A REPRISAL RAID INTO GERMANY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 247, 6 July 1918, Page 7

A REPRISAL RAID INTO GERMANY

~0 ' , BRITISH AIRMAN'S WEEK-END "STUNT' OVER A GERMAN CITY s . One of the best- stories of the British reprisal raids into Germany is told in the '■•• "Sail Francisco Chronicle" by 'Lieutenant M'Kenzie, Of the lloyal Flying Corps:— We have caught tho "week-end habit ■in the Flying Corps, and the Germans are going; to catch something, too. On Friday night I dined with a friend in london, and on Saturday afternoon I was over "the German town of Mainz, or Muyence, which is at least HO miles from tho jloint where tho Allied battle-line ir nearest to Germany. I may not tell you the precise route by which we proceeded toward our objective, because this is a secret, the Germans' would givo much to know, but I can tell you that we reached . Mainz in duo course. That the Germans would give much not to know. • -As soon as I had renched the extreme limit of ray own flight I turned' to look back, and the-sight-I-saw was a magnificent one. "Br'ow ino'was the town, with all the signs of activity to bo expected in a great industrial'and commercial, cenb'e,' which is likewise ii garrison town of some importuncr-. ■■ Our advent had been so sudden that apparently no warnings had been. given. . Factory - chimneys were still belching forth smoke. Crowd's still thronged' the streets, and in . tho centre of iho• city'there appeared to be a market in progress. ■ Bombs Rind Their Billets. Suddenly from ' down 'below many sirens'shrieked shrilly, followed by the . roar of gunfire, and high-up in tho clouds : 6hells begnn; to "burst all around us as our squadrons closed in over the town. Below all Was panioan'd confusion. At tho_ altitude" I was 1 flying- I could see , plainly the. people hurrying "m shelter; I could .hear the sudden cessation of the noise of the hammers in the yards below, and in the barrack squares I could see tho parade grounds '.denuded of- troops, liven as these things were taking place, bombs were dropping. -.1. saw one bomb find abillet in the infantry barracks, and pi saw flames rise -upwards.as hurrying men fell downward, either to-csenpe fragments or because .they had been hit. Away to the-'north of tho town tiny : -specks appeared in t]i D sky.- I guessed they 'were aeroplanes, but whether they were British or Gorman I was as ignorant as the man in tho moon. As they came jiearer, J-saw they wero not British, and at the., same moment I made a signal. From our bombing squndrons Gome' machines wero detached. They spread across, the sky in tho direction of the newcomers. They began to spit out bullets from their .machine-guns, The enemy came on in spite of that, making' ft brave show as his aviators returned the tiro of our aachines. Just when tho'oppbsihg squaSrons were about 50' yards apart, the Germans • wheeled about and made ; off. Our men pursued. Two of the Germans were soon in difficulties. One wlio was being pressed very hard turned in'-his eagerness toward tho'point'where I was flying. I had already risen to a greater altitude in anticipation of something'of the kind. My machine-gun' was ready for just such an 'emergency: I fired. The German had-his thumbs on his own gun, l'eady. to riddlei mo' with bullets. Even as I fired I expected to be riddled, but instead the German felt back in his seat. His machine; out of control, passed close to me, nearly upsetting me as it passed. From the throat of the dead man came a strango cry' that didn't sound liko anything Jjiimaii.. Before the machine finally went to its doom, man ■ 3U it- triecj to take control. 1 fired again. What effect the shot had I am '■ not quite sure, but the machine, spun around three times and then crashed <k>wn to earth, falling, a flaming mass, on the roof of a tall building, then gliding still further into the street, apparently on the -heads of terrified civilians. Munition Factory Blows Up. The second German machine in difficuJr ties was'overtak'cirbv'some of ours. After a brief fight, the Hun went to «arth, like a- flaming ball, with its freight of two human beings. Even as this machine,fell there came from below the roar of a great explosion, and after . that a huge tongue of flame, which appeared to reach within a few feet of our nearest machines, which.founded upward, as though, the occupants ' were jumping to avoid being scorched by the flames. Bombs had fallen on the'chief munition factory of the town, and it could be seen in flames as I passed over (>n the way home. Over toward the river 1 could see also the glare of many fires, and as wo got clear of the town there was a train standing alongside what appeared to be a huge she'd for storing munitions. I got over the maVk and let fly a bomb. Train and shed seemed to rise into the air and meet me there. The' lnt was a lucky one. The noise of the explosion was like that of a great earthfjunke, and the Arc that followed reddened the countryside all the way back over the Jthine to our lines.. Hun Flyers in Pursuit. ' ' _ Behind us the noise of eneinv machl ines m pursuit .was carried "on the breeze. The pursuing Huns had'no terror .lor, us. Wo took little notice, except that occasionally we turned to use our machine giins on those who got too close. They wore not game. A few rounds sufficed to. send them back to safely, and wo soon got to the point where .we had-to cross the enemy lines. Here we were assailed by a-furious fire, and clouds of enemy planes dashed to- . . 'wards us. There was a .sharp light, in which our machines seeriied for a few ■ . minutes to • be lost in . tho clouds of enemy machines.'' Then they.-began to emerge on tho other side. 1 counted until the tale was full and then I made eft after them. The tale of German machines was four less than when the fight started. Pursuit was kept up for a time, but from the earth our Archies were now Bending up their respects to the Huns, and tho hitler turned back in a body, dropping a few bombs as they retired, but doing little or no damage. A short tpell of.night flying close to the enemy's lines rounded off the Saturday's entertainment, and on Sunday wo were off again. This timo our objective was Stuttgart,' mid in some respects the programme was 'much tho same as the Mainz stunt. ' The Attack on Stuttgart. ■ The Huns put up a lively dispiav of fireworks* "as w<3. approached, and Tiero •they appeared to have, more warning, for the streets were almost; deserted unci the factory chimneys were almost smokeless. At one end of the town was the great Daimler motor factory; at another the waterworks, and dotted at intervals .were the military barracks, (lie railway 1 station, anil many sidings, besides numerous factories and other places of military value. All these were singled out for attack, and to reach (hem in a way that would render failure impossible, our men had to pick their- way between the enemy's guns.' To ride such a barrage as the Germans put up that day required great nerve. One of our men was right over (he Daimler works. Shells were bursting below, above, and on each side of him. [t seemed that if he moved a fraction of an inch he was bound to be hit, so close was the fire. I could see ' the figure of the airman leaning forward in his sent in tho middle nf his inferno . a? thuugli he were going to drop a handful'of. tracts to a seaside crowd. Something went over tho side of his machine, and almost at the same time a great bright glare ros9 from the, middle of the Baimler works. There was a. torrify- • ing. crash of fallen masonry and the hurrying of men from an adjoining building, followed by more flames.' '['he airman leaned forward once more. Another bomb went over, and then a third. Mure flames rose into the sky, more mnsenry crashed to the ground, and more men came rushing out to escape death. Tho British airman had finished the task. He turned to go. Three German machines wore astride of his path. Nothing daunted,, lie made to attack them. The first Hun was" a"little. iii\advance of his fellows, nc opened fire on our man, who drove straight at him, as (hough'lf ; ram him. Up to that moment the British flying man had not used iiis machinegun, but now he brought it info action Suddenly, the German -machine eeemed

to wobble. Then it recoiled a few yard?, find Honied eastward, finally dropping tn earth and falling in tho Humes coming i'rom tho Daimler worts. Enemy Troops Attacked, After a most thrilling aerial duel the British aviator. shook toff his opponents and rejoined the squadron. Tim whole of our objectives having been then attained, the order to retire was given, and. we made off, pursued by heavy gun fire until lie crossed tho enemy ,ines after lending a hand with another liltio diversion, got uiv as part of the week-end's entertainment. In another part of Ihn hjsituvd.iy programme, our men had to attack enemy troops and positions at a very important centre, where lliey appeared to bo massing men and guns, besides other material. It was here that pur men descended as lew' as 100 feet from the ground, and flew over the heads of tho German infantry, picking them oil' with machine-guns and generally giving them as big a fright as ever they got. Our squadron' had the distinction of attacking a group of mounted German officers, who formed the stall of an'enemy division that has been in tho lino for some time in anticipation of something big. Included in tho party was the General of the division. They were having a quiet afternoon jaunt among tho troops, making plans for who knows what, and. 'little dreaming what was in store for them. When ire appeared overhead they must have taken us lor friends, for onu ot them pointed at us for the benefit of the General. • We. swooped low and opened fire with, machine-guns, two of our machines dropping bombs, ijomo of the horses took fright, and the whole party dispersed in different directions. It fell to my lot to cnivy the General, and it was an exciting race between' horse and aeroplane. 1 believe it was tho first race of its kind, and would almost certainly havo ended in an easy win for the machine had not .the General been close to. a building, into which '. he ran for shelter. . I fired as he ran, | and then I let the house have, a bomb. Tha place was smashed to bits, but whether tho General was killed or man- ' aged to reach the dug-out below I cannot, say. Our neit tussle was with a huge convoy, which was bringing up ammunition, and food for the Hun troops. We spread ourselves over this convoy and dropped bombs at four different points. 'Tho explosions followed each other in quick succession, and panic seized the troops escorting the convoy. Some of the .men .signified their readiness to siirrettder, and we were then in a position to gratify their wishes, and our amused Tommies were given the spe:tacle of aeroplanes bringing in captured infantry. That was one of tho best week-ends I have ever spent. All tlu air scrvico aslcs is to bo.'Given a chance of --pending its week-ends like that, arid Fritz will rue the day we caught the week-end habit.