Despite the somewhat nondescript weather, another significant day dawned for Greg on Monday 8 April 1918:
- four flights in three different aircraft types (BE2e, DH.6 and RE8);
- first use of bombs;
- first solo in RE8; and
- Greg was awarded his RAF Graduation Certificate – his ‘wings’.
Log book entry
Date: 8.4.18 Hour: 5.55 Instructor: Lt Thomas Machine type and No.: RE4462 Passenger: Self Time: 45 min Height: 1000 Course: [Aerodrome] Remarks: Dual. Six landings.
Date: 8.4.18 Hour: 3.35 Instructor: – Machine type and No.: BE 1358 Passenger: – Time: 55 min Height: 3000 Course: Bombs. Successful.
Date: 8.4.18 Hour: 3.00 Instructor: – Machine type and No.: DH6 7226 Passenger: – Time: 15 min Height: 1500 Course: [Aerodrome] Remarks: Turns
Date: 8.4.18 Hour: 6.45 Instructor: – Machine type and No.: RE6632 Passenger: – Time: 35 min Height: 2000 Course: [Aerodrome] Remarks: First solo. Two landings
Bombs
Greg dropped his first bombs (probably 20lb Coopers) during the flight at 3:35 pm from BE2e 1358, a photograph of which featured in an earlier post on 14 March and is reproduced again here:
RE8 Solo
Greg’s first solo in an RE8 was significant enough for him to note in his log book. Possibly it was on this occasion that the following somewhat blurry photograph of him standing in front of an RE8 was taken:
Graduation
Greg’s RAF graduation certificate – a fairly crudely adapted RFC graduation certificate – was issued this day by the Central Flying School in Upavon (some 11 miles/18 km to the SSE of Yatesbury):
And Finally, the Weather…
In Wiltshire the weather was overcast in the morning and mostly cloudy in the afternoon. Back home in Holyhead, by contrast, Greg’s parents would have enjoyed not only a little over four hours of sunshine, but also, according to the Met Office records, a solar halo:
In earlier times, one can imagine that this would have been seen as an omen.