2nd Lieutenant Leonard Malcolm Potts AFC

[Waddell]

Leonard Malcolm Potts enlisted along with his brother Jack Diamond Sumner Potts in the 8th reinforcements of the 7th Light Horse Regiment. He was taken on strength by this unit on 28/12/15 and later transferred to the RFC and after training served with 67 Squadron AFC.

On 29/3/18 he travelled to Port Said to front a medical board and later on 5/4/18 he was admitted to 14 AGH hospital with a "Debility" and was taken off the "effective strength of No.1 Squadron AFC". He was sent home on 29/4/18 on the ship "Tofua" effectively discharged.

I say effectively as there is a letter in his file from him, dated 16/12/37, stating that he never received a discharge certificate. He only received a letter confiming termination of employment.

Can anyone add details to his flying career and also shed some light on why he was medically discharged?

Help Gareth?

Regards,

Scott

[Dolphin]

Scott

Lt L M S Potts is mentioned twice in the Official History:

on 26 June 1917 he was one of two pilots forced to land near Khalasa after exhausting their fuel - they were picked up in other aircraft and brought back to base but the downed aeroplanes were wrecked by Turks and Arabs;

on 17 January 1918 when flying with Lt F Hancock as observer, he attacked an Albatros scout in concert with Lts Haig and Vyner and saw it go down out of control.

There should be more in No 1 Sqn's War Diary at: http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/war_diari...sp?levelID=1429

I hope that this helps you.

Gareth

[fetubi]

Scott,

To amplify Gareth's leads I have this entry out of The Sky Their Battlefield - a possible combat victory on 17 Jan 1918:

A7194 Bristol F2b 67(Australian) Sqn

+*Rec to NABLUS combat with 5 Albatros DIIIs [+?ooc] EL LUBBAR 11000' 9-15am OK(Lt LMS Potts NZ./Lt FW Hancock) attacked by other EA so could not follow down

The only thing I've added to it since publication is the point that he was a New Zealander. Perhaps you are able to confirm?

The entry for 26th June 1917 (added since publication) might be of interest too:

67(Australian) Squadron launched a morning bombing raid on Jerusalem which ended in very costly loss of machines. The target was the Turkish 4th Army HQ at the Mount of Olives, and involved eight aircraft. Many bombs were dropped at the target, but on the return flight events began to go wrong. The BE2e of Lt CleB Brown was forced to land with engine trouble near Beersheba and, though two others landed to assist, it could not be restarted or destroyed owing sniper fire. Brown arose in Lt RA Austin's BE2e, but then this machine began to fail and landed once more. Lt AT Cole in his Martinsyde, probably No. 7487, attempted to pick up both men but his engine failed and he smashed his undercarriage in the forced landing. The three stranded pilots began to walk through no-man's-land to their lines, having buried guns, cameras etc., and were eventually rescued by light horse patrols Their aircraft were never salvaged as Turkish forces later burnt them(the lost BE2es were probably Nos. 6803 and A2771). Meanwhile, two more BE2es ran out of fuel, having been delayed by events unfolding below, and had been forced down. Their pilots, Lt JH Butler in A1314 and Lt LMS Potts in A2777, were picked up by Capt AL Jones and Lt R Drummond in their Martinsydes and they returned safely. The two BE2es could only be salvaged for spares. In all, four BE2es and one Martinsyde were lost.

Regards,

Trevor

[Waddell]

Thanks gents.

Gareth, I'll have a look through those diaries.

Trevor,

His attestation papers indicate that he was born in Wellington New Zealand on 11 March 1895. His brother was born in London. Leonard was educated in the UK at Bedford.

There is a file on Leonard's second world war service on the Australian National Archives search facility. He worked within Australia with the RAAF and was still flying. I'm a bit confused about what his debility was in April 1918.

Regards,

Scott

[frev]

on 17 January 1918 when flying with Lt F Hancock as observer, he attacked an Albatros scout in concert with Lts Haig and Vyner and saw it go down out of control.

Hi Scott

Can't help in regard to his debility either - but just a little more detail on above.

From "One Airman's War" - the diary of Aircraft Mechanic Joe Bull:

Thur 17 Jan:

"Our B.F. No.A7194 went out on recco this morning at 8.20 and knocked a Hun over Nablus. They met eight Huns, five above and three below them and they turned sharply and dived on a scout which fell to earth out of control. The pilot was Lieutenant L.M. Potts who says he is evens with them now, meaning that he has made them pay for the loss of his brother, Lieutenant J. Potts. The observer, Lieutenant Hancock, also got a few rounds in with his back gun but he gives credit to Potts' gun for knocking the Hun."

[Potts' combat report read - "...I turned and dived on (the) last machine of (the) formation, leaving (the) escort machine above me to look after (the) 3 scouts above, who did not show any inclination to attack. I fired a burst of about 30 (rounds) into the Hostile Aircraft who was seen to lose control of (the) machine which turned over on its back and went down completely out of control."]

Interestingly, it wasn't the Germans who were responsible for his brother's death - Jack Potts died as the result of a mid air collision with an RFC plane (over enemy lines)

Cheers, Frev

[Waddell]

Interestingly, it wasn't the Germans who were responsible for his brother's death - Jack Potts died as the result of a mid air collision with an RFC plane (over enemy lines)

Thanks for that info Frev.

It had crossed my mind that his brother's death may have affected him. He may not have blamed the Germans directly for his brother's accident, but indirectly he may have. It's a strange that there is no mention of the nature of the debility in his records and he did fly later.

Incidentally there is a photo of Jack Potts on the AWM site. It seems that the enemy did the right thing by informing the AFC of Pott's death by dropping a message in a flight over the airfield. They also provided a photo of his grave. Seems an honourable thing to do.

Scott

[frev]

Scott - I find the honour between these enemy airmen quite fascinating - they might have been killing each other - but they still seemed to look on it all as a 'game'.

They often used to drop message bags into each other's camps with details on deaths & prisoners.

Joe Bull refers to the incident in regard to Jack Potts death in his diary - and here's just another of the many examples - that sums it all up:

Wed 11th Jul 1917: "The Hun was over this morning with a scout flying high above escorting him. He dropped a message stating that Captain Brooks was buried with full military honours and that Vautin was forced to land with his prop and controls shot away. One of them went out and picked him up and gave him a stunt over Jerusalem. There was a note also from Vautin asking for his kit to be dropped. So this evening Captain Jones and Lieutenant Paget took the kit over along with various notes and planed down to 50ft over the Ramleh aerodrome and dropped the lot. They waved to the HQ staff and recognised some of the German pilots who waved back to them. No 'Archies' were fired at them and only an odd rifle bullet."

A very interesting & informative read if you can get your hands on a copy. ("One Airman's War" ed. Mark Lax 1997)

Cheers, Frev

[Waddell]

Trevor,

From F M Cutlack, Leonard Malcolm Potts was born in the suburb of Karori in Wellington.

Scott

[michaeldr]

On 29/06/2009 at 00:25, fetubi said:

The entry for 26th June 1917 (added since publication) might be of interest too:

67(Australian) Squadron launched a morning bombing raid on Jerusalem which ended in very costly loss of machines. The target was the Turkish 4th Army HQ at the Mount of Olives, and involved eight aircraft. Many bombs were dropped at the target,

 

Old threads never die, they.........................

 

I am just now reading 'The Palestinian Diary of a European Diplomat' by [neutral] Spain's consul in Jerusalem during the Great War, the Conde de Ballobar, and he has the following to say regarding this air raid

 

26 June 1917

It is 6:30 A.M. and I have been awakened by two British airplanes that made a reconnaissance flight over Jerusalem. I woke up to the noise of the defense cannons that were firing against them and the murmuring of the people who are commenting about it all in the middle of the street.................

 

Later he corrects himself and provides a few more details

 

8 July 1917

I had forgotten to give more details about the 'visit' of the British. There were eight planes, and the noise that I heard was the bombs exploding above the Mount of Olives. They dropped 50, and only one fell on the sanatorium, causing some damage. There were two horses dead and that was all. The Germans and the Turkish presses have taken it as a pretext to say that the British have bombed Jerusalem, a holy city for Jews, Christians and Muslims. However, this affirmation is absolutely false, because they have bombed the headquarters, which they have a perfect right to do, according to the Turkish and German officials themselves..........

 

The target was the HQ sited at the Auguste Victoria Foundation – see

 

 

 

regards

Michael

[Waddell]

Thanks for adding more to the thread Michael, as you say old threads never die.

 

Several years ago there was a thread on the second Light Horse site that Bill Woerlee set up concerning an inscription found upon a grave at The Oaks in Sydney's greater south west that carried an inscription 'to our Jack killed in Palestine 4th January 1918'. Contributors to that thread confirmed that it was a memorial to Jack Diamond Sumner Potts and it appears that most of that story is recorded here on the Camden Remembers website-

 

  http://www.camdenremembers.com.au/Lest We Forget/lwfpottsjds.html

 

 http://www.camdenremembers.com.au/crstories.html#Our Jack

 

I have some mentions of Leonard in some family letters, hence the interest.

 

Scott  

Edited 17 April , 2017 by Waddell
spelling

[Guest]

Hi, great to see people still talking about the Potts Brothers. Leonard Malcolm Sumner Potts and Jack Diamond Sumner Potts , were my Wife's relatives . We only found out about them last year. We really know no more about them than what is written here and the photos that are online. A tragic story for Jack but we are glad he has been found through his memorial for "our Jack". Reading between the line Leonard Potts may have had something like PTSD. Laurie Arthurs (lozz1963@hotmail.com)

[Waddell]

Nice to hear from a descendant Laurie after many years. I will send you an e-mail in a few days once I can get back to my notes. The brothers were in correspondence with my wife's great uncle during the war.

 

Scott

[Guest]

Thanks, how amazing that is. Look forward to hearing from you , Laurie.

[Jasta72s]

Hello, 

 

there is a short report about J. D. S. Potts' crash and death with one photo of a grave for three British aviators (incl. Potts) and two little pictures of the crashed airplane (sadly, with the dead Potts) in Over the Front, volume 29, number 2, Summer 2014. The name of the article is An Observer on the Front in Palestine Part III (by Michael Seidel). It describes the aerial career of Ltn Joachim Seidel, a German observer. 

 

Hannes 

[Waddell]

Thanks for that Hannes. Copies still looks to be available.

 

Scott