On 14 May 1916, Samson was given command of , a former Isle of Man passenger steamer which had been converted into a seaplane carrier. Based at Port Said, he patrolled the coasts of Palestine and Syria, sending his aircraft on reconnaissance missions and bombing Turkish positions, often flying himself on operations. On 2 June, Samson took his ship through the Suez Canal to Aden, where he personally led a six-day bombing campaign. After silencing Turkish guns at Perim, "Ben My Chree" headed to Jidda where on 15 June, her aircraft operated in support of an attack by Arab forces led by Faisal, son of Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca; Samson lost the heel of his boot as well as various pieces of his seaplane to ground fire. The Turks surrendered the next day. Further operations off the coast of Palestine followed; on 26 July, Samson and his observer, Lieutenant Wedgewood Benn destroyed a train carrying 1,600 troops with a 16 lb bomb. In almost continuous action through the rest of 1916, Samson received a signal from the Admiralty asking why "Ben-my-Chree" had used so much ammunition; he replied "that there was unfortunately a war on". In January 1917 he sailed to Castellorizo to carry out joint operations with the French, and in the harbour there the "Ben My Chree" was sunk on 11 January by Turkish gunfire. A subsequent Court-martial acquitted Samson and the crew of all responsibility and commended them for their behaviour. His two escort ships, already equipped to carry a few seaplanes, were fitted out for independent air operations, and from Aden and later Colombo, he patrolled the Indian Ocean for enemy commerce raiders.