BE2e Archives - Greg's War

6 May 20184 May 2018

Monday 6 May 1918 – Farewell to Yatesbury

With three last flights today, Greg’s basic training is over. A successful time with the camera, at last: 18 plates exposed and no reported jamming. Greg’s final flight at Yatesbury was in a BE2e, the type of aircraft in which he had his first flight on 14 March 1918.

Log book entry

Date: 6.5.18 
Hour: 2.0 
Machine type and No.: RE 5146 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 0 m 
Height: 2500 
Course: – 
Remarks: Photos. 18 plates exposed

Date: 6.5.18 
Hour: 5.50 
Machine type and No.: RE 5148 
Passenger: – 
Time: 40 m 
Height: 1500 
Course: – 
Remarks: Practice turns etc. 1 landing

Date: 6.5.18 
Hour: 7.25 
Machine type and No.: BE 8660 
Passenger: – 
Time: 40 m 
Height: 1500 
Course: – 
Remarks: Camera

It was just over seven weeks since Greg’s first flight:

Thursday 14 March 1918 – Flying Training Starts

Good-bye-ee!

So the instructors would see another batch of students off, and the young airmen would wonder what their fate would be. Goodbyes all round:

Yatesbury. Image Credit: Greg’s War Collection

And no doubt there would be some convivial celebration. At the Officers’ Mess, maybe? Or perhaps at a nearby hostelry, such as the Waggon & Horses in Beckhampton, which doesn’t look as if it has changed much in the last 100 years…apart from the addition of a TV aerial:

Waggon & Horses, Beckhampton. Image Credit: Laurie Barber. Tap or click to see source

As the song goes:

Bonsoir old thing, cheerio! chin chin!
Nah-poo! Toodle-oo!
Good-bye-ee!

To Hursley Park…

Greg’s training would continue at Hursley Park in Hampshire, with the next entry in his log book being dated 16 May 1918. And before the month was out he would be posted to France.

30 April 201830 April 2018

Tuesday 30 April 1918 – Zone Calls Again

As Greg enters his last week at Yatesbury, the first flight of the day saw some consolidation work on zone calls, and the second flight didn’t end well:

Date: 30.4.18 
Hour: 8.15 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8660 
Passenger: – 
Time: 35 m 
Height: 600 
Course: Zone calls 
Remarks: –

Date: 30.4.18 
Hour: 11.30 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 1358 
Passenger: – 
Time: 40 m 
Height: 2000 
Course: Aerodrome 
Remarks: Practice Crashed on landing

This was the second day running of zone call work, as explained in yesterday’s post:

https://gregswar.com/2018/04/29/monday-29-april-1918-zone-calls/

The question arises whether the crash on landing at the end of the second flight was deliberate, so as to practice what happens in the event of a crash. The absence of a full stop or other punctuation mark after ‘Practice’ leans in the direction of that interpretation. Leaning the opposite way, though, are (a) the capital C of ‘Crashed’, and the fact that the past participle (‘Crashed’) rather than the noun (‘Crash’) was used. For my money, the crash wasn’t deliberate – though no doubt useful practice!

No flying the following day. Greg’s next log book entry is for Thursday 2 May 1918.

28 April 201816 June 2018

Sunday 28 April 1918 – Landings and Formation Flying

Working today in BE2es and DH.6s, Greg practises landings (of course) and formation flying:

Log book entry

Date: 28.4.18 
Hour: 9.45 
Machine type and No.: DH 5155 
Passenger: – 
Time: 30 m 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Practice landings 4.

Date: 28.4.18 
Hour: 10.35 
Machine type and No.: BE 1358 
Passenger: – 
Time: 30 m 
Height: 2000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Practice. 1 landing.

Date: 28.4.18 
Hour: 2.25 
Machine type and No.: BE 8660 
Passenger: – 
Time: 45 m 
Height: 2500 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Practice. 1 landing.

Date: 28.4.18 
Hour: 4.45 
Machine type and No.: DH 5155 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 55 m 
Height: 2000 
Course: – 
Remarks: Formation flying

22 April 201830 April 2018

Monday 22 April 1918 – First Practice Shoot

After more practice on landings, Greg spent the final flight of the day on artillery co-operation work, specifically a practice shoot – recorded as successful.

Log book entry

Date: 22.4.18 
Hour: 11.0 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 
Height: 1000
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Landings (5).

Date: 22.4.18 
Hour: 2.0 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 40 mins 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Landings (3).

Date: 22.4.18 
Hour: 6.35 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: DH6 5155 
Passenger: – 
Time: 10 mins 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Practice

Date: 22.4.18 
Hour: 7.10 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: DH6 7672 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 0 
Height: 2000 
Course: Practice shoot 
Remarks: Successful

21 April 201816 June 2018

Sunday 21 April 1918 – Landings, Landings

A day concentrating on landings in BE2e 1358:

Log book entry

Date: 21.4.18 
Hour: 3.10 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 1358 
Passenger: – 
Time: 25 mins 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Landings (four) 4.

Date: 21.4.18 
Hour: 6.15 
Instructor: –
 Machine type and No.: BE2E 1358 
Passenger: – 
Time: 25 mins 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Landings (4).

20 April 201813 April 2018

Saturday 20 April 1918 – Back in the Saddle

After six days on terra firma, Greg is back in the pilot’s seat of BE2e 8646 practising turns and landings.

Log book entry

Date: 20.4.18 
Hour: 8.45 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 
Height: 1500 
Course: Aerodrome 
Remarks: Turns & landings (3).

Although the title of this post is ‘Back in the Saddle’, in reality what the pilot sat in was a wickerwork chair, much like this example from a Bristol F.2b fighter:

Brisfit wicker seat. — The wickerwork seat as found in many WW! aeroplanes. This one is from the Bristol F.2b fighter (‘Brisfit’) at the RAF Museum in Hendon, North London. Click or tap for larger image.

Not much protection from groundfire, of course, but there again neither was the fabric-over-wood airframe. No-one said it was going to be anything other than dangerous.

13 April 201812 April 2018

Saturday 13 April 1918 – Height Test

The misty and gloomy weather today put paid to an attempt at photography in an RE8. But it was an opportunity to rise above the murk in a height test, in which Greg took a BE2e to over 8,000 ft.

Log book entry

Date: 13.4.18 
Hour: 9.10 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: RE6632 
Passenger: – 
Time: 20 min 
Height: 1500 
Course: Photos, unsuccessful owing to heavy mist.

Date: 13.4.18 
Hour: 10.15 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 45 min 
Height: 8,200 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Height test.

Heavy Mist

The Met Office’s weather report for Salisbury Plain for the morning of 13 April was the laconic c . omg. Since we are in 1918 and not 2018, the meaning was not “cloudy . omigod” but “cloudy, turning to overcast, mist and gloom”. This was certainly consistent with heavy mist rendering the attempt at aerial photography unsuccessful.

Up where it’s cooler…

But 45 minutes after landing, Greg was up in the air again to do a height test, and he reached 8,200 ft.

So how cold was it up there? Well, the recorded minimum and maximum temperatures for Salisbury Plain that day were 37°F and 52°F, respectively. So let’s assume that at mid-morning in Yatesbury it was 45°F (7°C) at ground level.

Using the temperature gradient for low altitudes[1] of

-3.3°F/1,000 ft in cloud and
-5.4°F/1,000 ft in clear air,

and assuming for the sake of argument that there was

2,000 ft of cloud and
6,200 ft of clear air

that gives a temperature at 8,200 ft of around 5°F or -15°C.

But what about wind chill? Greg was in an open cockpit, with an indicated air speed in the BE2e probably between 50 and 70 mph, so it would have felt colder.

How much? Assuming a speed of 55 mph and using the wind chill calculator at CSGnetwork.com[2], we obtain:

-48°F or -44°C using the old formula and
-25°F or -32°C using the new formula.

Not having a good basis to choose between them and therefore splitting the difference, we end up with a temperature that feels something like -37°F or -38°C

Whichever temperature scale you use, this is cold. So the leather flying helmet, the goggles, the silk scarf, the fur gloves that make bear paws look small, the sheepskin boots, and the thick leather flying coat over the tunic all now make a lot more sense.

That’s it for a Few Days

The next entry in Greg’s pilot’s log book is for 20 April 1918. Maybe he had some leave, in which case he probably went back home to Holyhead, or maybe he was still in Yatesbury at ground school.

À bientôt…

[1] Taken from the mountain meteorology site https://www.onthesnow.com/news/a/15157/does-elevation-affect-temperature

[2] http://www.csgnetwork.com/windchillcalc.html

8 April 201817 March 2021

Monday 8 April 1918 – RAF Graduation and First Solo in RE8

Greg in front of RE8, probably at Yatesbury

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:

SOLAR HALO observed at Holyhead — Met Office weather record

In earlier times, one can imagine that this would have been seen as an omen.

7 April 201828 March 2018

Sunday 7 April 1918 – First Cross Country Flight

On a day of intense flying in two aeroplanes, BE2e 8646 and RE8 3551, Greg spends almost 5 hours in the air over the course of five flights and 25 take offs and landings, three of which were in his first cross country flight:

Log book entry

Date: 7.4.18 
Hour: 7.50 
Instructor: Lt Thomas 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: Self 
Time: 35 min 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Dual. Six landings.

Date: 7.4.18 
Hour: 8.35 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 25 min 
Height: 1500 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: Solo. Two landings.

Date: 7.4.18 
Hour: 11.15 
Instructor: Lt Thomas 
Machine type and No.: RE3551 
Passenger: Self 
Time: 1 hr 
Height: 1000 
Course: [Aerodrome] 
Remarks: 12 take off and landings.

Date: 7.4.18 
Hour: 2.35 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – 
Time: 1 hr 50 min 
Height: 3000 
Course: Cross Country 
Remarks: Landed at Andover & Netheravon

Date: 7.4.18 
Hour: 6.45 
Instructor: – 
Machine type and No.: BE2E 8646 
Passenger: – Time: 1 hr 5 min 
Height: 2500 
Course: Aerodrome 
Remarks: Practice turns & landings (2)

The single flight in the RE8 at 11:15 am was real ‘circuits and bumps’ practice: 12 times around in one hour.

The cross country solo flight from 2:35 to 3:35 pm reached 3,000 ft and covered a course of almost 50 miles: 24 miles to Andover, another 10 miles to Netheravon, and then back home to Yatesbury:

Yatesbury-Andover-Netheravon-Yatesbury cross country flight map — Yatesbury-Andover-Netheravon-Yatesbury cross country flight shown on a modern map (courtesy Google). Click for a larger, zoomable map (opens in new tab)

First take-off at 7:50 am and last landing at 7:50 pm: a long day.

14 March 201823 March 2018

Thursday 14 March 1918 – Flying Training Starts

First Day of Flying Training at Yatesbury

Greg’s first flight was an air experience trip in a BE2e.

Flight’s log book entry

Date: 14.3.18
Hour: 3.10
Instructor: Thomas
Machine Type and No: BE8646
Passenger: CE Gregory
Time: 20 min
Height: 1500
Course: Aerodrome
Remarks: Air experience.

BE2e

The BE2e shown in the photograph below, A1358, was also at Yatesbury, and Greg was to fly this particular machine later in his training.

The BE2 (Blériot Experimental 2) series of biplanes began life to a design by Geoffrey de Havilland at the Royal Balloon Factory, which by early 1918 was known as the Royal Aircraft Factory. Following the formation of the Royal Air Force in April, the Royal Aircraft Factory was renamed again as the Royal Aircraft Establishment so as to avoid a confusion of initials. The last major iteration of the BE2 series was the BE2e, which had been hoped to improve upon the BE2c, but did not fulfil its promise: even that version had been withdrawn from active service on the Western Front by 1918. Although BE2cs/BE2es were very stable in the air, the price of this stability was a lack of manoeuvrability and a consequent vulnerability, which was the subject of much criticism.

The BE2e was unflatteringly known as the ‘Quirk’.