CWS Archives - Greg's War

27 June 201830 August 2018

Thursday 27 June 1918 – CBP, Archie…and Sheet Tin

Another Counter Battery Patrol, in which Greg was twice switched to new targets, another four bombs dropped, some “pretty hot Archie”, and an intriguing order about sheet tin.

Log Book

Date: 27.6.18 
Hour: - 
Machine type: RE8 
No.: E27 
Observer: Lt Kennedy 
Time: 2 hrs 5 m 
Height: 6000 
Course/Remarks: CBP. 4 bombs. Archie pretty hot.

Diary

Thursday June 27^th. CBP 8 – 11 (8.40 – 10.45). Four bombs dropped, caused small fire.  Archie very persistent & pretty hot.

Sent FL FR FD & got to 6,000 ft.  Engine rough but picked up & ran very well.

Got X twice from CWS.

“Archie”…

…was anti-aircraft fire, as explained here:

Thursday 13 June 1918 – CBP and ‘Archie’

“Sent FL FR FD”…

…means that a series of favourable weather signals was sent, explained here,:

Saturday 15 June 1918 – CBP and Bombing

“Got X twice from CWS”…

…means that Greg twice was given the signal X from the squadron’s Central Wireless Station. ‘X’ meant ‘change to new target’. The X (formed of ground strips of cloth) would be followed by a description of the target. Sounds a bit like he felt was being messed around.

Sheet Tin

The day’s routine orders from the CO, Major Hunter MC, had an interesting entry about sheet tin, which was obviously of some value:

Recovery of sheet tin from Biscuit, Tea and other large tins

Arrangements having been made to sell all sheet tin which is in good condition and which is not required by the British Armies in France, it is necessary that as uniform a method of recovery as possible should be adopted.

Tins are to have their tops and bottoms removed entire, after which the bodies are to be opened up at the joints, i.e., at two diametrically opposite corners.  the sheets thus produced are to be pressed flat, bundled in twenties and tied with wire or hoop iron.  

The tops and bottoms are to be similarly bundled.

The joints can be opened by hating on an iron plate over a brazier.  When the solder in the joint runs, the parts of the tin can be shaken apart.

Special care is to be taken that only sufficient heat is used to make the solder run.  Too much heat will spoil the tinned surface and render it unfit for sale.

To prevent deterioration from rust, it is very important that tins should be dealt with as soon as received and should not be left exposed to damp after packing (4000/40 (Q.B.1).)
             (G.R.O. 4326, dated 21.6.18).

One might reasonably wonder why “the British Armies in France” might have any use for sheet tin themselves. In fact, one use was to make reflective signal discs in the gas mask haversacks of the infantry:

Haversack signal disc used by Allied troops. From Michael Meech, ‘A Short History of Contact Patrols’ Cross & Cockade International 40(2) 116-127 (2009)

The discs could be deployed by troops in forward positions, so that RAF patrol aircraft on infantry liaison duties (so-called ‘contact patrols’) could see their position and transmit this information to the relevant headquarters.

19 June 20185 December 2018

Wednesday 19 June 1918 – Fruitless Reconnoitre

On another damp day around the River Lys, Greg takes Lt Watkins as observer, since Roche has flu. Central Wireless Station tells them to reconnoitre an area by l’Épinette, southeast of Merville. But they didn’t see any guns firing and the damp air leads to water in the carburettor again.

Log Book

Date: 19.6.18 
Hour: 3.30 
Machine type: RE8 
No.: E27 
Observer: Lt Watkins 
Time: 1 hr 10 m 
Height: 3000 
Course/Remarks: CBP. Came down due to water in 
                carburettor.

Diary

Wednesday June 19^th. E27. Roche got an attack of the ‘flu’.  Took up Watkins as observer, saw one Hun.

Asked C.W.S. for a target & got R VII.  Went over to reconnoitre square R7 but owing to smoke from a fire just to windward was unable to see any guns firing in that square.  Weather pretty dud & damp.

“Asked C.W.S. [Central Wireless Station] for a target”

CWS was the squadron’s Central Wireless Station. This station operated one of the squadron’s two radio receivers. The other was at Station Headquarters for practice and tests. As the General Staff’s “Co-operation of Aircraft with Artillery” booklet (SS 131) explains:

…the Central Wireless Station should be at some central position in the corps area sufficiently far back to prevent jambing. This station acts as a link between the squadron commander and his machines working on the line, and is of great value in preventing incipient failures in their initial stages. … Its utility is largely dependent on quick telephone communication to the squadron and to batteries. Whenever possible, therefore, it should be located near Corps Heavy Artillery Headquarters, whose direct lines run to the above units. At this station are also taken weather reports, hostile aircraft reports and, in case of sudden enemy bombardments or attacks, calls for reinforcing machines.

Square R7

This would be square R7 in Sheet 36A (zone RA), 2 miles (3.2 km) SSE of Merville, near Lestrem. At the time, there was some kind of well defended German post or position there, at l’Épinette:

Map of R7 — Extract of 1:20,000 ‘Harassing Fire’ map showing Square R7 of 1:40,000 Sheet 36A and l’Épinette. This was the square given by the Central Wireless Station. Red markings show German trenches and wire entanglements. Black marking show centres of activity, occupied areas and numbered targets. Triangles indicate dumps, and the flag shows a headquarters position. The map is dated 27 June 1918, with trenches correct to 16 June 1918.

Nowadays, l’Épinette is on the southern edge of Merville-Calonne Airport:

16 June 201815 June 2018

Sunday 16 June 1918 – Double CBP

Two Counter Battery Patrols today, and more bombing and machine gun activity:

Log Book

Date: 16.6.18 
Hour: 1.30 
Machine type: RE8 
No.: E27 
Observer: Lt Roche 
Time: 2 hrs 
Height: 3000 
Course/Remarks: CBP. V bumpy.

Date: 16.6.18 
Hour: 4.30 
Machine type: RE8 
No.: E27 
Observer: Lt Roche 
Time: 1 hr 
Height: 2500 
Course/Remarks: CBP. Engine backfiring.

Diary

Sunday June 16^th.  E27.  CBP. Saw several huns.  Dropped four bombs & fired 100 rounds.  Sent UL UR UD. Got a lot of water in carb.

“Saw Several Huns” – Albatros C series?

Greg doesn’t record what sort of German aircraft he saw that day. They might have been scouts (fighters), or they may have been Albatros C series reconnaissance/light bombing aircraft (essentially the German equivalent of RE8s) such as this:

“Dropped four bombs and fired 100 rounds”

The bombs would have been the nominal 20 lb Cooper bombs featured yesterday. The armaments of the RE8 are given here:

The Royal Aircraft Factory RE8

Later in his log book Greg would record the number of bombs dropped and rounds fired, and from which gun, but he hadn’t started doing that at this stage.

“Sent UL UR UD”

Following on from yesterday’s post, in which Greg sent FL FR FD, these were weather signals sent to the squadron’s Central Wireless Station (CWS):

UL: Weather unfit for counterbattery work
UR: Weather unfit for registration [of artillery fire onto a target]
UD: Weather unfit for photography.

And after sending that trio, he no doubt headed for home: retour à Rely.

Hat tip again to The Long, Long, Trail for the letter codes.

15 June 201815 June 2018

Saturday 15 June 1918 – CBP and Bombing

On another bumpy day, Greg was on Counter Battery Patrol duty. He dropped his first bomb – a 20lb Cooper bomb – and fired his first shots in anger, but without much success at least in the case of the bomb.

Log Book

Date: 15.6.18 
Hour: 9.50 
Machine type: RE8 
No.: E27 
Observer: Lt Roche 
Time: 2 hrs 
Height: 4000 
Course/Remarks: Engine rough. Good landing.

Diary

Saturday June 15^th.  E27.  Counter Battery Patrol from 10 to 1 pm.  Sent FL FR FD.  Very bumpy.  Dropped a bomb on a bridge, missed rather badly.  Fired off 50 rounds into Hun lines from Vickers gun.  Observer fired 100 from Lewis.

“Sent FL FR FD”

This somewhat cryptic sentence in Greg’s diary is in the active voice, not the passive voice. It refers to signals that he sent to the squadron’s Central Wireless Station (CWS), not places to where he might have been sent by them. In fact, they were weather signals:

FL: Weather fit for counterbattery work
FR: Weather fit for registration [of artillery fire onto a target]
FD: Weather fit for photography.

The corresponding ‘unfit’ signals would be UL, UR and UD, respectively.

Hat tip to The Long, Long, Trail for the letter codes.

Cooper Bomb and Vickers and Lewis Machine Guns

For an description of the bombs and guns carried on the RE8, see:

The Royal Aircraft Factory RE8

Counter Battery Patrol

For a reminder of what counter battery patrols involved, see:

Counter Battery Patrols and Zone Calls

Header image: cutaway version of a 20lb Cooper bomb in the RAF Museum, Hendon.