Pilot strafing

[Ginger.]

Been having a look through my books about Mick Mannock and cannot find any instances of him strafing downed Huns. Although he did put bursts of fire into fleeing opponents to 'put the wind up them'!
His great friend 'Taffy' Jones shot at Huns dangling from their parachutes, does that count?

[tcrean7828]

Ginger,

Sure why not, we will just add another category:

Strafing (Huns); Strafing (RAF); dangling from their parachutes (Huns); dangling from their parachutes (RAF);

We will have to have additional categories for each of those listed above as: In thier lines; In Enemy lines.

cul

tcrean7828

tom

[Roadhog]

I am at work and hence am away from from my reference books but I recently reread MvR's autobiography "The Red Flyer" and I am convinced that this issue was discussed by the baron. According to MvR's writings, while flying with Voss he engaged an Allied observation plane who continued to fire at the Baron all the way down. It crash landed and both the pilot and the observer survived and fled the wreckage. Upon landing Voss chided MvR about not strafing the survivors stating that he certainly would have. VR, Roadhog

[tcrean7828]

Roadhog,

I believe you are correct. But can not put my finger on it at the moment.

cul

tcrean7828

tom

[Roadhog]

My boss left a couple of days ago for two week's vacation and left me in charge. (Tag! You're it!) I do have tomorrow off from my 12-hour shifts, so I will try to find the quote in my books and get back to you all. If I strike out, I'll let you know that too. VR, Roadhog "Memento mori."

[tcrean7828]

Here is the Item we have all been searching for:

MvR shot down the aircraft.

On 02 Apr 1917 Manfred Von Richthofen relayed an incident to Lt. Werner Voss who was visiting him from Jasta Boelcke that day, concerning a Victory that he had claimed on the mornings patrol. Manfred was quite amused about the incident as he mentioned this to Voss. He said, “That as he flew down to within 30 feet above his downed quarry, to see if he had killed or merely wounded the occupant, and what did the rascal do. He took his machine-gun and shot holes into my machine. Afterwards Voss told Manfred that if that had happened to him he woud have shot the airman on the ground” – ‘The Mammoth Book of Fighter Pilots’ by Jon E. Lewis pg 54-55.

I knew I had it somewhere, just where exactly ????

anyway here it is.

cul

tcrean7828

tom

[Gregvan]

Hi,

There's just a few things wrong with this famous account from Richthofen's propagandistic and heavily edited "Rote Kampfflieger". MvR was referring to his 33rd victory and second victory on 2 April, the Sopwith Strutter A2401 of No. 43 Sqn, Crewed by 2/Lt Warren and Sgt Dunn. In "Under the Guns of the Red Baron,",Franks et al. state the the observer Dunn was mortally wounded in the abdomen in Richthofen's first pass. His pilot, Warren, "...finally managed to crash-land and help his wounded observer from the rear cockpit, the latter mumbling, 'Think I'm done.' Richthofen came down and shot them up, Warren later insisting that neither he, and certainly not his badly wounded observer, had any desire or thought of firing at the red fighter above them. Whether Richthofen's machine came under someone else's fire, or his explanation was just an excuse to strafe the two-seater, is now conjecture."

However, according to Warren's own statement as recorded in "The Red Knight of Germany,", "..I managed to flatten out somehow in the landing and piled up with an awful crash. As I hit the ground, the red machine swooped over me, but I don't remember him firing on me when I was on the ground."

[FOKKERJ]

tcrean7828 Quote:
Ginger,
Sure why not, we will just add another category:

Strafing (Huns); Strafing (RAF); dangling from their parachutes (Huns); dangling from their parachutes (RAF);

We will have to have additional categories for each of those listed above as: In thier lines; In Enemy lines.
cul
tcrean7828
Hi TC, I swear that recently, while reading an article or watching Public Broadcasting, I came across some deal that the British didn't use parachutes as the German pilots were developing and using them. The reason escapes me right now, except that it was a really LAME excuse. Wish I had more on this. Maybe it was just a dream! Does anyone have any information to either substantiate or discredit this? Please speak up now! Or forever hold it. Thanks, FOKKERJ

[tcrean7828]

Originally Posted by FOKKERJ

tcrean7828 Quote:
Ginger,
Sure why not, we will just add another category:

We will have to have additional categories for each of those listed above as: In thier lines; In Enemy lines.
cul
tcrean7828
Hi TC, I swear that recently, while reading an article or watching Public Broadcasting, I came across some deal that the British didn't use parachutes as the German pilots were developing and using them. The reason escapes me right now, except that it was a really LAME excuse. Wish I had more on this. Maybe it was just a dream! Does anyone have any information to either substantiate or discredit this? Please speak up now! Or forever hold it. Thanks,

FOKKERJ;
No I do not think it is a dream - but I too read that British pilots were not given parachutes due to the fact that High command, thought that they may jump out of their plane before doing their duty to God and country.

What were they (The High command) thinking?

I would like to see those buggers up in those aircraft and then come up with that lame excuse.

All of the lads that went up in those death crates and those that did not come down alive, has probably bigger homers than the high command could possibly fantom.

I enjoy when High command uses their bottoms instead of their brains to come up with those idotic thoughts.

No wounder so many of the over the hill gang did not return and to get them to go they needed a sip of spirits to get them to go over the top as my grandad once said. None of the lads who sipped the spirits and went over the top came back. Bloody waste of good infantry.

cul

tcrean7828

tom

[FOKKERJ]

Hi TC, No small wonder I forgot the reason, I wouldn't have believed it without hearing it again! Of course we're groomed to following orders blindly from our betters. Thanks, FOKKERJ