Captain Le Cornu made a perfect three-point landing on his home base at Maranique, France when he returned from a chilly dawn patrol in his sector over the trenches.
It had been a dull and dismal patrol without any sight of a German.
Snowy, as he was usually known, was looking forward to his breakfast as his Camel rolled towards camouflaged hangers. He switched off the contact and closed the fuel supply.
Numb with cold, with the help of a mechanic, who had rushed towards the machine, he jumped out of the tiny cockpit onto the grass.
“The kite's still pulling a bit to the right, Wyatt. I want the lads to have another good look at it today,” he told the mechanic, taking off his flying gauntlets.
“Yes, Sir,” replied the mechanic. "We'll do that straight away,” and with two other mechanics he manoeuvred the Camel into the hanger.
Snowy walked towards the office of the intelligence officer and made his report on the dawn patrol. From there he went straight to the officer’s mess to attack his breakfast with well-deserved gusto.
Just as he was sinking his teeth into a banger, somebody tapped him on his shoulder.
“Good morning, old lad,” said a familiar voice behind him. "Any news today?"
Snowy turned around and saw his friend and cousin, Roderick Lacey, standing behind him.
“This dawn patrol was dull as ditchwater; nothing worthy of note at all,” responded Snowy soberly. “You look as though you've had a good sleep,” he observed, looking at Roderick’s longheaded face. "Why don't you draw up a chair and have a cup of coffee?”
Roderick joined him at the table and ordered coffee and hot toast from the mess servant.
“The Germans seem to be rather quiet lately,” commented Snowy.
“Maybe it's the calm before the storm,” was Roderick’s sober reaction. He looked up. “Watch out, Snowy," he said, glancing outside, "here's Colonel Allenby from Intelligence.”
They both looked through the window and saw the field officer getting out of his staff car.
“Maybe he has come to tell us that the war is over,” said Roderick hopefully.
Snowy smiled. “Somehow I don't think so, old lad,” he remarked sadly.
The mess door opened and Colonel Allenby peered inside. He saw Snowy and Roderick at once. “Ah, good," he declared. "I was hoping to find you lads here in the mess.”
Both Snowy and Roderick stood to attention and saluted when the senior officer entered the mess. The Colonel returned the salute casually. “At ease, gentlemen,” he told them in a calm voice. “I'd like you both to accompany me to Major Mullen's office straight away.”
The two airmen stood and left the mess with Colonel Allenby. They walked straight to Major Mullen's office. When they had entered the room and exchanged civilities they all sat down while Colonel Allenby started to explain the reason for his visit.
“Now the front is rather quiet, I'd like to borrow your two best pilots for a secret mission again, Major Mullen," explained the Colonel. "Unless, of course, they are unwilling to volunteer,” added the Colonel with a sly look at the two aces.
“I'm sure that Le Cornu and Lacey will be only too keen to volunteer for a secret mission, sir,” commented Major Mullen with a smile, while both Snowy and Roderick smiled wryly.
“I'm delighted to hear that," affirmed the Colonel with relief, "because this mission will be a fair distance away and it is vital for the war effort.”
“You're making us curious, Sir,” said Snowy with a frown.
“One of our spies in Germany has informed us that the Germans are developing an enormous bomber, called the Gotha X.
What we already know is that this new terror weapon can reach a higher altitude with a larger load of bombs than ever before and with an effective range of 1500 miles at least. Their regular bombers are already becoming a nuisance over London so God help us when they manage to get this new machine into production.”
“Where can we find this bomber plant, Sir?” enquired Snowy.
“We don't know the exact location but our spy saw the Gotha X flying over the part of Germany called East-Friesia. That's a lonely part of northern Germany along the coastline between the borders of Holland and Denmark. It's ideal for a secret manufacturing base.”
“Can’t we just drop a load of Cooper bombs, Sir?” suggested Roderick.
“I've told you already that we don't know the exact whereabouts of the plant and our bombers have a limited radius of action for this sortie,” explained the Colonel with a worried voice. "It needs a special mission."
“Do you have a plan Colonel?” asked Snowy, although he had a shrewd suspicion what the answer would be.
The Colonel nodded. “I've been giving the matter some thought. You chaps will go back to England and travel by train to Scotland, where you will board a vessel to take you to the naval base at Scapa Flow. There you'll find a new sea-going aircraft carrier waiting for you. As soon as you both arrive the aircraft carrier will set sail with an escort towards the German Bight in the North Sea. That's where you'll start your mission. Using two planes you’ll take off for Germany. As I already told you, the northern part of Germany is rather desolate and you should find plenty of places where you can land the planes, although the area is wooded. I should imagine it would not be too difficult to find a remote part where you’ll be able to land the planes and hide them. I reckon that you both, with your experience of this kind of work, ought to be able to operate from there secretly for a while. It will be vitally important for you to make an appointment for a rendezvous with the Navy again but I will leave that to you.
"Bear in mind," warned the Colonel, "that there is always the chance that the Navy will not be able to return to the rendezvous, due to enemy action. In that case, how to return to England or France will be entirely up to you, but remember that destroying the Gotha X has the highest priority. If you chaps manage to destroy the bomber the Germans will be put behind schedule for months and might not be able to finish a new bomber before we can win the war. Well chaps, what do you say?”
Snowy coughed. “I think I can speak for both of us, Sir," he responded with a glance at Roderick who nodded imperceptibly. "You know you can count on us.”
“Well done lads. I knew I could count on you.”
“What sort of planes is the carrier equipped with, Sir?” Snowy wanted to know.
“According to my information, the carrier is equipped with three Bristol Sea Fighter-bombers and four Sea Camels,” replied the Colonel.
“What are we waiting for, then?” ejaculated Roderick. “Tally Ho!”
Two days later after having endured a long and uncomfortable train journey, Snowy and Roderick arrived in the city of Thurso in Scotland. They embarked on a naval vessel bound for Scapa Flow. When they arrived, they boarded the aircraft carrier, which was in fact a converted merchant ship, the HMS Auskerry.
They reported to the commanding officer, Captain Wilson, and the ship was immediately ordered under steam. Only a few hours later the carrier, accompanied by four destroyers, left the harbour and set sail for the German Bight in the North Sea.
Snowy and Roderick were introduced to the commander of the small carrier squadron, Lieutenant Miller. After dinner he talked Snowy and Roderick through the technicalities of landing and taking off an aircraft from a carrier at sea. There was no time for practising and both Snowy and Roderick knew they would have to rely on their past flying experience.
Snowy and Roderick would have to take the Bristol Sea Fighters which had been chosen for this task, loaded with bombs and other equipment, off the deck successfully at their first attempt. The same would apply to the landing on the small flight deck on their return, but they pushed that thought to the back of their minds; they would worry about that when the time came.
A new and interesting development was the issue of parachutes to both Snowy and Roderick, with the instructions that if they could not land the Bristol Sea Fighters they could use them to jump into the sea where they could be picked up by boats sent out from the carrier. Neither Snowy nor Roderick fancied the idea of jumping into the North Sea and both of them hoped it would not be necessary and the landing would go well.
The rendezvous with the carrier was made; the ship would return to the exact same co-ordinates from where they had taken off in precisely seven days' time. In the event that they did not appear on that date, it was arranged that the carrier would wait for twenty-four hours. If they had not appeared by that time, the carrier would return to Scapa Flow and Snowy and Roderick, if they were still alive and free, would have to make their way back home on their own.
The squadron reached their objective, some 120 miles from the German coastline, unnoticed, at dawn the following day. At first light, Snowy and Roderick were due to take off in their loaded Bristol fighters. At last the time came for them to climb into their cockpits. Both planes' engines were already warm and after some last minute final instructions from Miller they started up. The carrier turned its bow into wind and they received the take off signal.
Snowy, sitting in the first Bristol, waved to the sailors and opened the throttle full, concentrating on the take-off. The chocks were dragged away and the Bristol, now free to use its full power, shot forward.
“My God,” thought Snowy as he accelerated, “this runway is very short.”
He heard the wheels rumbling, then when he reached the end of the deck, the rumble stopped and the Bristol sank towards the sea. Snowy managed to bring the Bristol up to level flight again and after a few seconds, which seemed like minutes to him, the air-screw had enough grip as it thrashed the air and the Bristol began to climb out to the altitude Snowy wanted. He looked over his shoulder and saw Roderick taking off in almost the same way he had.
Roderick climbed towards Snowy' altitude and when he reached it Snowy waved and they both turned in the direction of Germany. Following their plan, they climbed towards the Bristol's maximum altitude and just over an hour later the Friesian Islands came into sight. At an altitude of 11000 feet it was bitterly cold in their cockpits. They passed through several clouds and snow showers. Finally Snowy waved at Roderick as agreed and they throttled back in order to glide past the Islands and the German coastline.
The clouds were getting thicker as they approached the German coast. Finally they flew into clear air and discovered that they were flying over land. Now they had to fly as low as possible in order to stay unnoticed.
Reducing their altitude to 200ft they continued on their way. The country was monotonous,
the landscape consisting mostly of barren land interspersed with wooded areas. The colour of the landscape was sallow; it looked as if it had been badly washed. Snowy thought this part of the country was very depressing. Once, in the distance, they spotted a farm but they avoided it without difficulty. Finally Snowy saw a piece of land where they could touch down. Next to the landing field was a forest where they could hide the aircraft.
Snowy signalled Roderick and they circled the chosen field but saw no obstacles or sign of the enemy. Snowy landed first and climbed out of the cockpit. Roderick followed and Snowy walked towards him.
“Is the coffee ready?” he shouted facetiously after he had switched off his engine.
“Let's get the aeroplanes hidden in the wood first, old lad,” suggested Snowy crisply. “This isn't a picnic, you know; we're in enemy territory.”
Both the Bristol fighters were pushed into the trees and camouflaged with a covering of branches.
“If you get the coffee on, I’ll have a quick look around the forest,” said Snowy.
“Alright," agreed Roderick. "Give my love to the deer,” he added sarcastically.
Snowy disappeared into the forest leaving Roderick behind to make the coffee.
Five minutes later Snowy was back.
“I've found us a nice place to stay, old lad,” he said with smile. “No need for us to sleep in a tent. In the wood, near a little brook, I found a wooden shed, like a cabin. It seems to be used for hunting or fishing parties or some such.”
“That sounds cosy, Snowy,” observed Roderick, pouring them both a cup of coffee.
When they had finished drinking they both walked to the hut, which Snowy had discovered.
Inside it looked as if it had been abandoned for years. Everything was covered under a thick layer of black sand.
In the middle of the basic dwelling was a small plain table with a wooden bench each side. Over the table hung an oil lamp.
“Well, that's a bit of good luck, old boy,” ejaculated Roderick. “There's even a fireplace.”
“Just rely on me, Roderick,” said Snowy with a smile. “Let's get our gear out of the aircraft and make this hut warm and cosy.
An hour later the spare petrol had been hidden in the wood and their gear was stowed in the hut.
Roderick prepared some lunch on the Primus while Snowy lit the fire with some firewood from the abundant supply outside the hut.
“Aren’t you afraid someone might spot the smoke from the chimney, Snowy?” asked Roderick, a bit concerned.
“The smoke is dispersed before it reaches the top of the trees,” Snowy reassured him. “I don’t think we need worry.”
Quietly they ate their lunch while the hut became more and more comfortable in the heat from the fireplace. When lunch was finished, Snowy proposed making a reconnaissance flight to have a closer look at the surrounding area in the hope of either finding the manufacturing plant or catching a glimpse of the Gotha.
“Let's make our beds in those bunks first," suggested Roderick, ever practical. "That way we can go straight to bed when we get back after we've finished our dinner tonight.” Snowy agreed.
It was the work of a moment to make themselves a comfortable place to sleep with the straw that was heaped in the corner.
About one o'clock they shrugged on their flying suits and walked out to one of the parked Bristol’s in the wood. They took away the camouflage and pushed the aircraft onto the field after checking the surrounding area carefully through a pair of binoculars.
“I don't understand it. This area is completely abandoned,” commented Roderick. "You'd think there'd be somebody around, if only to farm it."
“ I think it was once a swamp,” responded Snowy. "The land's probably too poor for anybody to scratch a living."
Snowy jumped into the cockpit and prepared to start the engine while Roderick stood ready to swing the propeller after Snowy had made contact. The engine started easily and Roderick jumped into the observer’s seat. The Bristol, now without its heavy load, took off easily.
After noting some landmarks Snowy turned the nose of the Bristol to start their reconnaissance flight.
Flying in increasingly larger circles at an altitude between 500 and 1000ft, they stayed airborne for about an hour. Then Snowy decided to return to the hut, as the reconnaissance flight had proved unsuccessful. The whole area they had covered with their reconnaissance flight showed no signs of life or habitation.
After Snowy had landed they pushed the plane into the forest again and put the camouflage branches back. Then they filled up the tanks of both Bristol’s with the spare fuel and left for the hut.
Snowy re-lit the fire in the grate when they returned and pulled out a map of Germany in order to check the surroundings again by the light of the oil lamp, ready for their next reconnaissance the following day. Later that afternoon Roderick prepared dinner from the emergency rations.
Afterwards they wanted to take a walk but it was so dark it was impossible to see their hands in front of their faces. Giving up that idea, they sat around until they got so bored they turned into their bunks for an early night.
They slept well, with no disturbances during the night and at around 7 o'clock in the morning Snowy got up. He went to the fireplace, poked the fire into life and put some new wood on it. He was just about to wake up Roderick when he heard a vague hum in the distance. Swiftly he walked to the door and opened it. The hum was much louder now and Snowy recognised the sound; it was a multi-engined aeroplane. Turning precipitately he rushed inside the hut and woke up Roderick roughly.
“Get up Roderick!" he shouted urgently. "There's a multi-engined Hun plane in the air not far away; you know what that means.”
“What’s the rush, Snowy?” asked Roderick in a sleepy voice, struggling to wake up.
“Get into your flying gear and come with me,” ordered Snowy. “This might be our only chance to meet up with the giant Gotha.”
Roderick and Snowy quickly donned their flying gear and rushed out of the hut towards the Bristles.
“Get your parachute from the other Bristol,” ordered Snowy. “You might need it if we discover the secret plant."
When they reached the Bristol they quickly removed the branches and pushed the kite into the field. While Roderick collected his parachute Snowy' eyes searched the skies for the Hun plane. Finally he spotted a dot in the distance, but it was so far away he could not determine whether it was the Gotha or just another large aeroplane.
Roderick came over to him as he was strapping on his parachute. Snowy jumped energetically into the cockpit, leaving Roderick to swing the propeller after Snowy had made contact. Encumbered with his parachute, Roderick swung himself clumsily into the observer’s seat. Eventually the engine was warm and when Snowy gave it full throttle the Bristol became airborne moments later.
Snowy turned in the direction where he had last seen the Hun plane while they both scanned the skies to pick up their target. A few minutes later Roderick discovered a dot and tapped Snowy on his shoulder and pointed.
The Hun plane must have changed course.
Snowy put up his thumb when he saw the speck on the horizon and altered his course towards it but it soon became clear that the Bristol could not match the enemy plane which could fly at a higher altitude, beyond the capabilities of the Bristol.
Snowy decided to maintain his altitude and follow the Hun plane from a distance. Scarcely a few minutes later they saw the Hun plane beginning to descend. From long experience, Snowy' trained eyes spotted some buildings in the distance. The Hun plane seemed to be heading straight for them.
“This is our lucky day,” he thought. “We have found the secret plant at last.”
Now fast approaching the buildings, Snowy had to take action in order not to be discovered by either the Huns in the plane or those waiting for it on the ground.
Meanwhile Roderick was taking a close look at the Hun bomber with his binoculars. The huge size of the four-engined bomber impressed him considerably. He observed at least four gun positions on the plane; one in the nose, one on either side of the wings on top of the inner engines and one on the back of the fuselage. Luckily for them, the gun positions were not manned.
Being so intent on examining the Hun plane they were suddenly startled when a line of tracer bullets appeared in front of the Bristol. There was no way Snowy could take evasive action. He flew straight into the tracer. The Bristol received several hits from the bullets. Almost immediately the engine gave a big bang. Snowy cut off the fuel supply at once and looked around to see what had caused their misfortune. A sleek dark green Fokker D VII swept past them at rapid speed.
There was no more time to look at the Fokker. Smoke was belching out of the Bristol’s engine and
Snowy knew that the Bristol was lost. With a dead engine he tried to stretch the glide to reach a small open field.
“What a time to have this happen to me,” he murmured angrily to himself.
With more luck than judgement he managed to make a rough landing on the field, but the Bristol ended up on its nose in a small ditch.
Quickly he struggled out of the cockpit, dreading the airman's bane - fire.
“Come on, Roderick. Hurry up! Get out of the machine!” he shouted.
There was no reaction from the observer’s seat and Snowy, fearful of what he might see, climbed into the observer’s seat.
“Roderick,” he shouted. “Are you alright?”
The seat was empty. While he was looking with astonishment at the abandoned cockpit, to his surprise he heard, “I'm quite alright, old boy,” from somewhere above his head.
He looked up and saw Roderick descending to the ground on his parachute. Roderick landed with a thud.
“Great stuff, those parachutes,” observed Roderick, fortunately unhurt by the precipitate landing, undoing his harness.
The rest of his words were drowned as the Fokker passed overhead with a mighty roar.
“We have to get into the forest Roderick,” shouted Snowy. “This place will be crawling with Huns in a few minutes.”
Again the Fokker swept over the scene and the pilot waved at them. Snowy and Roderick returned the greeting and walked over to the wreckage of the Bristol. Roderick retrieved his binoculars while Snowy was opening the fuel tap. Roderick stood well clear as with a click of his lighter Snowy set the Bristol ablaze. The aircraft went up with a "whump!" that singed Snowy' eyebrows.
Quickly they moved away from the burning aeroplane.
“I must have a look at that secret plant before we disappear into the wood,” muttered Snowy.
He took the binoculars from Roderick and searched the area till he found the complex, which was about three miles away.
“So that's their secret test plant,” he murmured to Roderick. “Next time we come back here we'll teach them a lesson.”
“Well up until now it looks as though it's the Huns teaching us a lesson, old boy,” was Roderick’s sour reaction.
“All in good time,” said Snowy reassuringly to his pal. “Let’s go now,” he continued. “I can see some German soldiers on horseback in the distance. They seem to be heading this way,”
Quickly they made their way into the forest and vanished out of sight.
With the aid of his pocket compass, Roderick was able to set a course for the hut, but it took them more than six hours to get back. Once they had to take cover because of the Fokker, which was flying over their track at low level.
Dead tired and ravenously hungry from marching on an empty stomach, they attacked the rations as soon as they arrived and lay down on their bunks for a while to give their aching feet a rest. When they had recuperated from their unaccustomed exertions, they prepared themselves a proper hot meal for tea and they made their plans for the next morning.
“How are you thinking of destroying the Hun bomber?” asked Roderick over a cup of tea.
“I'm not quite sure yet,” answered Snowy. “We either have to destroy the bomber on the ground or get in the air when it's taking off or landing. The Bristol's capabilities are far too poor to enable us to shoot it down at high altitude. Besides, we have to take care of that blasted Fokker D VII. I'm sure he's guarding the area to get rid of inquisitive intruders. I’m not going to give him another opportunity to have my remaining Bristol in his sights. We'd better wait until tomorrow morning and then hopefully we'll be able to find out more. Let’s go to the Bristol and fill the racks with Cooper bombs.”
They left the hut and fitted six Cooper bombs onto the racks underneath the fighter's wings. After a thorough check of the machineguns they returned to the hut. That evening everything was quiet and peaceful. At 11 o'clock they turned in and were soon asleep in their bunk beds.
Roderick was the first to wake up that night. He estimated it must have been around 2 o'clock in the morning. In the distance he heard the throbbing sound of a large multi-engined plane. Quickly he woke up Snowy and they both went outside the hut.
“That’s the Gotha bomber, I'm sure,” stated Snowy sleepily. “I recognise the sound of the engines. Well, there's no point in our trying to find him now," he continued. "I'm quite sure it's on a night mission exercise. When it returns to its base early in the morning, he'll find us there waiting for him at dawn,” said Snowy grimly.
“Do you think we shall have to shoot him down?” asked Roderick.
“If I get the chance I will, but we may have to destroy him on the ground. I reckon that large tent is being used as a hangar.”
“Haven’t you forgotten the Fokker, old boy?” queried Roderick.
“No, Roderick," replied Snowy. "I've no doubt the Fokker will be on the ground too after the Gotha is back at base.”
They returned to the hut.
“What’s for breakfast today?” Snowy wanted to know.
“The same as yesterday," Roderick told him, "biscuits and bully beef.”
Snowy smiled sarcastically. “Well, let's have a picnic then before we deal the Huns the final blow.”
They returned to their bunks but sleep eluded them. Finally they got up and Roderick prepared their mundane breakfast, accompanying it with lashings of hot coffee.
Around 6 o'clock they put on their flying suits and walked towards the remaining Bristol Fighter. The kite was pushed into the field and Roderick set the detonators on the Cooper bombs.
“Now all we have to do is wait for the sound of the returning Gotha,” observed Snowy, grimly determined.
“Then we'll blow it out of the sky - or destroy it on the ground,” confirmed Roderick, just as determined.
They waited in silence for a while. Finally, after Snowy had smoked several cigarettes dawn started to break.
“Here she comes,” gasped Roderick excitedly.
“Yes, it's definitely the Gotha,” agreed Snowy. “Tally Ho, Roderick.”
Snowy climbed into the cockpit while Roderick went to the propeller.
“Contact,” shouted Snowy and Roderick pulled the propeller down.
The engine coughed once but started the second time without a problem. Roderick, now equipped with Snowy parachute, climbed as fast as he could into the observer’s seat. As the first light was washing over the landscape, the Bristol raced over the field and became airborne.
Snowy, knowing the direction, kept his altitude low. Ten minutes later the secret base came into sight.
Snowy smiled when he saw that the Gotha had just landed and was parked in front of the entrance of the large hangar. Besides the huge bomber he could see the Fokker D VII but unfortunately in the air, not on the ground.
The Fokker, flying at about 5000ft, was guarding the base like yesterday. Snowy warned Roderick with a gesture toward the fighter.
Roderick gave him the thumbs up. He fixed his double Lewis machineguns and turned them in the direction of the Fokker.
Snowy weighed up his chances of success and made his decision; he would attack the Gotha with the Cooper bombs first and then deal with the Fokker. Accordingly, he put the nose of the Bristol down and aimed it at the now fast approaching target. The wind was howling through the wires.
The attacking Bristol was about a thousand feet away when it was spotted. Immediately a machinegun started firing. Snowy could see tracer bullets heading towards the Bristol and kicked the rudder pedal to take the machine out of the line of fire. Steadily he maintained his course towards the Gotha, which was trying to escape its fate by turning round and taking off again.
Even as he was trying to destroy it, Snowy could not help thinking what a big, beautiful machine it was. 'What a pity,' he thought, as he brought his sights to bear. 'Such a waste to destroy a magnificent aeronautical achievement like that.'
But war is war and there was no time for sentiment, he mused. As the Gotha came into range of his machinegun, Snowy opened fire and gave it a long burst of tracer bullets.
Snowy could see the bullets hitting the giant plane and soon one of the engines caught fire, trailing dark clouds of smoke. Finally Snowy pulled the release handle and the six Cooper bombs fell away.
Seconds later, the Bristol was momentarily tossed like an autumn leaf, completely out of control because of the pressure wave caused by the bomb blast.
Snowy and Roderick were rattled around in their cockpits like peas in a can.
There was no time to look at the ground and find out what had happened to the Gotha; the Fokker DVII was already diving steeply on the tail of the Bristol.
Snowy, having regained control of the Bristol, pushed the throttles wide open and pulled the stick into his stomach. Simultaneously, Roderick’s pair of Lewis machineguns started firing continuous staccato bursts behind him.
As soon as the first tracer bullets from the German fighter approached his aircraft, Snowy kicked on full right rudder and saw the deadly stream pass safely to the side.
With the instinct born of hard won experience, Snowy knew that the Fokker would pass him on his port side, so he kicked the left pedal and pulled the trigger of his machinegun. The Fokker had the advantage of more speed, but the pilot was no match for Snowy. The German fighter flew through straight through his line of fire. Black smoke appeared and the Fokker swiftly started to lose speed.
Snowy stopped firing, knowing that the fate of the enemy had been sealed.
The combat over, Snowy became aware that several machineguns were firing at his Bristol and he called on all his expertise to avoid the bullets from the angry Huns. Angry they had good cause to be, he reflected. In the middle of the field lay the smoking remains of the Gotha X. A long period of research and development had been destroyed along with the prototype.
Once out of reach of the German machineguns, Snowy turned to Roderick. When their eyes met he smiled grimly and gave the thumbs up. Roderick returned the gesture with a nod of satisfaction.
Snowy maintained the wrong course for a while to fool the Germans but once out of sight he turned the nose of the Bristol in the direction of the landing field and their secret hideout.
They arrived back undetected and landed safely. After the Bristol had been carefully camouflaged in the forest they returned to their hut. The rest of the week was dull and unexciting. They spent it making sure the aircraft was ready. They refilled the Bristol’s tank with fuel, topped up the oil and checked the machine for damage. The few bullet holes they found were quickly mended.
A few times that week hearing the sound of several planes startled them. Albatross and Fokker scouts were patrolling the skies in the area, apparently making a thorough search. The Bristol, well hidden in the trees, went unnoticed.
Finally the day of the rendezvous arrived. At dawn the Bristol was started and a moment later airborne. At a reasonable height they passed the coastline not caring if they were discovered or not but no enemy planes were sighted during the crossing nor were any guns fired at them.
The rendezvous was the most important thing on Snowy mind. Finally they reached the appointed spot, but to their consternation, they saw they had arrived in the middle of a sea battle. Two German destroyers were engaging HMS Auskerry and her escort.
The carrier was being protected by a smoke screen laid from a British destroyer and trying to escape the German guns. Another British Destroyer was burning, probably hit by a German shell, but still under way. A Bristol Sea Fighter took off from the carrier a Bristol Sea Fighter. As soon as it was airborne it flew straight for the attacking German destroyers. Slung underneath the fuselage it carried a large torpedo.
Snowy circled the carrier before descending toward the tiny small deck he had to land on. When he was making his final approach he suddenly remembered Lieutenant Miller’s instructions and released the hook on the tail of the aircraft.
“What a clumsy contraption,” he thought.
When he approached the deck he felt a cold hand clutch at his heart. The deck seemed to grow no larger as he got nearer. Moreover four Sea Camels occupied part of the area.
The carrier was rolling, pounded by the rough sea the carrier rolled and Snowy overshot at his first attempt. He hit the deck with his wheels but bumped back into the air, the hook failing to catch.
He applied full throttle and circled again, trying a slightly different approach position. This time he was luckier and the hook did catch the rope on the deck. The Bristol came to an abrupt halt. Relieved, Snowy switched off the fuel supply and cut the magnetos. The aircraft was quickly was pushed away by the deck crew.
“Welcome aboard, Sir,” greeted a crewmember who was at hand to help him out of the cockpit.
Two large fountains of water spurted off the starboard bow as a shell hit the sea.
“Can we be of some help?” Snowy shouted to an Officer.
“Have you ever dropped a torpedo?” the officer asked.
“No,” replied Snowy. “But there's a first time for everything.”
The Naval Officer ordered the crew to fit a torpedo on the Bristol.
The Officer briefed Snowy on the procedure for making a torpedo attack and moments later Snowy and Roderick were airborne again.
The Bristol, now with a torpedo beneath its fuselage, headed towards a German destroyer, which was firing a broadside at its opponents.
Flying low, on a steady course, Snowy approached the destroyer but the lookout was alert and the destroyer heeled quickly over to starboard, releasing a smoke screen to blind the approaching Bristol.
Although not equipped with anti aircraft guns, the destroyer was able to make things hot for the Bristol in this cat and mouse game.
At least Snowy had the satisfaction of knowing that his actions with the Bristol were drawing attention away from the carrier as the destroyer changed from attack to defence.
At length the other German destroyer, which was being attacked by the carrier's Sea Bristol, got in the way of the destroyer being attacked by Snowy. At once he saw his opportunity and launched the torpedo. As he turned away from the destroyer, he heard a loud explosion. Looking back over his right shoulder he saw an immense tongue of fire cutting the destroyer in two.
Snowy returned and with the benefit of his first experience made a safe landing on the carrier.
The other German destroyer left the scene at high speed, leaving a cloud of black smoke behind to mark its passage. The small British fleet turned for home. That night there was a celebration in the Officers mess and Snowy and Roderick were feted as heroes of the Royal Navy.
The ships arrived safe and sound at Scapa Flow and Snowy and Roderick disembarked immediately.
At Naval Headquarters they were able to contact Colonel Allenby and let him know by telephone about the destruction of the Gotha X.
The Colonel was very pleased and ordered them to make a full report at their own convenience. As a reward for a job well done, they both received a week's leave, which they spent relaxing on Roderick's father's estate.
