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    Official Documents of the Australian Flying Corps

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Combats In The Air


Squadron : Naval Squadron No.8
Type and No. of Aeroplane : Sopwith Triplane 5469
Armament : Vickers synchronized gun.
Pilot : F.S.Lt.R.A.LITTLE.
Observer : -
Locality : Between ARRAS and LENS

Date : 7th April, 1917
Time : Between 7.0 and 7.30 p.m.
Duty : Patrol.
Height : 7,000 ft - 10,000 ft.

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Remarks on Hostile Aircraft:-Type, armament, speed, etc

Halberstadt. Single-seaters.
Very fast and very quick manouvring machines.




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Narrative
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When near Arras at 7,000 ft, I observed two machines about same height as myself being fired at by A.A. I proceeded to attack one of the machines which was coloured bright red with blue wings. I noticed tracers passing between his planes and he dived away. At the same time I was attacked from the beam by machine of a similar type, but coloured green. I out-manouvred him and drove him down in a steep spiral firing all the time. From a height of about 2,000 feet I observed him fly straight into the ground, near the trenches N.E. of ARRAS. I was then attacked from above and my machine was hit in several places including the oil tank. I climbed away to 10,000 feet and returned home.








Note.
The pilot is uncertain whether he brought the machine down near ARRAS or LENS. I am of the opinion that it was S.E. of LENS, close to the trenches.



(sgd)R.A. LITTLE
F.S.Lt








G.R. Bromet
SQUADRON COMMANDER R.N.
NAVAL SQUADRON NO.8



    This victory is recorded in "Above the Trenches" as victory number 5 and Little's fiorst victory in a Sopwith Triplane. The book marks the downed aircraft as an Albatros DIII and the victory as a DESTROYED. The victory is also mentioned in Communique No.83 for the 8th of April.