Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-10-11
Flying With Shafer
A WILD RIDE
LETTERS A DAUPHIN COUNTY BOY MOTHER
Escadrille Spad 3S,
Secteur Postal 112, G. c., %,
1919

| Secteur POSTAL liz, u. u, %,
Sept. 8, 1918.
Dead Mother:
Yesterday was sure some busy
day in the aviation. line, it being the
| first clear day for two weeks. No
turally both the Boche and French
were out in force. Never did I see a
sky so blue, more the visibility so
good. Not a shadow of a cloud was
| in the sky and when one climbed
into this azure sea aboard his war
steed he sure had some view.
Never in all my flying experience
have 1 been able to see so far. Flying
over Scissor I could see Rheims as
plain as if it were right beside me,
and if you will look at the map
you will see that is quite a aIstal,c
About 10 u. m. all of us were or
dered into the air to protect three
big photo planes. That, however,
we did not understand thoroughly
at the time. We were to be led by
an officer who simply told US to
follow him. Nothing else was
vouchsafed us. This particular Of
ficer is much disliked in the esca-
drille because of his effcious man
ner. He never misses q chance to
use his authority, and often times
abuses 1t. Only the day before he
had balled us all out to far-u-well
for not keeping in close formation
while attacking a patrol of Boche,
and particularly he laid stress on
the fact that we did not follow HIM
close enough.
If you will remember in a for
mer letter l spoke about it; that
particular scrap in which several
of us got mixed up with another
escadrille of Spads, and did not find
our leader until sometime after
wards. So this time when he SIM
ply told us to follow him we made
up our minds to obey him to the
letter of the law. Therefore, as soon
as we got off the ''piste" we got
in close formation behind him and
proceeded to obey orders.
Start For Home
We had just arrived at the lines
when he swung around and headed
for home. remembering our previ-
GUS balling out we promptly follow
ed and on the way we passed three
big photo planes, which afterwards
we learned were depending on us
for protection. However, we did not
know this, and since our leader still
kept his altitude and flew as fast
as us, we had no way of knowing his
motor waS working badly. So each
little bird in mis- allotted place, we
toddled along behind. He certainly
could not kick at the way we fol-
lowed because we followed him
right down to the ground and land
ed with him. .
Man! but wasn't that Frenchman
sore when on demanding why we
landed with him we innocently re-
nr1n 70 ID
l sure thought be would explode!
He was so dosgone mad he couldn't
talk, which is going some for a
Frenchman. And then we were told
what had been expected of us, and
the situation did not seem. as big a
joke as we seemed to think. True,
we had put one over on the much
disliked officer, but the joke might
come pretty high. for those three
big planes we had passed were ex-
pecting us to protect them. Now
that we knew, that put a different
fact on the matter, and seemed like
ly to be serious, as those three planes
had undoubtedly continued on their
mission unprotected.
Go Up Again
So we were hastily given direc-
tionS as to where we might find them
and sent up again. We had already
been in the air, nearly an hour, and
since these "chasse" planes cannot
carry enough gasoline to fly very
long we could not have very long to
stay the second time and the Off
Ger had been so angry that we had
been sent aloft the second time with
out having our tanks reflled. I
was we'll aware as l left the ground
that 1 would probably run out of
gas" out there on the lines some
where, and if L got back at all it
would be more than likely a glide
into the 'piste" with a dead stick"
Not that l would come down in
Germany of course, because we al
ways fly rather high and no mat
ter what may happen to ones mo-
tor, he can at least glide into his
own lines. But L have had some
experience in that line and it is not
to my liking there are too doggone
many shell holes in this country.
Patching Up Our job
Anyway, orders were to get out
there on the lines and patch up an
already badly fizzled protection job.