NOTED AIRMAN

New Zealand Herald, Volume 78, Issue 24132, 26 November 1941, Page 9

NOTED AIRMAN

LEA DEH IN LIBYA IF SCHOOLBOY MARKSMAN l\f EARLY FLYING CAREER Junior partner in the firm of Cunningham, Cunningham and Coningham, now attacking Axis forces m Libya, Air Vice-Marshal Arthur Coningham, " D.5.0., M.C., D.F.C., A.F.C., is an old * boy of Wellington College, and some particulars of his early career have been sent to the Herald by tin acquaintance, _ Mr. D. Matheson, of Tauranga. He also sent a group photograph, showing Private A. Coningham as a member of g the Wellington College shooting team that won the New Zealand secondary f schools shooting competition in 1910. Arthur Coningham was 15 years of age when he shot for his college, and finished one point behind the champion with the score of 33, 33—66 out of /0, at 200 and 500 yards. In 1911 he was j champion shot of the college. Early Air Successes "He was a member of the Samoan Expeditionary Force," Mr. Matheson 1 writes. "After the Gallipoli campaign ( he returned to New Zealand, a sturdy, ( well set up young man, much disappointed at being left in Egypt groom- ] ing horses instead of joining in the cam- < paign. It was then that he decided on flying, and on account of his excellent college record, lie was gladly accepted, ■ and never looked back." _ . . . Travelling to London after his visit < to New Zealand, Coningham began training with the Royal Flying Corps in July, 1916. He won both his D.S.U. and M.C. early in his flying career, being invested with the two decorations at Buckingham Palace in 1917, when lie had served nine months in France, had an official record of 10 enemy machines in 14 days, and had been mentioned in French Array orders four times in a fortnight. Thrilling Encounter "The intimation of the bestowal of the D.S.O. and M.C. reached Captain Coningham while he was in the New Zealand hospital at Hazebrouck in August, 1917, recoyering from wounds received in a thrilling air fight on the evening of July 30," states a news item published in New Zealand in October of that year. It describes how Captain Coningham, accompanied by SecondLieutenant A. W. Gordon, R.F.C., of Auckland, and Lieutenant Wells, an Australian, each in a single-seater scout machine, took ofl for a "joy ride" as a preliminary to leave due to Captain Coningham. At 6000 ft, they encountered five enemy machines, led by a noted German flier, Wolf. "Diving on the enemy, Captain Coningham quicklv accounted for one of the five, and he fell out of the action," the storv continues. "As luck would have it,' Wells could do nothing, because his gun jammed, so that he was completely out of the fight. Twice Hit in Head "While Coningham took on one of the enemy, the other German machines began to mount, and got above him, and very soon Gordon was hit. He was at a disadvantage, as he had not Previously met a Hun in the air, and did not realise that it was a case of two against five. The sequel was for him two legs broken. . "Left with four <*nemy machines mounting higher than himself. Captain Coningham set about to tackle them, and at the same time to help his friend j Gordon. At 5000 ft. he was twice hit, in the back of the head, but was saved serious injury by bending forward, and other shots passed over him. "The hits were sufficient, however, to cause temporary unconsciousness, and his machine fell from 5000 ft. to 25001't. At this height he recovered command, and sot about 'going for the eneinv aeroplanes. In a short space he accounted ior one of the four, and he finally succeeded in driving off the remaining three. By now the hits he had received were rather troublesome, and he then thought about landing, which he did safelv, with his friend. It was a thrilling little fight, and quite un-looked-for, and its upshot was ths dismissal of two enemy machines. The Funny Side In a subsequent interview, Captain Coningham was reported to have said: "Nerves! There wouldn't be any if the flving men would only try to see the funny side. For even the most exciting fight possesses amusing incidents. I was . laughing nearly all the time I had the l] four Germans tackling me, and popping at me from all directions." . y Mr Matheson adds a brief post-script ;• to this old interview: "His laughing on ' the rifle-range spoiled many a good ® score!"