Description
Object description
British cadet served at Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, GB, 1910-1914; midshipman served aboard HMS Britannia, Grand Fleet in GB coastal waters, 8/1914-4/1915; trained as balloon pilot with Royal Naval Air Service at Kite Balloon Section, Grove House, Roehampton, GB, 5/1915; trained as airship pilot at Naval Airship Section, Royal Naval Air Service Station Kingsnorth, GB, 6/1915; served with Royal Naval Air Service at Royal Naval Air Service Station Walney Island, Barrow in Furness, GB, 7/1915-10/1915; served as airship pilot aboard Submarine Scout (SS) airships at Royal Naval Air Service Station Capel, GB, 11/1915-3/1916; served aboard Airship SS.40 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Polegate in GB and on detachment with Royal Flying Corps on Western Front, 4/1916-11/1916; commanded Airship C-27 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Pulham St Mary, GB, 4/1917-8/1917; commanded Airship NS.5 and Airship R.24 at Royal Naval Air Service Station East Fortune, GB, 9/1917-11/1917; served aboard HMS Indomitable in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 11/1917-3/1918; commanded Airship R.23 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Pulham St Mary, GB, 4/1918-8/1918; commanded Airship R.80 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Walney Island, GB, 8/1918-11/1918; involved in preparations for Airship R.34 to fly across North Atlantic, 1918-1919
Content description
REEL 1 Aspects of sponsoring cadet Leonard Robinson's bombsight invention whilst attending Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, GB, 1912: negative reaction of Admiralty; method of working bombsight. Recollections of period as midshipman aboard HMS Britannia, Grand Fleet in GB coastal waters, 8/1914-4/1915: Zeppelin bombing attack on HMS Britannia at Hebburn; including effects of bombing, subsequent confused investigation and dismissal of seriousness of bombing threat to armoured ships; background to orders to report for special service to Admiralty House, London, 4/1915; meeting other selected midshipman on train journey.
REEL 2 Continues: Aspects of reporting to Admiralty House, London, GB, 4/1915: initial difficulties in seeing Admiral Sir Frederick Hamilton; meeting Admiral John Fisher and his opinions on junior officers and Horatio Nelson; reaction to news that the selected midshipmen were being drafted to fly airships; reasons for drafting of midshipmen to Royal Naval Air Service. Recollections of balloon flying training with Kite Balloon Section, Royal Naval Air Service at Grove House, Roehampton, London, 5/1915: officers' messing arrangements; Royal Naval Air Service uniform insignia; comparison of living conditions with life aboard ship; informal nature of officers' mess; pre-war balloon flying at the Hurlingham Club.
REEL 3 Continues: role of naval ratings in preparatin of balloons for flight; nature of training; inflation and attachment of basket; flying instruments; balloon fabric; use of trail rope and grapnel; take off and initial impressions; comparison of balloons and airships; use of gas valve and ballast and effects of temperature variation on buoyancy; application of balloon flying skills to airships; ballast used.
REEL 4 Continues: importance of conserving gas; use of trail rope in landing; amusing story of farmer tying up trail rope to balloon he thought to be German; amusing stories illustrating difficulties in landing. Aspects of period training as airship pilot at Royal Naval Air Service Station Kingsnorth, GB, 6/1915: theoretical training in airships; practical training in building airship and use of Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 aircraft bodies as airship cars; method of trimming and controlling airships; dual and solo flying training.
REEL 5 Continues: Aspects of period as officer with Royal Naval Air Service at Walney Island, Barrow-in-Furness, GB, 7/1915-10/1915: background to airship construction by Vickers Ltd at Royal Naval Air Service Station Walney Island; reports as to cause and effects of destruction through mishandling of Rigid Naval Airship No 1 Mayfly on maiden flight in 1911; size of Royal Naval Air Service establishment; role during construction of Submarine Scout (SS) Class Airships; routine flights including take off procedure and method of trimming airship.
REEL 6 Continues: use of trail ropes during landing; method of guiding airship into hangar and ineffective windscreens employed; problems in landing airships. Recollections of operations as airship pilot with (Submarine Scout (SS) Class airships patrolling over English Channel based at Royal Naval Air Service Station Capel, GB, 11/1915-3/1916: anti-submarine role of airships; hangers adapted to take Submarine Scout (SS) Class Airships; question of adequacy of training and relevance of naval small boat experience to airship handling.
REEL 7 Continues: role of wireless operator/observer in Submarine Scout (SS) Class Airships; flying instruments, controls and navigation aids; cold flying conditions; dual control adaptation; anti-submarine defences in Straits of Dover; anti-submarine defences in English Channel, routine and role of airship patrols including question of sighting German submarines and inability to attack them.
REEL 8 Continues: variable duration of patrols; question of navigational difficulties; use of dummy bombs; Frederick Lindemann's development of binoculars with polarised lenses to reduce glare reflected from sea; impressions of Frederick Lindemann; hangers adapted to take Submarine Scout (SS) Class Airships; origins of term 'blimp' for airships and its subsequent widespread usage; status as airship pilot within Royal Naval Air Service; unwitting role in defending Dover from air attack.
REEL 9 Continues: Aspects of the prepartion of Airship SS.40 for night flight to France during period at Royal Naval Air Service Station Polegate, GB, 4/1916-5/1916: prior problems with Airship SS.13; practice night flying; black camouflage colouring employed; concealable identification roundels; rudder adaptation and problem during test flight; planned role in dropping and collecting agents behind German lines. Recollections of period as airship pilot aboard Airship SS.40 attached to Royal Flying Corps Airfield at Bouvers-sur-Canche, France, 5/1916-11/1916: erection of portable hanger; Royal Naval Air Service personnel and assistance provided by army; meetings with Robert Brooke-Popham and Hugh Trenchard and reaction to restricted altitude of Airship SS.40; modifications made in GB to give Airship SS.40 greater altitude.
REEL 10 Continues: impressions of Hugh Trenchard and his reaction to Goddard's age; question of effectiveness of night reconnaissance flights; relations with Sub-Lieutenant William Chambers and question not being allowed to carry out operational flights; confusion caused by Royal Navy as opposed to Royal Naval Air Service uniform worn and pride in Royal Navy status; reasons for abandonment of plans to drop agents behind German lines; reaction to vulnerability of airships to being shot down; question of potential of 'friendly' ground fire and ruse in singing loudly at low altitudes to emphasise airship was British.
REEL 11 Continues: Aspects of period as officer with Royal Naval Air Service at Royal Naval Air Service Station Kingsnorth, GB, 12/1916-3/1917: construction of Coastal Class (C) Airships; continued modifications for night flying to SS.40 Airship; Wing Commander Neville Usborne and Lieutenant Commander De Courcy Ireland's fatal experiment with ATP-1 (Airship Plane) concieved to counter Zeppelin raids, 21/2/1916. Recollections of period commanding Airship C-27 at Royal Naval Air Station Pulham St Mary, GB, 4/1917-8/1917: comparison of SS (Submarine Scout) Class and Coastal Class Airships; role of crew; patrols and question of effectiveness of airships in anti-submarine role; John Wheelwright and Edward Maitland's experiments with different kinds of parachutes from Airship C-27.
REEL 12 Continues: comparison of free and fixed parachutes and Edward Maitland's parachute jump into sea; shooting down of Airship C-27 whilst he was on leave; experiments towing airships with mobile winch on ground; story of anti-submarine patrol over The Wash, engine failure and being towed by winch back to Royal Naval Air Service Station Pulham St Mary; duties with travelling examining board testing tradesmen qualifications, 8/1917.
REEL 13 Continues: Recollections of period commanding NS.5 Airship and R.24 Airship 24 at Royal Naval Air Service Station East Fortune, GB, 9/1917-11/1917: description of construction and role of crew of North Sea (NS) Class Airships; difficulty of communication between crew; use of water ballast to top up water-cooled engine radiators; difficulty in movement between compartments; story of flying Airship NS.5 from Royal Naval Air Service Station Kingsnorth to Royal Naval Air Service Station East Fortune.
REEL 14 Continues: crash landing on airfield under construction and question of effects of inexperienced crew; story of near crash whilst 'racing' train in Airship R.24; establishment of Royal Naval Air Service Station East Fortune as airship and aircraft station; size and personnel; story of pilot's disastrous attempt to fly through hangar. Recollections of period as officer aboard HMS Indomitable in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 11/1917-3/1918: experiments in taking off with Sopwith Camel and Spwith Strutter aircraft from platforms erected on 12 Inch Gun turret; North Sea gunnery exercises.
REEL 15 Continues: story of gunnery exercise in mock combat between HMS Indomitable, HMAS Australia and HMS New Zealand in North Sea. Aspects of period commanding Airship R.23 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Pulham St Mary, GB, 4/1918-8/1918: experiments in mooring at sea to drogues with Airship R.23 to extend airship operations and necessity of emergency release system from drogue. Aspects of period commanding Airship R.80 at Royal Naval Air Service Station Walney Island, GB, 8/1918-11/1918: supervision of assembly of Airship R.80 designed by Barnes Wallis; start of trial flights.
REEL 16 Continues: story of trials flight of Airship R.80, 11/1918 including checking for gas leaks, discovering airship had broke its back, consequent loss of control and his suggestion for successful return. Aspect of period as officer with RAF in London, GB, 1918-1919: social life; preparations to fly Airship R.34 across North Atlantic 1918-1919.