Samson's Book "Fights and Flights"

[oak]

Charles Rumney Samson of the RNAS published his memoirs "Fights and Flights" in the 1920s or 1930s. If anyone has access to a copy, I'd be very grateful for his description of his flight over V Beach, Gallipoli on 25 April 1915.

Regards,

Philip

[Adrian Roberts]

Sorry, can't help, but this book is at the top of my wish-list.

He died in 1931, so it would be published in the 20's

Adrian

[michaeldr]

The selected bibliography in Brad King’s ‘Royal Naval Air Service 1902 – 1918’

gives the foll;

Samson, Air Commodore C. R., CMG, DSO, AFC, RAF: Fights and Flights.

Earnest Benn Ltd.1933

This late publishing date may also account for why, apparently, H. A. Jones did not make use of it when preparing ‘The War in The Air, Vol.II’ which was published 1928

There are a couple of quotes in King’s book which you have probably seen before,

But just in case

The Turks opened up and

“…the sea was literally whipped into a foam by the hail of bullets and small shells.”

Re the lighters and River Clyde

“I saw one gallant deed, which impressed itself on my memory. A Naval steamboat came in right-up close to the beach in the face of terrible fire and towed-off a cutter which was full of dead and wounded. They did the job as neatly as if they had been taking liberty men off in peacetime.”

Back at Tenedos he told others that for 50 yards from the beach the sea was

“absolutely red with blood, a horrible sight to see.”

I join your hope that someone else can supply more from Samson

Regards

Michael D.R.

[MikeW]

There are currently eight copies listed at www.abebooks.com, most of them reasonably priced - suggest you hurry!

[per ardua per mare per terram]

It was reprinted by the Battery Press Inc in the 1990s, as well as abebooks, you can get it from amazon.com, (the publisher's price is $34.95 plus postage) but not amazon.co.uk. Amazon.com also lists ‘A flight from Cairo to Cape Town and back,’ by Charles Rumney Samson but no copies are available, it doesn’t seem to have been reprinted since the 1930s. I'm guessing that one is serious money!

[oak]

Gentlemen,

Please excuse the delay in getting back to you. Many thanks for the information. I'm going to try to get my own copy of Samson's book.

Regards,

Philip