British Expeditionary Force. This allowed the BEF Commander-in-Chief Field Marshal Sir John French to realign his front and save his army around Mons. Next day, the RFC found itself fighting in the Battle of Mons and two days after that, gained its first air victory. On 25 August, Lt C. W. Wilson and Lt C. E. C. Rabagliati forced down

6954-501: The drag caused by large honeycomb radiators, which were changed to tube radiators mounted on either side of the engine nacelles. A third flight on 31 December revealed a number of control problems, the ailerons and elevators were effective but heavy, partly due to excessive friction in the control circuit and the rudders were seriously overbalanced. After minor modifications, the aircraft was flown to RNAS Eastchurch , where full-speed trials were made. On reaching 70 mph (110 km/h),

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7068-503: The drop was set by dialling in the measured air speed, which moved the entire sighting system fore or aft, carrying the two "backsights" along with it (as well as the drift bar mechanism). Setting the altitude moved the foresight, below the backlights, setting the correct bombing angle. The original design was only suitable for low-level use and was later known as the Low Height Drift Sight Mk. I . At higher altitudes

7182-407: The effects of the wind on the trajectory of the bombs in addition to the airspeed setting. Two sights were used, one for bombing upwind and another for downwind. As the Drift Sight only worked correctly if flying straight and level, the bombsight also includes two spirit levels . Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps ( RFC ) was the air arm of the British Army before and during

7296-518: The end of March 1918, the Royal Flying Corps comprised some 150 squadrons. The composition of an RFC squadron varied depending on its designated role, although the commanding officer was usually a major (in a largely non-operational role), with the squadron 'flights' (annotated A, B, C etc.) the basic tactical and operational unit, each commanded by a captain. A 'recording officer' (of captain/lieutenant rank) would act as intelligence officer and adjutant, commanding two or three NCOs and ten other ranks in

7410-482: The field, most brigades were assigned to the army. Initially a brigade consisted of an army wing and corps wing; beginning in November 1916 a balloon wing was added to control the observation balloon companies. Logistics support was provided by an army aircraft park, aircraft ammunition column and reserve lorry park. All operating locations were officially called "Royal Flying Corps Station name ". A typical Squadron may have been based at four Stations – an Aerodrome for

7524-407: The first aircraft delivered by road to Hendon on 9 December 1915. The first flight of the prototype, was made at Hendon on 17 December, when a short straight flight was made, the aircraft taking off without trouble at 50 mph (80 km/h). A second flight was made the following day, when it was found that the aircraft would not fly faster than about 55 mph (89 km/h). This was blamed on

7638-440: The first attack by 115 Squadron was made on 16/17 September, when seven Handley Pages were lost, variously to engine-trouble or anti-aircraft fire. The improved O/400 began entering service in April 1918, gradually allowing the re-equipment of more squadrons. The O/400s could carry the new 1,650 lb (750 kg) bombs, which were aimed with the Drift Sight Mk 1A bombsight . Each raid was conducted by up to forty O/400s. On

7752-452: The first practical aerial camera. These semi-automatic cameras became a high priority for the Corps and photo-reconnaissance aircraft were soon operational in numbers with the RFC. The camera was usually fixed to the side of the fuselage, or operated through a hole in the floor. The increasing need for surveys of the western front and its approaches, made extensive aerial photography essential. Aerial photographs were exclusively used in compiling

7866-457: The first three RFC squadrons were formed from the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers: No. 1 Company (a balloon company) becoming No. 1 Squadron, RFC , and No. 2 Company (a 'heavier-than-air' company) becoming No. 3 Squadron, RFC . A second heavier-than-air squadron, No. 2 Squadron, RFC , was also formed on the same day. No. 4 Squadron, RFC was formed from No. 2 Sqn in August 1912, and No. 5 Squadron, RFC from No. 3 Sqn in July 1913. By

7980-439: The following locations: The RFC was also responsible for the manning and operation of observation balloons on the Western front . When the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) arrived in France in August 1914, it had no observation balloons and it was not until April 1915 that the first balloon company was on strength, albeit on loan from the French Aérostiers. The first British unit arrived 8 May 1915, and commenced operations during

8094-465: The ground or a signalling lamp to give visual confirmation that the signals had been received. The wireless communication was one way as no receiver was mounted in the aircraft and the ground station could not transmit. Details from: "Henry Tabor's 1916 War Diary" . By May 1916, 306 aircraft and 542 ground stations were equipped with wireless. An unusual mission for the RFC was the delivery of spies behind enemy lines. The first mission took place on

8208-406: The ground. The Royal Engineers' Air Battalion had pioneered experiments with wireless telegraphy in airships and aircraft before the RFC was created. Unfortunately the early transmitters weighed 75 pounds and filled a seat in the cockpit. This meant that the pilot had to fly the aircraft, navigate, observe the fall of the shells and transmit the results by morse code by himself. Also, the wireless in

8322-481: The indicated airspeed - being measured by pitot tube instruments - was affected by differences in outside air pressure that rendered it increasingly inaccurate. (A correct ground speed is required for accurate bombing.) The Mk. IA was introduced for this role, including a simple adjustment between the airspeed and altitude settings that accounted for this effect. A third version was also introduced for use by Navy airships , which worked at much lower speeds and also had

8436-667: The loss of the Naval Wing into account, had expanded sufficiently to warrant the creation of wings consisting of two or more squadrons. These wings were commanded by lieutenant-colonels. In October 1915 the Corps had undergone further expansion which justified the creation of brigades , each commanded by a brigadier-general . Further expansion led to the creation of divisions , with the Training Division being established in August 1917 and RFC Middle East being raised to divisional status in December 1917. Additionally, although

8550-438: The morning of 13 September 1915 and was not a success. The plane crashed, the pilot and spy were badly injured and they were both captured (two years later the pilot, Captain T.W. Mulcahy-Morgan escaped and returned to England). Later missions were more successful. In addition to delivering the spies the RFC was also responsible for keeping them supplied with the carrier pigeons that were used to send reports back to base. In 1916,

8664-635: The mouth of the River Tees in September 1917. Eleven U-boats were sighted and seven attacked with bombs, but none were sunk, although U-boat operations were drastically reduced in the area. As part of the Dardanelles campaign , an O/100 was flown 2,000 mi (3,200 km) from England to Mudros on the Greek island of Lemnos in the eastern Mediterranean by Lieutenant Ross Smith . It made night attacks against Ottoman Empire force, and supplied

8778-449: The night of 21/22 October, four Handley Pages attacked Kaiserslautern with heavy bombs and four dropped incendiaries. Three heavy bombers and two incendiary bombers caused M500,000 of damage and Kaiserslautern was bombed again on 23/24 October, along with Koblenz , Mannheim and Wiesbaden . The bombers were again diverted to army support during the month, and on the night of 9/10 October, 97, 215 and 216 Squadrons bombed Metz, one bomb hitting

8892-475: The other half of the sight's "range angle". In this respect the Drift Sight was similar to earlier bombsight designs. Where it differed was in the addition of the "drift bar" setting at the extreme rear of the sighting system. The drift bar was a metal rod that extended rearward from the sight and was pivoted so it could rotated outward, away from the aircraft fuselage. Prior to the bomb run, the pilot or bomb aimer would dial in an estimated wind speed, which rotated

9006-444: The overhanging part of the upper wing braced by kingposts , a rectangular section fuselage and a biplane tail with twin balanced rudders , between the horizontal surfaces. Balanced ailerons were fitted to the upper wing only and extended beyond the wing trailing edge and wing tips . The engines drove four-bladed propellers, rotating in opposite directions to cancel the torque, and were enclosed in armoured nacelles mounted between

9120-471: The pilot to see, providing he was looking in the right place at the right time; apart from this the problem was communicating corrections to the battery. Development of procedures had been the responsibility of No 3 Squadron and the Royal Artillery in 1912–13. These methods usually depended on the pilot being tasked to observe the fire against a specific target and report the fall of shot relative to

9234-476: The pilots lost their way and only one was able to complete his task. On 22 August 1914, the first British aircraft was lost to German fire. The crew – pilot Second Lieutenant Vincent Waterfall and observer Lt. Charles George Gordon Bayly, of 5 Squadron – flying an Avro 504 over Belgium, were killed by infantry fire. Also on 22 August 1914, Captain L E O Charlton (observer) and his pilot, Lieutenant Vivian Hugh Nicholas Wadham, made

9348-405: The problem. The fourth prototype was completed with the same fuselage structure as the second prototype and had provision for armament, with a Scarff ring mounting in the nose, a pair of post mountings in the mid position and a gun mounting in the rear fuselage. This was also the first O/100 to be fitted with 320 hp (240 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle engines. After completing acceptance trials,

9462-502: The roundel was applied to the fuselage sides as well as the wings. To minimise the likelihood of "friendly" attack, the rudders of RFC aircraft were painted to match the French, with the blue, white and red stripes – going from the forward (rudder hingeline) to aft (trailing edge) – of the French tricolour . Later in the war, a "night roundel" was adopted for night flying aircraft (especially Handley Page O/400 heavy bombers), which omitted

9576-493: The second and third prototypes were retained at Manston to form a Handley Page training flight. The first prototype was rebuilt to production standard and the fourth prototype tested a new nacelle design, which was un-armoured, had an enlarged fuel tank and a shorter fairing obviating the need for the tail to fold. The new nacelle was used on all aircraft built after the initial batch of twelve. From 1461 , an additional 130 imp gal (590 L; 160 US gal) fuel tank

9690-434: The sideways motion of the bombs due to wind. This meant the aircraft had to attack their targets along the wind line. Even in this direction, the wind would cause the bombs to fall long or short. To correct for this, on an extended run the bomb aimer would measure their speed over the ground using a stopwatch , calculate the wind speed, and then adjust their aim point based on that speed and their current altitude. This solution

9804-413: The sights. The forward bracket had a pivot point, and the rear a screw jack that rotated the entire sighting system up or down around the front bracket's pivot. This allowed fine adjustment of the levelling of the sight during flight to account for changes in trim, as measured on an attached spirit level . After making these adjustments the system was locked in position using wingnuts . This mounting system

9918-541: The small number of aircraft supporting the Arab insurgency being directed by T.E. Lawrence . On the night of 3/4 July 1917, the Handley Page was used for an attack on Galata air base but the engines overheated and the crew turned back, jettisoning some bombs and dropping the others on an army camp near Bulair. On 8/9 July 1917, an attempt to bomb Constantinople had to be abandoned after 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 hours of battling headwinds, instead targets of opportunity were bombed on

10032-411: The tail twisted by 15° to either side and that there was asymmetrical movement of the right and left halves of the elevators, which were connected by long control cables rather than being rigidly linked. He recommended that they be rigidly linked, that elevator balances be removed and additional bracing added between the lower longerons and the lower tailplane spar, measures which were successful in solving

10146-414: The tail unit began to vibrate and twist violently; the pilot immediately landed and an inspection showed severe damage to the rear fuselage structure. Reinforcement failed to cure the problem, meanwhile the enclosed cockpit and most of the armour plating were also removed. The second prototype was completed in April 1916 and had an open cockpit in a longer nose with room for a gunner. To save weight, most of

10260-435: The target, the battery adjusted their aim, fired and the process was repeated until the target was effectively engaged. One early communication method was for the flier to write a note and drop it to the ground where it could be recovered but various visual signalling methods were also used. This meant the pilots had to observe the battery to see when it fired and see if it had laid out a visual signal using white marker panels on

10374-419: The use of wireless communication at Aubers Ridge on 9 May 1915. Aerial photography was attempted during 1914, but again only became effective the next year. By 1918, photographic images could be taken from 15,000 feet and were interpreted by over 3,000 personnel. Parachutes were not available to pilots of heavier-than-air craft in the RFC – nor were they used by the RAF during the First World War – although

10488-417: The war by the RFC included: On its inception in 1912 the Royal Flying Corps consisted of a Military and a Naval Wing, with the Military Wing consisting of three squadrons each commanded by a major. The Naval Wing, with fewer pilots and aircraft than the Military Wing, did not organise itself into squadrons until 1914; it separated from the RFC that same year. By November 1914 the Royal Flying Corps, even taking

10602-591: The war. At the start of the war, numbers 2, 3, 4 and 5 Squadrons were equipped with aeroplanes. No. 1 Squadron had been equipped with balloons but all these were transferred to the Naval Wing in 1913; thereafter No. 1 Squadron reorganised itself as an 'aircraft park' for the British Expeditionary Force. The RFC's first casualties were before the Corps even arrived in France: Lt Robert R. Skene and Air Mechanic Ray Barlow were killed on 12 August 1914 when their (probably overloaded) plane crashed at Netheravon on

10716-420: The war. Oddly, when development of new bombsights started in the 1920s, these were based on the Drift Sight design, not the CSBS. The US Navy , contrarily, developed their Mk. III design from the CSBS, and it was borrowed Mk. III sights that were used to sink the former German battleship Ostfriesland in 1921. The Drift Sight was mounted to the side of the aircraft using two brackets at the front and back of

10830-671: The way back. The next night, Constantinople was reached before midnight and they attacked the anchored battlecruiser SMS  Goeben from 800 ft (240 m) with eight 112 lb (51 kg) bombs, and sank an Ottoman S138-class torpedo boat Yadigar-i Millet (Jadhigar-i-Millet). The crew then bombed the SS General , thought to be the German HQ, and dropped two bombs on the Ottoman War Office building before returning to Mudros at 3:40 a.m. On 6 August

10944-552: The way to rendezvous with the rest of the RFC near Dover . Skene had been the first Englishman to perform a loop in an aeroplane. On 13 August 1914, 2, 3, and 4 squadrons, comprising 60 machines, departed from Dover for the British Expeditionary Force in France and 5 Squadron joined them a few days later. The aircraft took a route across the English Channel from Dover to Boulogne , then followed

11058-412: The wind, and estimated its speed. The estimated speed was dialled into the sight, which moved a metal rod at the back of the sight so it laid at an angle to the fuselage. The aircraft would then fly at right angles to the bomb line, which would cause the wind to push the aircraft sideways (unless this direction the aircraft is flying while doing this just happens to be directly upwind or downwind). Comparing

11172-540: The wings (and sometimes the fuselage sides and/or rudder). However, there was a danger of the large red St George's Cross being mistaken for the German Eisernes Kreuz (iron cross) marking, and so of RFC aircraft being fired upon by friendly ground forces. By late 1915, therefore, the RFC had adopted a modified version of the French cockade (or roundel ) marking, with the colours reversed (the blue circle outermost). In contrast to usual French practice,

11286-439: The wings on tubular steel struts. The nacelles had a long tapered fairing to reduce drag. To clear the wing rigging wires when the wings were folded, the rear portions of the fairings were hinged to fold inward. The structure of the fuselage and flying surfaces was primarily spruce , with the spars routed into I-beams to reduce weight. The four prototypes and first production batch of six aircraft were built at Cricklewood , with

11400-523: Was Per ardua ad astra ("Through adversity to the stars"). This remains the motto of the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other Commonwealth air forces. The RFC's first fatal crash was on 5 July 1912 near Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain ; Captain Eustace B. Loraine and his observer, Staff Sergeant R.H.V. Wilson, flying from Larkhill Aerodrome , were killed. An order was issued after the crash stating "Flying will continue this evening as usual", thus beginning

11514-437: Was a rifle for the observer/engineer. The designation O/100 came from Handley Page's sequence of using letters for each of their designs, with 100 for the proposed wingspan of the aircraft. The design was approved on 4 February 1915, with 250 hp (190 kW) Rolls-Royce Eagle engines and on 9 February the contract was amended to include eight additional aircraft. The O/100 was an unequal-span three-bay biplane , with

11628-542: Was common among early British bombsights, notably the Equal Distance Sight that led to the Drift Sight. The main sighting system rode on two rods running fore and aft between the mounting brackets, allowing the bomb aimer to move it to a comfortable position for sighting. In the Equal Distance design, this movement was itself the main aiming mechanism, and could not be adjusted for ease of use as it

11742-530: Was difficult to install in the cockpit. The CFS was in turn replaced by the Equal Distance Sight (EDS) designed by in 1916 by Warrant Officer Scarff, better known for the Scarff ring . The EDS allowed the bomb run parameters to be entered once and then left the pilot free to fly the plane. Adjusting for the effects of wind was a difficult process. None of these sights had a way to calculate "drift",

11856-399: Was difficult, time consuming, and prone to error. In 1916, Henry Wimperis started design of a new bombsight, working in collaboration with Scarff. His "Drift Sight" included a simple system for calculating the effects of wind. This measurement was taken prior to the bomb run, using a secondary sighting system at the rear of the main bombsight. The pilot would first determine the direction of

11970-485: Was fitted in the fuselage above the bomb floor. A total of 46 O/100s were built before being superseded by the Type O/400. The most significant difference between the two types was the use of 360 hp (270 kW) Eagle VIII engines. Unlike the earlier engines, this engine was not built in handed versions, because production of engines of both types for engine type approval had been difficult. Wind tunnel tests at

12084-598: Was forced to ditch in the Gulf of Xeros, after an engine failed. The crew floated with the aircraft for two hours and fired Very lights but were not seen by British destroyers. They then swam for an hour to reach the Gallipoli peninsula, where they were captured. Another Handley Page was flown from England to reinforce the Palestine Brigade and served with 1 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps . In September 1918,

12198-438: Was in the Drift Sight. Sighting was accomplished in the manner of iron sights on rifles, and the Drift Sight used the same terminology of "foresight" and "backsight", although "lower" and "upper" would be more accurate physically. The fore and backsights were thin metal wires stretched across the opening of a C-shaped metal plate. The bombs were dropped when the wires of the foresight, backsight and target overlapped as seen from

12312-604: Was not available to RFC aircrew. There were undoubtedly some very skilled artillery observers in the RFC, but there were many who were not and there was a tendency for ' optimism bias ' – reporting rounds as being on target when they were not. The procedures were also time-consuming. The ground stations were generally attached to heavy artillery units, such as Royal Garrison Artillery Siege Batteries, and were manned by RFC wireless operators, such as Henry Tabor. These wireless operators had to fend for themselves as their squadrons were situated some distance away and they were not posted to

12426-399: Was often carried out under heavy artillery fire in makeshift dug-outs. The artillery batteries were important targets and antennas were a lot less robust than the guns, hence prone to damage requiring immediate repair. As well as taking down and interpreting the numerous signals coming in from the aircraft, the operator had to communicate back to the aircraft by means of cloth strips laid out on

12540-916: Was placed on 14 August but cancelled shortly afterwards. Twelve sets of Cricklewood-built components were transferred to the Royal Aircraft Factory , where they were assembled into the first production O/400s. More than 400 were supplied before the Armistice at a price of £6,000 each. Another 107 were licence-built in the US by the Standard Aircraft Corporation (out of 1,500 ordered by the air corps). Forty-six out of an order for fifty were built by Clayton & Shuttleworth in Lincoln. The first twenty O/100s deployed to France were received by 7 Squadron and 7A Squadron of

12654-485: Was re-equipped with Handley Pages by September. Operations began with 97 Squadron on 19 August and 215 Squadron three nights later. Cologne railway station was bombed by two 216 Squadron aircraft on 21/22 August and six attacks were made on the German chemical industry, the raid on 25 August by two 215 Squadron aircraft on the works at Mannheim being particularly accurate. Five aircraft of 216 Squadron attacked on 2/3 September, one bomb causing M 400,000 worth of damage and

12768-680: Was significant as the First Army's manoeuvre allowed French forces to make an effective counter-attack at the Battle of the Marne . Sir John French 's (the British Expeditionary Force commander) first official dispatch on 7 September included the following: "I wish particularly to bring to your Lordships' notice the admirable work done by the Royal Flying Corps under Sir David Henderson. Their skill, energy, and perseverance has been beyond all praise. They have furnished me with most complete and accurate information, which has been of incalculable value in

12882-517: Was the Zone Call procedure in 1915. By this time maps were 'squared' and a target location could be reported from the air using alphanumeric characters transmitted in Morse code. Batteries were allocated a Zone, typically a quarter of a mapsheet, and it was the duty of the RFC signallers on the ground beside the battery command post to pick out calls for fire in their battery's Zone. Once ranging started

12996-676: Was to guard the fuel stores and assist any aircraft which had occasion to land. Accommodation for airmen and pilots was often in tents, especially on the Western Front. Officers would be billeted to local country houses , or commandeered châteaux when posted abroad, if suitable accommodation had not been built on the Station. Landing Grounds were categorised according to their lighting and day or night capabilities: Stations that were heavily used or militarily important grew by compulsorily purchasing extra land, changing designations as necessary. Aerodromes would often grow into sprawling sites, due to

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