W.J.Caughey Posted 1 October , 2012 Share Posted 1 October , 2012 Below is a quote from a page i was sent. Its a Squadron leader? writing to family about a RAF officers death in 1918 saying the below words. "He is a great loss to my Squadron, as he had just got his first balloon and i was expecting him to do great things." Would anyone have an idea what it means by his first balloon, is he talking about an award or something?. Thanking you in advance. Walter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WW1ACE Posted 1 October , 2012 Share Posted 1 October , 2012 Hello Walter. This means that the officer had just shot down a German observation balloon..... These were classed as a 'kill' and counted to a pilot's overall combat score... Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W.J.Caughey Posted 1 October , 2012 Author Share Posted 1 October , 2012 Alan, Brillant, thank you very much for info and for quick reply. Walter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
centurion Posted 1 October , 2012 Share Posted 1 October , 2012 Balloons were well protected by both AA and fighters, shooting one down was regarded as no mean feat. The US and Belgian air aces Frank Luke and Willy Coppens scored most of their victories against balloons. At that stage in the War the Germans were using balloons copied from the French Caquot design Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W.J.Caughey Posted 1 October , 2012 Author Share Posted 1 October , 2012 Balloons were well protected by both AA and fighters, shooting one down was regarded as no mean feat. The US and Belgian air aces Frank Luke and Willy Coppens scored most of their victories against balloons. At that stage in the War the Germans were using balloons copied from the French Caquot design centurion, fascinating info, Frank Luke rings a bell with me. Many thanks Walter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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