Unknown RFC officer

[Guest stevenbec]

Mates,

I can not find the name of an RFC officer who was brought down in France and captured by the Germans only to escape.

He was later placed in command of a Sqn in Egypt and was again brought down and captured by the Turks.

Can you name this officer and do you know how both times happened and if it happened to any other bloke during the war to be captured by both our enemies.

Cheers

S.B

[Dolphin]

Steve

Lt A J Evans was flying Morane LA A197 of No 3 Sqn RFC, with Lt H O Long as observer, on a reconnaisance mission over Ligny-Thilloy on 16 July 1916 when brought down and taken PoW. He escaped to the UK, returning on 16 June 1917.

Capt [in 'The Sky Their Battlefield] or Major [Cutlack] A J Evans MC was flying Martinsyde G102 A3960 of No 142 Sqn RFC on a bombing mission to El Kutrani when forced down by engine failure on 19 March 1918. His aircraft was destroyed by burning. Capt R A Austin and Lt O M Lee in Bristol F2b B1128 of No 1 Sqn AFC landed nearby in an attempt to rescue Capt Evans, but a wheel on their aircraft broke and all three Airmen were taken PoW.

Capt/Major Evans' told of his adventures in his book 'The Escaping Club'; see - http://www.rippingyarns.com/products/The_Escaping_Club.htm and http://www.greatwardifferent.com/Great_War..._Escapes_03.htm

Evans' book is credited with being the inspiration behind many escapes from PoW camps in the 1939-1945 War.

The first of three pages of an extract from Peter Hart's 'Somme Success' quoting Lt Evans is below.

I hope this is useful.

Cheers

Gareth

[Dolphin]

Steve

Here's the next page.

Gareth

[Dolphin]

Steve

The third, and final, installment.

Regards

Gareth

[Guest stevenbec]

Thanks Mate,

Yes thats the bloke.

I found a mention of him in a book I found on the weekend "One Airman's War" by AM Joe Bull edited by Mark Lax.

It s the story of a airmans war with 1 Sqn AFC in a day by day diary of his war.

This soldier was interested in the many things happening around him and wrote on the British Sqn's stationed near him.

At the back of the book in the complete list of all aircraft with serial numbers and detail of their life in the 1 Sqn. This last bit was a nice surprise as I had not seen a listing of Types and serial numbers of AFC aircraft before.

S.B