O SAY THAT BRITISH ARMY LIEUTENANT KENNY I. DEAN WAS FASCINATED WITH AIRCRAFT WAS AN UNDERSTATEMENT. HE WAS DOING HIS BIT IN FRANCE WITH AN INFANTRY REGIMENT DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR, BUT HIS DREAM WAS TO BECOME A PILOT IN THE ROYAL FLYING CORPS.
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SOPWITH PUP. MAXIMUM SPEED NINETY-SEVEN KNOTS. EIGHTY HORSEPOWER LE RHONE ROTARY ENGINE. ONE VICKERS .303 MACHINE GUN SYNCHRONISED TO FIRE THROUGH THE PROPELLER ARC...
STORY MAC MACDONALD ART KEITH PAGE COVER KEITH PAGE
4 WHEN THE WAR HAD STARTED, THE ARMY HAD FEW MOTORISED VEHICLES SO LONDON BUSES HAD BEEN COMMANDEERED TO FERRY THE TROOPS TO THE FRONT. THEY HAD DONE SUCH A STERLING JOB THEY WERE STILL BEING USED.
THAT’S THE FUTURE... MECHANISED TRANSPORT AND AIRCRAFT. IT’S ALL CHANGING SO FAST.
HIS DESIRE TO FLY HAD BROUGHT KENNY, OR IAN IF CALLING HIM BY HIS MIDDLE NAME, FOR YET ANOTHER INTERVIEW FOR A TRANSFER TO THE R.F.C. WITH THE AFFABLE COLONEL GRAHAM MARTIN.
KEEN ON FLYING? KNOW ALL ABOUT IT? AERODYNAMICS AND ALL THAT STUFF?
YES, SIR. JUST THE MENTION OF CASTOR OIL WAFTING FROM A WARM ENGINE GIVES ME GOOSE BUMPS.
5 BUT WHEN KENNY READ THE ORDERS HE WAS HORRIFIED. GOT THE PERFECT JOB FOR YOU HERE THEN. I AM SURE IT WON’T RUFFLE YOUR FEATHERS.
A PIGEON LOFT? OFFICER IN CHARGE OF A PIGEON LOFT? ARE YOU SERIOUS, SIR?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, SIR.
THE COLONEL WAS. PIGEONS WERE PROVING THEIR WORTH ALL ALONG THE LINE BY CARRYING VITAL MESSAGES BACK AND FORTH. A NEW DEVELOPMENT HAD SEEN ONE LOFT GRAFTED ON TO AN EX-LONDON OMNIBUS, MAKING IT MOBILE.
NOT JUST ANY OLD COMMAND, LIEUTENANT. THIS ONE REPRESENTS THE FUTURE OF COMMUNICATIONS. A GREAT COUP FOR US.
I WANTED CANVAS WINGS NOT FEATHERED ONES! THIS IS NOT GOOD!
6 HIS NEW COMMAND WAS CHANGING LOCATION AT THAT VERY MOMENT. THE WOODEN-FRAMED, LIGHT AND STURDY B-TYPE LONDON GENERAL OMNIBUS COMPANY VEHICLE COULD REACH SPEEDS OF 30mph ON ITS STEEL WHEELS...
...BUT THE MUDDY AND PITTED FRENCH ROADS CALLED FOR MORE CAUTION AND LESS ACCELERATION FROM THE 32.7hp FOUR CYLINDER ENGINE. LIEUTENANT GORDON GOWRIE, ADMIN OFFICER AND KENNY’S FRIEND, COMMISERATED WITH HIS CHUM LATER AND HANDED OVER ONE OF THE MANY SWEETS HE ALWAYS SEEMED TO HAVE IN HIS TUNIC POCKETS.
LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. THIS WON’T BE SO DANGEROUS.
IT’S JUST NOT RIGHT, THOUGH. I WANT TO FLY BUT I GET TEAMED UP WITH FLUTTERING PIGEONS!
7 GORDON’S SWEET AND A QUICK TURN AT THE GREAT FRENCH GAME OF BOULES DID LITTLE TO LIFT KENNY’S SPIRITS.
IT’S TOO MUCH TO BEAR, YOU KNOW.
WELL, THE LADS YOU ARE JOINING HAVE A GOOD NAME. THEY RUN A VERY TIGHT SHIP, I HEAR.
HE DIDN’T ADD THAT THE PREVIOUS OFFICER HAD ENDED UP IN HOSPITAL BECAUSE HE WAS ALLERGIC TO PIGEONS. FORTUNATELY, SERGEANT MALCOLM SQUIRE HAD CONTINUED TO RUN THE SHOW WITH QUIET EFFICIENCY.
FIVE MORE MINUTES AND IT WILL LOOK LIKE NEW.
THE 350cc BELT-DRIVEN DOUGLAS MOTOR BIKE HE SWANNED AROUND ON WAS HIS PRIDE AND JOY. ITS TWO GEARS AND THE TWIN CYLINDER, HORIZONTALLY OPPOSED ENGINE SUITED HIM PERFECTLY.
8 CORPORAL MONTY SCOTT BACKED HIS SERGEANT UP AND COULD BE RELIED ON TO KEEP EVERYTHING QUIETLY IN ORDER. HE ALSO RECEIVED FREQUENT FOOD PARCELS FROM HOME AND THAT MADE HIM AN EVEN GREATER ASSET.
I’LL FILL IN THE MESSAGE LOG AND THEN IT WILL BE TIME TO PUT THE KETTLE ON AGAIN FOR TEA AND SCONES.
MO MORRIS, THE UNIT’S LANCE-CORPORAL, WAS THEIR PIGEON EXPERT. HE HAD KEPT RACING PIGEONS IN PEACE-TIME AND KNEW HOW TO FEED AND NURTURE THE BIRDS TO GET THE BEST OUT OF THEM.
THAT’S FINE AND DANDY, JUST THE PERFECT MIXTURE. SOME OF THE CRUMBS FROM MONTY’S MUM’S SCONES WILL ADD PROTEIN.
9 OF ALL THOSE INVOLVED, MO HAD KNOWN THE WORTH OF PIGEONS IN WARFARE ALL ALONG. LAND LINES COULD BE SNAPPED AND BROKEN BY SHELLING, BUT PIGEONS COULD BE RELIED ON TO CARRY MESSAGES FOR CONSIDERABLE DISTANCES AT AN AVERAGE SPEED OF 50mph.
WITH THIS MIX THEY CAN FLY FAST ENOUGH TO BE A VERY DIFFICULT TARGET FOR YOUR AVERAGE INFANTRYMAN.
PRIVATE DONALD CAMERON MADE UP THE TEAM. HE WAS THEIR SECOND LINK TO H.Q. ON THE TRUSTY BICYCLE HE RODE WITH GREAT DETERMINATION, HAT REVERSED TO IMPROVE AERODYNAMICS AND A PAIR OF HIS SERGEANT’S OLD MOTOR-BIKE GOGGLES TO PROTECT HIS EYES.
HE’S NEVER BEEN THE SAME SINCE HE SAW THAT TOUR DE FRANCE NEWSREEL.
10 AS DONALD SLOWED TO A HALT, THE OTHERS CHUCKLED.
THE LADS DOWN THE LINE SAY THAT HE EVEN IGNORES SHELLS LANDING CLOSE WHEN HE’S ON HIS ROUNDS.
HE ALWAYS GETS BACK JUST IN TIME FOR A BREW AS WELL.
THEY HAD TO MAKE DO WITH THEIR TIN MUGS BUT A CHINA TEA POT AND A PLATE, THE LATTER LADEN WITH GOODIES FROM MONTY’S LATEST FOOD PARCEL, ADDED A BIT OF DECORUM TO THEIR PRIMITIVE EXISTENCE. DON’T LOSE ANY OF THE CRUMBS NOW. THE PIGEONS NEED THEM.
NO PROBLEM, MO. WHEN ARE WE GETTING OUR NEW OFFICER, SARGE?
ANY TIME SOON I HEARD.