The Washington times., 1919-02-14
ACES" DESCRIBE
AIR ADVENTURES

Capt Edward V. Riekenbaeher
Lieut. o. J. Donaldson, a Washington
man, and Capt Douglas Campbell
Americas premier aces, told Of their
adventures of life and death on the
hEhting front before the National
Press Club last night ...-
During their stay in France, the
three aces sent forty-tWo German air
planes plunging TO capture or de-
struction. They have between them
two CroiN de Guerre with pains, two
Distinguished Service Crosses, and
onesDistinguished Flying Gross,
Captain Rickenbacher, the ace OF
aces, has twenty-siX enemy planes 10
his credit. Lieutenant Donaldson
succeeded in putting the quietus 70
nine machines before he was captured.
and Captain Campbell brought down
seven flyers.
His First FIIEht.
Il shall never forget the first Ger
man plane I fought" said Captain
RiclSenbacher, who despite his victor
les, is a modest fighter. at was April
%. 1913. / had been at,the front but
q few days A report came in that
a German plane was out. So Capt.
Norman Hall and I started out /
soon gIimpsed a machine and made
{ for il Immediately.
capt. Raoul Lufbery, who was
killed, taught me to dive under the
I other fellows tail and let loose at
| him with a stream of -machine-gun
bullets. So / dived for the tail Of
the other plane and had my hand on
] a-fr- IN rrfu
lead, which would have inevitably
sent him down. / was just ready TO
pull the trigger when / saw the red,
white, and blue stripes on the tail Of
the. machine. 1t made me sick for a
moment Then 1 went plunging by,
and you should have seen the fear on
that fellows face when he saw an
other plane slip by from behind him.
He should have taken a pot shot at
me for luck. I deserved it.
well, I went on and soon saw
Norman Hall doing acrobatics for the |
Germans. That is, he was acting as
voluntary target for their 'archie" |
shells and doing falling leaves, dips, :
and other stunts.
Saw Bend Poster. I
soon We glinpsed an Albatross
plane confess that i was mo-
mentarily afraid. But I glanced out
Of the corner of my eye and saw q
roster saying, Fight or Buy Bonds,'
by Christie, which l had pasted on /
the wing. said TO myself Well,
you're broke and can't buy q bond,
SO you will have 70 hght.' We chased
the German some distance back of
his lines and there. I shot him down.
1t was my first air victory.
''The Germans are moro afraid Of
the American flyers than OF the avi- II
ators of any other nation" said Cap
ed after the signing of the aTmistice.
a German observer with whom talk
cd after the signing Of the armistice. +"
You. Americans eight like chill II
dren-and like Indians, he com
planned. I've can never tell what
ou are going to do next. We fear
the American aviators more than the
English or French or Belgian iyers"" I
Captain. Rickenbacher also paid
tribute to the memory Of Lieutenant
Luke, OF Phoenix, Ariz.,-- who was ,
brought down after bagging eleven
German balloons in eight days. II
Lieut.. o. J.. Donaldson, the Wash
ngton man, and victor in nine en-
gagements. told Of his capture and
escape from the Teutons.
Shot Down in Fight.
''I was shot down in fght with
-hree Fokker machines" said Lieu
enant Donaldson. Incidentally I
brought one OF them to earth in the
light. I was taken to .Douai and. then
o Conde, where met Oscar MandeII,
mother American flyer. We decided
o escape. We had a map given US by :
German. intelligence officer, Whosel
.ctual brain. capacity evidently be-
led his title. We were given a COM
,ass by a British officer.
THAT night we just jumped from a =
story window and walked
way. We soon came to an airdrome
nd tried to get away in a German
lane. A German soon walked up. In
he resulting argument I received a
ayonet wound in the back. MandeIl
lalked around the plane and hit the
ierman on the head with a flash
ght. The man acted just like Charlie
hapIin does before he collapsed.
ION the eighth day after our es-
ape we reached No Mans Land lust =
utside the British lines where we
-ere recaptured by a German wiring -
arty. The non-commissioned officer
Tho took us was given an iron cross
( the second class. The Kaiser evil =
emily thought we were secOnd-class
ghters.
Second Try SueeessfUI.
1--WE made a second attempt to
scape, and were successful that
me" IN
Capt Douglass Campbell urged =
pom his audience the necessity Of a
emembering the men "whO didn't
0me back" IN
For those who lie in Flanders
elds are the real heroes after all"
e said.
Major Maurice Connolly, pilot ard
'rmer member Of Congress, declared
lat the United States now has bet
= types Of planes than those pro-
iced by the allies or by Germany.
e appealed for support Of The air
aft branch of the service
Earl Goodwin, president OF the
ress Club, introduced the speakers