ARCH, 1940, AND A FLIGHT OF FOUR HURRICANE Mk1s OF M THE R.A.F.’s ADVANCED AIR STRIKING FORCE, BASED IN FRANCE, WAS ON A ROUTINE PATROL NEAR THE BORDER WITH GERMANY. THIS WAS THE TIME KNOWN AS THE “PHONEY WAR”, WHEN THE R.A.F. AND LUFTWAFFE RARELY MET IN COMBAT. NO SIGN OF JERRY — SURPRISE, SURPRISE… ALL RIGHT, BLUE FLIGHT. LET’S HEAD HOME.
STORY STEVE TAYLOR ART CARLOS PINO COVER CARLOS PINO
4 FOR BRITISH AIRMEN LIKE CHARLIE HUTCHINS, A YOUNG FLYING OFFICER WITH A SQUADRON KNOWN AS “THE HORNETS”, THE LACK OF ACTION WAS A SOURCE OF FRUSTRATION. THEY HAD BEEN STATIONED IN FRANCE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR BUT HAD BARELY SEEN, LET ALONE SHOT AT, ANY GERMANS. ANY JOY TODAY, SIR?
COMPLETE WASHOUT, FLIGHT. JERRY SEEMS TO BE ASLEEP.
AT THIS EARLY STAGE IN THE WAR, R.A.F. FIGHTER PILOTS IN FRANCE WERE UNDER STRICT ORDERS NOT TO CROSS INTO GERMAN AIRSPACE — MUCH TO CHARLIE’S CHAGRIN. IF ONLY WE WERE ALLOWED TO CROSS THE FRONTIER INTO GERMANY, THEN WE’D TEACH THE HUN A LESSON.
SOMEONE NEEDS TO TELL THE BRASS THERE’S A WAR ON, BEGGING YOUR PARDON, SIR.
THE YOUNG PILOT SMILED, THAT WAS WHAT HE THOUGHT TOO.
5 LIFE AT THE BASE MAY HAVE BEEN MAINLY A DULL ROUTINE BUT IT WAS NOT WITHOUT DANGER. ONE OF CHARLIE’S SQUADRON MATES, WAS LANDING WHEN HE SUFFERED ENGINE FAILURE AT THE VERY LAST MINUTE. MITCH IS IN TROUBLE, HIS ENGINE’S CUT DEAD.
HE’S TOO LOW TO DO ANYTHING BUT SET HER DOWN.
I’VE NOT ENOUGH SPEED… I’M GOING TO HIT HARD.
MITCH!
DESPITE THE BEST EFFORTS OF THE PILOT, THE HURRICANE HAD STALLED AND SMASHED INTO THE GROUND, BURSTING INTO FLAMES AS PETROL COURSED ON TO THE HOT ENGINE. EVEN AS THEY RAN TO HELP, THE OTHER AIRMEN KNEW IT WAS HOPELESS.
6 THIS FIRST DEATH CAST A LONG SHADOW OVER THE SQUADRON BUT THE ARRIVAL OF HIS REPLACEMENT A FEW DAYS LATER CREATED A BUZZ OF EXCITEMENT AROUND THE BASE. HERE COMES THE NEW BOY. I WONDER WHAT HE’S LIKE.
HE’S GOT A REPUTATION AS A BIT OF AN ACE. FOUGHT IN SPAIN, APPARENTLY.
THE NEW PILOT WAS FLYING OFFICER TOM MASON, A VETERAN OF THE RECENT SPANISH CIVIL WAR, IN WHICH HE FOUGHT ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE AS A VOLUNTEER.
SO THERE I WAS, ON A ROUTINE PATROL…
HE’S ONLY BEEN HERE TWO HOURS AND I’VE HEARD THAT STORY THREE TIMES ALREADY.
CHARLIE HAD TAKEN AN INSTANT DISLIKE TO THE NEWCOMER, IRRITATED BY THE BOASTFUL ACCOUNTS HE GAVE THE REST OF THE SQUADRON OF HIS EXPLOITS IN SPAIN.
7 “I WAS OVER NORTHERN SPAIN IN ‘THIRTY-EIGHT. ON PATROL WITH MY WINGMAN, EDUARDO SANCHEZ, IN OUR LITTLE SOVIET POLIKARPOV I-SIXTEENS. EVERYONE CALLED THEM ‘RATAS’ AND THEY WERE GOOD LITTLE KITES BUT NOT A PATCH ON OUR HURRIS. THERE WASN’T MUCH DOING SO I CALLED EDUARDO…”
LOOKS ALL QUIET TODAY, MY FRIEND. MIGHT AS WELL HEAD BACK TO BASE.
VERY GOOD, MI AMIGO.
8 “ON THE WAY BACK TO BASE, WE SPOTTED A JUNKERS FIFTY-TWO, ONE OF THE LUFTWAFFE’S CONDOR LEGION’S BOMBERS. WE WERE ABOVE HIM SO WE DIVED. HIS GUNNER WAS BLAZING AWAY BUT WE JUST IGNORED THAT.”
“MY EYE WAS IN AND I GOT A GOOD BURST IN AT HIS PORT ENGINE. IT STARTED TO BURN AND THE JERRY PILOT STUCK HIS NOSE DOWN. THERE WASN’T MUCH POINT IN FOLLOWING HIM, HE WAS DONE FOR.”
ACHTUNG! RATAS!
WHERE D’YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING?
THAT’S ONE LESS PLANE TO DROP BOMBS ON INNOCENT CIVILIANS.
AND ANOTHER VICTORY TO YOUR TOTAL.
“WE HAD GOT CARELESS, THOUGH. HIGH ABOVE US WAS A PAIR OF ONE-OH-NINES...
9 …THEY CAME BARRELLING IN AND CLOBBERED POOR OLD SANCHEZ. HE DIDN’T STAND A CHANCE AGAINST THEIR MACHINE GUNS AND CANNONS.” NOT SO EASY DEALING WITH US AS SHOOTING DOWN A TRANSPORT, EH, SPANIARD?
ARRGGGH!
“MY REACTIONS WERE QUICKER AND THEY MISSED ME BUT I WAS STUCK. I COULDN’T TRY TO GET AWAY BECAUSE THEY WERE MUCH FASTER THAN MY POOR OLD RATA.”
TWO OF THE BEGGARS. I’VE NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE THEM ON.
10 “MY KITE WAS SLOWER THAN THE MESSERSCHMITTS BUT THE RATA COULD TURN ON A SIXPENCE AND I WAS SURE I COULD GET ON THE TAIL OF AT LEAST ONE OF THEM.”
YOU MIGHT BE FAST, NAZI, BUT LET’S SEE IF YOU CAN MATCH THIS.
“I KEPT TURNING AND IT WORKED. FOR A SPLIT-SECOND I WAS BEHIND THEM AND LET RIP. IT MUST HAVE BEEN SOME SHOT BECAUSE THE ONEOH-NINE BROKE UP AND THE BITS CLOBBERED THE OTHER ONE.” THAT’S FOR SANCHEZ.
“JUST AS WELL I KNOCKED THEM BOTH DOWN BECAUSE THAT WAS THE END OF MY AMMO.”