The Air Battle over Mesopotamia as told in the Kriegs-Chronik der Leipziger Neuesten Nachrichten

January 1915 - December 1915

1.Oktober 1915. Ein feindliches Flugzeug wurde durch unser Feuer beschädigt und heruntergeschossen. 1.October 1915. A hostile airplane was damaged and down-shot by our fire.

This is possibly a seaplane which was one of two operational seaplanes in the opening of the Kut campaign on the 27th of September which was forced to descend with engine trouble. Neither seaplane was able to ascend again on the 27th due to strong winds.

17.November 1915. An der Front im Irak schossen wir ein zweites feindliches Flugzeug ab und erbeuteten es unversehrt. ... Nach unseren Untersuchungen war das erbeutete Flugzeug ein Farmanapparat, Modell 1911, mit 100 Pferdekräften und einer Geschwindigkeit von 90 Kilometer. 17.November 1915. At the front in Iraq we shot down a second hostile airplane and captured it intact ... After our investigations, the captured airplane was an old one, model 1911, with 100 horsepower and a speed of 90 kilometers an hour.

This is possibly the Maurice Farman of Captain White and Lieutenant Yeats-Brown, who volunteered for a mission to fly beyond Baghdad and cut telephone wires on November 13th. If adverse winds sprung up neither airmen expected to return, as even in mild winds the Maurice Farman was at the very limit of it's range. Unfortunately when the pair landed 8 miles out of Baghdad, they hit a telegraph pole which badly damaged a wing. A party of Turks chased the aircraft as Yeats-Brown blew up Telegraph wires. Eventually they were caught in the airplane and roughly handled by Arabs until being turned over to Turkish Officers. Whiet was to spend the rest of the war in captivity.

24.November. Am 21.November erbeuteten wir ein drittes englisches Flugzeug, das von uns heruntergeschossen wurde. Der Führer, ein Major, war leicht verwundet und wurde gefangen genommen. 24.November. On the 21st of November we captured a third English airplane, which was shot down by us. The leader, a major, was wounded and easily imprisoned.

This is the Martinsyde S.1 (Martinsyde No.6) of Major Reilly of the Indian Flying Corps who was shot down by gunfire and taken prisoner. Reilly had spotted the large numbers of reinforcements at Ctesiphon digging in for the oncoming British attack. His report would fail to reach headquarters and Major General Townshend ordered the failed attack on Ctesiphon.

26.November 1915. Ferner erbeuteten wir dort ein viertes feindliches Flugzeug. 26.November 1915. Furthermore we captured a fourth hostile airplane there.

Possibly the Martinsyde S.1 (Martinsyde No.8) of Lieutenant Fulton of 30 Sqn RFC shot down during the retreat to Kut on the 22nd of November.

2.Dezember 1915. Von vier Flugzeugen, die wir dem Feind abgenommen haben, wurden drei wiederhergestellt und führen jetzt über den feindlichen Reihen ihre Flüge aus. 2.December 1915. By four airplanes, which we removed from the enemy, three were re-built and now fly operations over hostile lines.

Possibly taken on strength by Flieger-Abteilung No.2 which arrived in Mesopotamia around this time the end of 1915 to early 1916. FA2 had ten aircraft of which four were Pfalz Parasols.

6.Dezember 1915. Außerdem erbeuteten unsere Truppen in der Gegend von Kut-el-Amara zwei Frachtkähne. Auf dem einen derselben fanden wir zwei Flugzeuge und eine Menge Fliegergerät. Im ganzen haben wir bisher auf dieser Front sechs feindliche Flugzeuge erbeutet. 6.December 1915. Additionally our troops in the area of Kut el Amara captured two freight punts. On those punts we found two airplanes and a quantity of airplane mechanical parts. In the whole we have captured six hostile airplanes so far on this front.

The RNAS aircraft used punts as mobile aerodromes. The RNAS contingent struggled with poor serviceability and engine problems. Several of the aircraft being converted to land based aircraft due to being unsuited to river-based operations.

9.Dezember 1915. Sechs von uns erbeutete Flugzeuge sind ausgebessert worden und werden jetzt gegen den Feind benutzt. 9.December 1915. Six airplanes captured by us were fixed and are used against the enemy now.

Excerpts of reports of the Turkish Headquarter from the Source: "Kriegs-Chronik der Leipziger Neuesten Nachrichten", Band II (1915/1916), Band III (1916/1917) [ " War Chronicle of the Latest News of Leipzig ", tape II (1915/1916), tape III (1916/1917) ] courtesy of Hannes Täger.