Got my second kill tonight, although I also got stiffed out of yet another victory due to lack of witnesses.
We had a mission to patrol behind the enemy lines near one of their airfields and most of the way there my engine suddenly started to cough and splutter and sound rough and I lost some power. We were a long way behind enemy lines, so I decided to turn west and head home, so I’d have a chance of gliding back to our territory if the engine gave out.
Right at this moment the Squadron Leader winged over and led everyone in a dive onto a flight of Albatros DIII which made me feel sick, as I wouldn’t get to be part of it. So I decided to risk the engine, banked over and dived into the fight.
I hooked onto an enemy DIII who was in a very gentle turn across me which allowed me to put a very long burst into him. I don’t know if it seriously wounded the pilot or if he just froze from inexperience, but he leveled out and started flying straight, so I lined up just on his five o’clock and began to angle shots into the cockpit and engine until he winged over and spiraled down to smash into the ground near his home base.
I then decided to really turn for home and ran into another DIII fighting one of our Pups. The Pup put a decent burst into him, but then the DIII pulled a tight turn to escape, except it put him right in my gunsights and a long burst sent him down too.
I then turned due west and put my Pup into a shallow dive to make sure I made it to friendly lines. As I crossed the front lines my engine gave a mighty cough and belched a big patch of oil onto the windscreen glass so I decided to not push my luck any further and just put her down in the first flat field I could find.
The second claim was rejected, but it also wasn’t given to the other Pup who was fighting the DIII, so I don’t know what happened there. But! The first claim was accepted, doubling the confirmed kills in my career, AND I got a nice box from the King with a Miliatry Cross inside!
Tradition has it that I always die on the first mission after I become an ace, or on the first mission after I get a medal, so I look forward to whatever suicide mission awaits me tomorrow.
.