I succeeded in carrying a battle through to complete victory Sunday
morning. I was ordered to protect Lieutenant P., who was out
range-finding, from enemy 'planes. We were just on our way to the
front, when I saw a French monoplane, at a greater height, coming
toward us. As the higher 'plane has the advantage, we turned away; he
didn't see us, but flew on over our lines. We were very glad, because
lately the French hate to fly over our lines. When over our ground the
enemy cannot escape by volplaning to the earth. As soon as he had
passed us we took up the pursuit. Still he flew very rapidly, and it
took us half an hour till we caught up with him at V. As it seems, he
did not see us till late. Close to V. we started to attack him, I
always heading him off. As soon as we were close enough my observer
started to pepper him with the machine gun. He defended himself as
well as he could, but we were always the aggressor, he having to
protect himself. Luckily, we were faster than he, so he could not flee
from us by turning. We were higher and faster; he below us and slower,
so that he could not escape. By all kinds of manoeuvers he tried to
increase the distance between us; without success, for I was always
close on him. It was glorious. I always stuck to him so that my
observer could fire at close range. We could plainly see everything on
our opponent's monoplane, almost every wire, in fact. The average
distance between us was a hundred meters; often we were within thirty
meters, for at such high speeds you cannot expect success unless you
get very close together. The whole fight lasted about twenty or
twenty-five minutes. By sharp turns, on the part of our opponent, by
jamming of the action on our machine gun, or because of reloading,
there were little gaps in the firing, which I used to close in on the
enemy. Our superiority showed up more and more; at the end I felt just
as if the Frenchman had given up defending himself and lost all hope
of escape. Shortly before he fell, he made a motion with his hand, as
if to say: let us go; we are conquered; we surrender. But what can
you do in such a case, in the air? Then he started to volplane; I
followed. My observer fired thirty or forty more shots at him; then
suddenly he disappeared. In order not to lose him, I planed down, my
machine almost vertical. Suddenly my observer cried, "He is falling;
he is falling," and he clapped me on the back joyously. I did not
believe it at first, for with these monoplanes it is possible to glide
so steeply as to appear to be falling. I looked all over, surprised,
but saw nothing. Then I glided to earth and W. told me that the enemy
machine had suddenly turned over and fallen straight down into the
woods below. We descended to a height of a hundred meters and searched
for ten minutes, flying above the woods, but seeing nothing. So we
decided to land in a meadow near the woods and search on foot.
Soldiers and civilians were running toward the woods from all sides.
They said that the French machine had fallen straight down from a
great height, turned over twice, and disappeared in the trees. This
news was good for us, and it was confirmed by a bicyclist, who had
already seen the fallen machine and said both passengers were dead.
We hurried to get to the spot. On the way Captain W., of the cavalry,
told me that everyone within sight had taken part in the fight, even
if only from below. Everyone was very excited, because none knew which
was the German and which the French, due to the great height. When we
arrived we found officers, doctors and soldiers already there. The
machine had fallen from a height of about 1,800 meters. Since both
passengers were strapped in, they had not fallen out. The machine
had fallen through the trees with tremendous force, both pilot and
observer, of course, being dead. The doctors, who examined them at
once, could not help them any more. The pilot had seven bullet wounds,
the observer three. I am sure both were dead before they fell. We
found several important papers and other matter on them. In the
afternoon my observer, W., and I flew back to D., after a few rounds
of triumph above the village and the fallen airplane. On the following
day, the two aviators were buried with full military honors in the
cemetery at M. Yesterday we were there. The grave is covered with
flowers and at the spot where they fell there is a large red, white
and blue bouquet and many other flowers.
I was very glad that my observer, W., got the Iron Cross. He fought
excellently; in all, he fired three hundred and eighty shots, and
twenty-seven of them hit the enemy airplane.