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2 January 2001, 08:01 AM

Vin seems to contradict himself a bit with his treatment of the "Arizona boaster". On the one hand, as a balloon-buster, Luke is courageous, but shows no great flying skill. Is this also true of the other balloon busters, or just Luke? The German command instructed Erich Löwenhardt to write a terchnique on balloon attack prior to the spring 1918 offensive. Some of EL's writings are reproduced in the Bodenschatz diaries, and the instruction goes to great pains to describe how the attack must be planned, surveyed, and executed. Flying skills seem to be the most important factor, as described by the German.

Luke is a glory-seeker, involved in a high risk/high reward endeavor? Vin believes that Mitchell's piece in the GWS archive suggests that Luke was something less than a skilled drachen buster because his efforts sometimes flamed grounded bags. I would submit that the same is true for all the famous balloon busters, most of whom conducted their attacks near the time when the bags were going down for the night or up in the morning. Further, the closer to the ground the balloon is located, the closer the attacker must bring himself to heavy concentrations of enemy guns.

Finally, comparing Luke to greats such as vR, Voss, etc is laughable? While it is true that he survived to fight only for a brief time, look at what the man accomplished in that time. Except for a handful of Escadrillers and RFC'ers, Americans were not in the game for long. US pilots entering the game in 1917 or 1918 had no experience and a lot to learn. If you were to say that Luke had more guts than brains I might be inclined to agree, but it seems to me that he thought about what he wanted to do, consulted the experts on the issue (US & French balloon personnel), devised a plan of attack, and was successful using the plan. The no respect for authority and disdain for his own safety are things that everyone can like about him. I agree, maybe Luke was not the greatest pilot of the war, but, with respects to Putnam and Capt. Ed, he was the best America had.

2 January 2001, 08:01 AM	#34 (permalink)
Mark M. Guest Posts: n/a	Vin seems to contradict himself a bit with his treatment of the "Arizona boaster". On the one hand, as a balloon-buster, Luke is courageous, but shows no great flying skill. Is this also true of the other balloon busters, or just Luke? The German command instructed Erich Löwenhardt to write a terchnique on balloon attack prior to the spring 1918 offensive. Some of EL's writings are reproduced in the Bodenschatz diaries, and the instruction goes to great pains to describe how the attack must be planned, surveyed, and executed. Flying skills seem to be the most important factor, as described by the German. Luke is a glory-seeker, involved in a high risk/high reward endeavor? Vin believes that Mitchell's piece in the GWS archive suggests that Luke was something less than a skilled drachen buster because his efforts sometimes flamed grounded bags. I would submit that the same is true for all the famous balloon busters, most of whom conducted their attacks near the time when the bags were going down for the night or up in the morning. Further, the closer to the ground the balloon is located, the closer the attacker must bring himself to heavy concentrations of enemy guns. Finally, comparing Luke to greats such as vR, Voss, etc is laughable? While it is true that he survived to fight only for a brief time, look at what the man accomplished in that time. Except for a handful of Escadrillers and RFC'ers, Americans were not in the game for long. US pilots entering the game in 1917 or 1918 had no experience and a lot to learn. If you were to say that Luke had more guts than brains I might be inclined to agree, but it seems to me that he thought about what he wanted to do, consulted the experts on the issue (US & French balloon personnel), devised a plan of attack, and was successful using the plan. The no respect for authority and disdain for his own safety are things that everyone can like about him. I agree, maybe Luke was not the greatest pilot of the war, but, with respects to Putnam and Capt. Ed, he was the best America had.