| | 800 ft. |Aerodrome |Bumpy; landed with engine | | ticking over too fast. | | 1,500 ft. |Aerodrome |Climbed too steeply and | | nosed down too much on | | turns. Very bumpy. | | 700–1,000 ft. |Aerodrome |Calm; flew for half an | | hour solo; landing fairly | | good. Climbed at better | | angle and turns slightly | | better. | | 500 ft. |Figure eights in |Did first part for ticket | ’drome | successfully, and landed | | right on T. | | 500 ft. |Eights in ’drome |Did second part of ticket | | right again, landing | | within few yards of T. | | 580 ft. |One wide circuit with |Completed tests for R.A.C. | engine switched off | Certificate. | | 1,600 ft. |Aerodrome |Joy-ride; landed with too | | much engine. ---------------+----------------------+---------------------------- BOOK II _ON ACTIVE SERVICE_ R.F.C. ALPHABET =A= stands for Archie, the Huns’ greatest pride, =B= for B.E., our biplane they deride. =C= for the “Crash” when by “A”[4] “B” gets hit, =D= for the Dive before “C” ends the flit. =E= is for Engine, which sometimes goes dud, =F= is Cold Feet, as you wait for the thud. =G= is the Gun that you keep on the ’plane, =H= as per “trig”[5] is the height you attain. =I= am the Infant who flies a 2C,[6] =J= the Joy-stick on most ’buses you see. =K= is the Kick that you get from a gun, =L= a forced Landing, too oft to be done. =M= for Mechanic; in France most are “firsts,”[7] =N= for the Noise that A makes when it bursts. =O= which is oil, stops the seizing of E, =P= Petrol used by the E of the B. =Q= is the Quiet one gets on a glide, =R= the Revolver you keep by your side. =S= is for Side-slip, some Shot, or a Stunt, =T= is the Thrill of a big Fokker hunt. =U= Under-carriage, first to go in a smash, =V= a V.P.[8] oft precedeth a crash. =W= the Wireless, for directing big guns, =X= =Y= =Z= I don’t want, so I’ll give to the Huns. I THE OPENING MOVEMENTS [Sidenote: “Somewhere.”]