The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-02-16
CAPT CHARLES DELESALLE

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Gotha that could fire both ways, ahead
and over or under his tail. Came near
going west" that trip. And then right
at the last--November 8 il was--tbe
sun and lot Of fleecy clouds fooled
me about n bunch of Fokkers. !
thought they were F'rcnchmen. They
shot up my boat here and there. One
bullet crippled the motor-I wondered
why 1t wouldn't work-next thing ]
knew / was on fire, about 5000 meters
up.
My Spad was number 49, II GER
tainly was lucky 10 In my case. The
Spads carried 'norices--that's a reserve
tank OF gasolene-on top, and I knew
| IL the flames got to that it was good-by.
THE tank caught at 200 meters and
blew out with q grand old roar and I,
whoOsh of yellow flame. But the can
vas was still lasting pretty well. Ten
feet from the ground II was gone, so
jumped. And 7 hardly got bruised.
How about that for 10? A pretty good
kind OF n hoodoo. don't you Think
But I was going TO tell you about
Dele and Billy Van Fleet. Old Billys
n wonder. Oh, gee-he's an airman to
write about. He's home in San Fran
cisco now; his fathers Federal Judge
out there. To show you what Dele
salie thought OF him, he had him lead
the patrols. And when we followed
Billy We were deadly sure of action
Find the enemy and fight them was
Bihys hobby. When he couldn't find
him he'd lead us on a strafe. That's
coming down low to put the Boche
anti-airplane machine guns out Of
business 1t runs to casualties nearly
as bad as combat does and l found II
n lot harder on the nerves. On days
when the clouds spoiled the hunting uy
high we'd go and strafe the guns.
, What made it so wearing was that
! you had to fly so low. and the German
| anti machine guns were mighty good.
| | remember a strafe on November z
near Ecloo. Billy and Dele led Il.
| There were eight OF us. We were on
the $3.50 A. NJ patrol operating over
! the line Client -Ecloo, which the Ger
mans happened TO he trying TO hold.
| The machine gun battery Billy was
| after was placed close behind their
! second line. 1t was seven guns,
arranged in two rows four guns In
| front, three back. Near by was 4
| clump Of their arches, for higher slti-
tude work. to keep us we'll no and
| generally put the fear Of kingdom
come in our hearts. The arches
would very seldom get n plane, but
they served their tactical purpose.
| Down lower the machine guns were
| bad medicine They'd quit using
| smoke tracer bullets because the tracer
| worked both ways, and you could fol-
low ii down and locate the gun. Their
method was like "A good duck shots or.
crossing birds; spray IN front of your
line OF fight and let fly into the spray.
! "To beat this game we'd circle high
and work into n certain, dead angie as
we. swooped down-an angle Where
neither battery could get on us. Then
as we swept right at 'en. DOWN low.
we'd cut loose. You know you must
point Il combat plane at whatever you
want to shoot. It's the plane, not the
gun, you aim. As soon as We got low
we'd start in weaving right and LEFT
like snipe to confuse their happy
efforts to pay us back. That seesaw
motion made lots of the fellows sick
and 1t didn't always work. ! saw one
OF the fellows, old Turbot, shot down
during a strafe.
This particular time we made
! double turn as we came down like n
letter S with one of the curves much
bigger than the other. As VIC got on
EN-, about twice as high as this room,
wo had Il pretty chance. We were try
ing for the three guns on one end. and
when We comps ed noces back ar-&i-
field we were every one OF US positive
: We had 'em.
BILLY Van Fleet says he'll never ny
again. Delesalle told mo when left
that once the war was really over
you'd never catch him in the air gain
And l feel that way myself. II doer
5 wear you down little by little. It's
the way the others Of the squadron
, drop out--your friend is with you to-
3 day and crashed by ulghtfal,, az
likely as not-thnt grinds on you the
? worst, think. In the morning. be-
s foro you 20 up after action, you're
5 nervous. You drink your cocoa. or try
1 ! to, but you're on wire edge. When
= action begins you're tense. You're not
D worrying then got your hands too
i fun.
o ".And by the way, this 'chivalry OF the
> cir stun is probably all right. but IL
= some Of tho writer's who pull IL could
hear pilots little monologuc whila
!. no and Heinie are iockeyinG TO get
= On each others tail I'm afraid the
: Ilovey romance would be frazzled
:, Missed you, did I, YOU blanlSety blank!
| Well, hold your blank blank horses
V iust MY Oh, you're going to
4 wing slip. are you blank blank blank
h you 10 blank
n After you're home on the field
O. | n reaction