Knights Without Parachutes — red baron

Serving his country in a roundabout way A few weeks ago, we wrote how in September 1917, Arthur Gould Lee was fighting Richthofen's Flying Circus. But around this time of year, it was Eugene Bullard's turn.  It was late in the year when Eugene Bullard tried to transfer from the Lafayette Flying Corps to fly directly for the US. They were saying all US pilots flying for France would be allowed to transfer, and be promoted to officer status. So Bullard was given a physical. The American doctors said he had flat feet, and he pointed out his flat feet had...

The Red Tri-Plane Appears "The squadron has taken a hammering" - report from Monday, September 3rd, by Arthur Gould Lee, the Royal Flying Corps pilot "of no fame" who was writing to his wife back in England. Their first patrol had met Richthofen's Flying Circus, and Manfred himself was back in action, in his new Dr.1 red tri-plane (which Lee, not having the benefit of 100 years of Red Baron legends, assumed at the time was a captured Allied tri-plane.) Failing to recognize this new and lasting symbol of the Red Baron could be deadly. Richthofen's sixtieth victory on 2 September had included an observer who,...

1917 Warbird vs. 2017 Kit Aircraft As a large fraction of Denver moved to Wyoming for the total eclipse this week (totality was only about 150 miles north of the Vintage Aero Flying Museum), many sport aircraft pilots avoided the traffic by flying instead. We talked to the pilot of a kit two-man airplane that looked like a giant blue-and-green dragonfly which flew north from an airport near the VAFM. It was interesting to think about what has changed, and in some cases changed back, about airplanes in the last 100 years.  Like Manfred von Richthofen's airplane, this one was brightly...

The End of Aerial Duels Last week’s post explained how the summer 1917 Gotha attacks on London caused Arthur Gould Lee’s squadron to be in England. Though they didn't get to fight any Gothas, they comforted the population while developing their skills at formation flying. The practice in formation flying was itself the beginning of a major change. The period that WWI aviation is best remembered for was the aerial fighting in 1916 and 1917: “when enemies in the air could fight without mercy but without hate, could even respect and admire each other’s skill and valour.” But when, on the formation of...

My Great Friend, "Rick" Richthofen That's the impression Frederick Libby decided to leave when he returned to America, after a couple years of flying for the British, when Billy Mitchell requested he go teach American pilots how to fly. (Which didn't actually happen, but that's another story.) Libby didn't enjoy being asked about the war all the time (his audiences wanted gruesome stories, and as he put it, "We only were killed, not butchered.") So with one group, he inquired whether they had ever heard of the great Baron von Richthofen. "I launch forth and give the great baron his biggest buildup, how...