Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-06-21
AMERICAN Filler
DESCRIBES FIGHT
WITHHUN PLANES
Two u. S. AviatorS in Fleet of
Five British Machines Which
Battle VaIiantIy With Nin0-
teen Enemy SeapIaneS

LONDON. June 1s.-(By the Associ-
ated Press. I'm the fight of the Dutch
/ coast on June Eve British seaplanes
OF the largest type outfought nineteen
German seaplanes. One OF the enemy
machines was sent down in flames and
another driven down out of control, &C
cording to a description of tho night
written for the Associated Press by En-
sign X B. Keyes, a United States naval
aviator. Previous to the encounter one
of the British machines had descended
to make repairs and the Germans set
upon the four other machines protecting
the injured one. Ensign Joseph Eaton,
another American aviator, was on the
injured machine and he was SUISSE
quently informed in Holland.
Ensign Eaton and 1 were two Amer
leans among the crews of hve flying
boats on a North sea patrol" says En-
sign Keyes. West of Terschelling Ea-
toms machine had to alight on the sur
face owing to engine trouble. We stood
by circling in the air and waiting for
him TO repair the damage.
Germans Give Battle
Soon the German airplanes hove in
sight. We took battle formation and
went for them. was in the front cock
pit with one gun and 500 rounds OF am
munition. In the stern were three more
guns and their operators. The Germans
fed at our approach but 1 had the salts
faction of getting several rounds into
them, although il is impossible to say
whether there were any effective hits.
After a time the enemy came cir
cling back, but instead of FIVE machines
there were only four, one small scout
having been sent LANDMARKS. presuma-
bly, TO bring help.
-f dc re
hostile machines coming up from an OPP
posite direction. They were not high in
the air but close to the water and were
Joined almost Immediately by I'VE more,
making nineteen in all The enemy
scouts were painted black while the two
seated were sea green and very hard to
distinguish from the water.
I'VE four swung into battle formation
again and charged into the middle of
the enemy fleet. When we were nearly
within range, four planes on the port
side and five on the starboard rose to
our level while two of the enemy ma
chimes passed directly beneath us, shoot
ing upward.
The firing was incessant from the be-
ginning and the air was blue with
tracer bullet smoke and the Germans
used explosive bullets.
I devoted my time to the port side
Where TOUR planes OuerSu nne targets.
Once 1 looked around 1 noticed my COM
mander was in a STOPPING position. !
thought nothing of il until a few min
utes later when I looked again and saw
he was still in the same position. Then
the truth dawned on me that he had
been hit and looking closer, discovered
his head was in a pool of blood, but for
the moment 1 could not leave my post.
Commander Killed
we kept up a fine running fight al
though our machine was cut off from the
rest and surrounded by seven enemy
seaplanes. We fought for ten miles un-
til we drove off seven Germans, sending
one down out of control and crashing
another in flames from a height of 1000
feet The Ave other machines were Sc
verely punished by our gunfire.
During the last few minutes our en-
CINE began stopping and the engineer re-
ported the petrol pipe had broken. Mean
while i had laid out the commander in
the cockpit and taken his seat.
The whole engagement lasted half
hour and 1 think we did very well. Aft
erward my machine descended into the
water where repairs were made and then
we returned to port. The whole flight
lasted seven hours"
Ensign Joseph Eaton, of Connecticut,
was interned in Holland on June 5. with
other allied aviators who descended on
Dutch territorial waters in the fight off
Terschelling. Although his machine was
damages Eaton was not hurt.