Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1917-04-25
The Intensely Bitter Fighting
on the Ground Has Been
Reflected in the Air. New
Record Established.
ENGAGEMENTS OCCUR AT
HEIGHT OF $4,000 FEET
Weather Suits the English and
They Go After the Germans,
Forcing the Battle, Losing
but Two Planes.
rar MORNING JOURNAL SPECIAL Leased wiRsl


| From a Staff Correspondent of the
Associated Press With the British
| Armies in France, April "a (via Lon
| don, 1880 p. m. 1.-The intensely bit
! ter ground fighting of the last two
days has been reflected in the air and
the British royal flying corps yester-
/ day established new record by
bringing down forty German ma
chimes Fifteen of these We're actual
ly seen to crash while twenty-five
collapsed or fell in spinning nose
dives, completely out of control.
The fights took place $1,000 feet in
the air, from which distance it is
barely possible to see the ground and
/ wholly impossible to see an adver-
sary crash unless the pilot deliber-
not feasible where the fighting has
taken on the character of Il general
melee, as is nowadays often the case.
Il A remarkable part of yesterdays per-
formance is that only two British air.
planes are missing.
u Fine Day for Fighting.
u It was the finest day for war fly
4 ing that the young pilots ever had
and today they have been at it again
since sunrise, but the full reports OF
their ,expioits arf not yet in.
i It Is known, however, that one in
trepid young flier, failing to find a
single German observation balloon
aloft, sought one in its hangar on the
ground, dived at it and set the big gas
bag ablaze from stem to stern.
Since Sunday the British airmen
have been revelling in weather they
have long desired. Not a cloud was in
the sky today behind which a Ger
man could find shelter. Deprived OF
that means of digging themselves in,
the German fliers were far scarcer
than usual. British machines were
everywhere along the battle front and
far behind the German lines. Bomb
ing raids were carried out forty-five
miles back, the machines deliberately
flying over ground where battles were
raging with the greatest fury.
Trains Are Attacked.
German trains rushing reinforce
ments to the front were attacked and
transport columns on the road were
bombed and completely disorganized
In several instances the British ma
chimes came low over the fighting
lines and poured machine gun fire
into the German ranks. In doing
this, machines have deliberately
crossed the fire of their own as well
as the enemy's guns.
| Yesterday one British pilot, after
bringing down two Germans and with
all his ammunition gone, descended
reloaded, filled up his petrol tanks
and took to the air again. Within
half an hour he had brought down his
third machine for that day. Another
pilot felled two machines. while the
other thirty five were divided among
a similar number of British pilots.
A Drawn Battle.
The greatest fight yet, oddly
enough, was drawn battle. One OF
the British pilots met a brilliant Ger
man flier and for a full hour they
manner without either being able tc
bring his gun to bear on the other
They rolled, Topped, twisted, deliber-
ately stalled their engines and, stand.
ing the machines on their tail, slid
backwards through the air, but all tC
no avail 1t probably was the most
wonderful air duel the war has yet
seen.
The British pilot reported today
that several times he felt sure he
would get his adversary between his
sight, but the latter invariably wrig-
gled out of the line of fire. The Brit
ish flier himself was kept busy avoid
ing the German and once he had tc
dive almost perpendicuarly. The
combat did not break off until both
pilots had fairly exhausted them.
selves and their petrol
/ Fighting in Enemy Territory.
Strangely enough. later in the day
another British pilot encountered the
same British machine. The Britishel
was winging his way home after Q
hard days work. but he jockeyed Will
the German for nearly quarter OF
an hour before flying on.
Still another pilot mounted a fas
new machine and deliberately al
lowed German to get on his tail
Then he suddenly looped behind hi:
adversary and caught him just with
! in the sights, the burst of fire killine
the German instantly. The machine
swerved and the dead man pitched
: out, 10000 feet from the ground.
The fighting yesterday was ali with
in enemy territory.