Primary tabs
Transcription
[Page 57]
time the last of the Turkish V11th and V111th Armies had been collected. On the 25th the Desert Mounted Corps were ordered to advance on DAMASCUS occupy the City and intercept the retreat of the remnants of the Turkish Army. The corps was to advance on DAMASCUS in two columns, one of the South end of the Sea of GALLILEE via IRBID and DERAA, and the other around the Northern end of the sea via KUNEITRA. At the latter place enemy aircraft appeared and dropped a few bombs but no damage resulted. As soon as the enemy machines were reported, two of our machines – Pilots:- Lieuts. A.V. Tonkin and S.A. Nunan, Observers:- Lieuts. M.D. Lees and F.C. Conrick – proceeded to KUNEITRA where they landed alongside the Australian Light Horse and 'stood by'. The following morning an enemy machine came over flying at about 15,000 feet but as soon as our machines were observed to take off, the enemy machine headed back into his own territory, and was not seen again. On the 28th. Our cavalry occupied DERAA, and on the night of 30th were on the outskirts of DAMASCUS, entering the city the following morning.
On the 27th British machines appeared over DAMASCUS for the first time. An aerodrome was located there and this was bombed and machine gunned by four Bristol Fighters the following day. 22 cwt. of explosives were dropped, and several direct hits on buildings obtained.
Owing to the hindrances resulting from the frequent aerial attacks made upon them, the destruction of their transport with bombs, and the obstruction of the railway caused by bombs and other demolitions, a very small portion of the IVth Army succeeded in getting through DERAA to DAMASCUS before our occupation. The result was that practically the entire Army were taken prisoners.
In order to keep in close co-operation with our rapidly advancing armies an aerodrome was selected at NAIFA, the foot of MOUNT CARMEL. 'C' Flight moved forward on to this ground on the 26th and the whole Squadron were established there about a week later.
OCTOBER: With the remnants of the Turkish Armies now scattered over all parts of SYRIA, the work of reconnaissance became increasingly arduous. Our machines, which for some time had been the only air-craft in touch with the enemy, were called upon to cover an exceptionally wide area of country, embracing RAYAK, DAMASCUS, HOMS, BIERUT, TRIPOLI, HAMA, ALEPPO, MUSHALE, KILLIS, and ALEXANDRETTA. All these places were reconnoitred during the month, a task that meant flights over great distances, rendered possible only by the use of various A.R. Brown D.F.C. was detached to HOMS on the 15th and a little later it went on to HAMA. From there an officer and Mechanics were sent out and established advanced landing grounds at various points as far North as MUSLIMIE.
One of these reconnaissances – to MUSHALE, 24 miles North of ALEPPO – carried out by Major S.W. Addison (pilot) and Lieut. F.C. Hawley (observer) escorted by Capt. R.M. Smith M.C., D.F.C. (pilot) and Lieut. W.J.A. Weir, D.F.C. (observer), necessitated a flight of 640 miles, in the course of which landings had to be made at three advanced landing grounds. The object of this reconnaissance was to co-operate with a Squadron of armoured cars that were attacking ALEPPO, and to prevent enemy aircraft from discovering the weakness of our force. Numerous other reconnaissances at this stage involved flights of between 300 and 500 miles. Moreover, they took our machines over the LEBANON Mountains where severe storms were often encountered. These mountains soar up to a height of 10,000 feet and at this time they were snow-covered. In one case a machine was flown about 100 miles off its course, and the pilot (Lieut. Hazelwood), after racing ahead of a terrific storm, eventually succeeded in landing close to the village of TADMORE, about 20 miles East of HOMS, the nearest point in our line of communication. In other instances our machines, after 'pushing' into the teeth of such storms, exhausted their petrol supply and had to come down in the hills, crashing badly in two cases.