Description
Object description
Two photograph albums covering the flying training and subsequent work as an instructor in aerial gunnery of Captain John Trevor Kyffin with the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force in the UK at Fort Grange and airfields on and around Salisbury Plain during the First World War. Photographs show scenes on the airfields: aircraft including Airco DH1, BE2, Bleriot, Maurice Farman MF.7 Longhorn, Handley Page HP O/400, Morane Saulnier N, Voisin, Vickers Gunbus; also aircraft crashes; in-flight photographs of pilots; gunnery practice in the butts at Beaulieu and at the moat at Fort Grange (showing operation of disappearing targets); formal and informal group and portrait photographs of officers; wounded officers on visit to a country house, including entertainments; family photographs taken whilst on leave and when convalescing from injuries; aerial photographs covering locations in the UK including: Boscombe Down airfield in 1918, No.7 Training Squadron aircraft at Minchinhampton airfield, Stonehenge - stone circle and airfield (28 September 1918) , Lake Down airfield and Druids Lodge House (28 September 1918), Little Durnford House (28 September 1918), Salisbury - including the cathedral and railway station (28 September 1918), Old Sarum airfield (28 September 1918), RAF Upavon in 1918, also Mametz Wood (16 October 1916). A number of photographs used by Kyffin in his gunnery instruction are also part of the collection: components of a Lewis Gun magazine and pages from a handbook on the Constantinesco fire control timing gear. The collection also includes a nice group photograph of officers, most from the Berkshire Yeomanry.
Physical description
One grey card covered photograph album with black and white photographic prints glued to album pages. There are no annotations in the album. The front cover has the word 'Album' embossed in the lower right corner. Handwritten on the front cover are the words 'Grange 1.9.15.' A second album is green cloth covered with the word 'Photographs' in gold on the front cover. Photographic prints are glued into the album with annotations handwritten in ink on the pages. The front and rear covers of this album are detached and many of the pages loose. There are also 20 loose black and white photographic prints, 8 of whihc have 28th Wing Photo Section blue ink stamps on the reverse. Some of the loose prints and the large green album have mould damage.