Some small mention must be made of seaplane activities, which, round
the European coasts involved in the War, never ceased. The submarine
campaign found in the spotting seaplane its greatest deterrent, and it
is old news now how even the deeply submerged submarines were easily
picked out for destruction from a height and the news wirelessed from
seaplane to destroyer, while in more than one place the seaplane itself
finished the task by bomb dropping. It was a seaplane that gave Admiral
Beatty the news that the whole German Fleet was out before the Jutland
Battle, news which led to a change of plans that very nearly brought
about the destruction of Germany's naval power. For the most part, the
seaplanes of the War period were heavier than the land machines and, in
the opinion of the land pilots, were slow and clumsy things to fly. This
was inevitable, for their work demanded more solid building and greater
reliability. To put the matter into Hibernian phrase, a forced landing
at sea is a much more serious matter than on the ground. Thus there was
need for greater engine power, bigger wingspread to support the floats,
and fuel tanks of greater capacity. The flying boats of the later
War period carried considerable crews, were heavily armed, capable of
withstanding very heavy weather, and carried good loads of bombs on
long cruises. Their work was not all essentially seaplane work, for the
R.N.A.S. was as well known as hated over the German airship sheds in
Belgium and along the Flanders coast. As regards other theatres of War,
they rendered valuable service from the Dardanelles to the Rufiji River,
at this latter place forming a principal factor in the destruction of
the cruiser Konigsberg. Their spotting work at the Dardanelles for
the battleships was responsible for direct hits from 15 in. guns on
invisible targets at ranges of over 12,000 yards. Seaplane pilots were
bombing specialists, including among their targets army headquarters,
ammunition dumps, railway stations, submarines and their bases, docks,
shipping in German harbours, and the German Fleet at Wilhelmshaven.
Dunkirk, a British seaplane base, was a sharp thorn in the German side.
Turning from consideration of the various services to the exploits of
the men composing them, it is difficult to particularise. A certain
inevitable prejudice even at this length of time leads one to discount
the valour of pilots in the German Air Service, but the names of
Boelcke, von Richthofen, and Immelmann recur as proof of the courage
that was not wanting in the enemy ranks, while, however much we may
decry the Gotha raids over the English coast and on London, there is no
doubt that the men who undertook these raids were not deficient in the
form of bravery that is of more value than the unthinking valour of
a minute which, observed from the right quarter, wins a military
decoration.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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