Australian Flying Corps - beginnings of an Air Force

I thought it might be interesting to provide a little background about the 1^st Squadron, Australian Flying Corps.

You will have noticed that Athol’s letter (15 July 1916) was stamped with “'A' Flight 1st Squadron A.F.C.” The Squadron was formed at Point Cook outside Melbourne, Victoria, in January 1916. Only a few weeks later, on 16 March 1916, the unit sailed from Melbourne. A total of 28 officers and 195 other ranks arrived in Egypt on 14 April and, shortly after their arrival, the less experienced pilots went on to England for further training. The remaining airmen stayed in Egypt as part of the British Expeditionary Force. This modest Australian unit was dovetailed into the British Flying Corps and under its command. As part of this process the 1^st Squadron, AFC was re-named No.67 (Australian) Squadron R.F.C. However, the unit itself never regarded itself as part of the RFC, and never used its official RFC number. There was no consultation with the new Australian Flying Corps personnel about this change and the men strongly resented the implication that the Squadron was a unit subsumed into the British RFC. Richard Williams, a flight commander of 1st Squadron AFC, put it this way in his autobiography: 'There was no more authority for calling us a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps than there was, for example, for calling the 9th Battalion AIF, the 23rd Battalion of the Middlsex Regiment.' Hence Athol’s letterhead with ‘A’ Flight 1^st Squadron A.F.C. In February 1917 the General Officer Commanding, Royal Flying Corps, issued an order giving effect to the wishes of the Australians and the Australian Squadrons thereafter retained their original Australian names.

In 1916, the Australian Flying Squadron was comprised of 3 Flights - A, B and C. Athol was in ‘A’ Flight. To start with, each Flight only had 4 planes. The Squadron also brought with it from Melbourne other transport equipment which amounted to 2 motorcars and 7 'motor-bicycles' which were all the property of the airmen themselves. This small crew formed the beginning of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and was soon on active duty.

Major T.F. Rutledge*, an Australian from the Western districts of Victoria, arrived from England to command the Squadron. We know from his 15 July letter that Athol reported to Major Rutledge the day before being sent to Sherika to join ‘A’ Flight in mid-July 1916. One interesting aside is that the CO of 1^st Squadron AFC, Major Rutledge, had no previous experience of Army administration and did not produce a War Unit Diary. Therefore there is no official record of from April 1916 til December 1917. This is noted in Clifford's book - reference below.

In mid June the the Australian Squadron took over the machines of the 17 Squadron RFC which had been sent to Salonica. The Australians also took over the 17^th’s Canal stations and headquarters at Heliopolis. The Australians’ ‘B’ Squadron was the first to be sent out on active duty to the Suez station. ‘C’ Flight remained at Squadron Headquarters at Heliopolis. Captain Sheldon and ‘A’ Flight were sent to Upper Egypt and the base at Sherika within the Kharga Oasis on 9 July 1916.

‘A’ Flight stayed at Sherika until 8 November 1916. The reconnaissance flights from Sherika flew over hundreds of miles of desert much of which was occupied by the Senussi. The AFC's mission was to find the enemy and report their location and strength so that the BEF ground forces could pursue them.

The BEF (British Expeditionary Force) in the Kharga Oasis was a composite force. They were known as the Kharga Oasis Detachment under the command of Lieut. Colonel Angus MacNeil, 2^nd L.S. Yeomanry. Apart from the Yeomanry, the other sections under his command were the Highland Mounted Brigade, a squadron of Egyptian Lancers, a company of the ICC, a company of Royal Engineers, a battery of Sikh Mountain Gunners, an Australian Flying Corps unit (1^st Australian Flying Corps, 'A' Flight), 1,000 baggage Camels and 2,000 Egyptian Light Cavalry. There was also a bakery section and a slaughter-house and later another ICC company were added. At their disposal were three 15-pounder guns.

* See http://www.raafa.org.au/sites/default/files/Clifford%20book-pgs-A3.pdf at p.7.

Reference: Cutlack, Frederic Morley (1941)

 The Australian Flying Corps in the Western and Eastern Theatres of War, 1914–1918. Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918. Volume VIII (11th ed.). Canberra: Australian War Memorial

D.D. Ogivy's book 'Fighting on Three Fronts: A Black Watch Battalion in the Great War' is also a useful reference.

Athol photo - a Summer swim in an Egyptian oasis

These images are part of my archive. They were either sent home to Adah (Athol's mother) as an enclosure with other correspondence or found with Athol's personal effects which were sent home after his death. I think this scene was referred to in the letter dated 15 July 1916 whilst Athol was serving with the Royal Flying Corps at Sherika. That letter was posted yesterday.

There are no annotations on the reverse of the photos. They are approximately 8cm x 6cm.

Although Adah had sent hundreds of parcels to Athol and the various units with whom he served, apparently none of them contained swimwear. Athol is on the far right of the bottom photo.

Letter - 15 July 1916 - Athol attached to the Australian Flying Corps

Athol writes home to mother. After leaving the Imperial Camel Corps, Athol is attached to 'A' Flight of the Australian Flying Corps which is stationed out in the desert. Taking the train from Cairo he travels south, following the Nile, to Upper Egypt and Luxor. He then takes another train and travels 100 miles west into the desert to Sherika (map at end of this Blogpost).

Prior to learning to fly, Athol's position in the AFC was as an Observer. He notes that some of his new colleagues were also from Melbourne: Sheldon, Ellis and Jones - all pilots. In their recreation time, they have the use of a pool surrounded by date palms (photos of the pool are in the next blog post).

You might note the red triangular stamp on the top right hand corner of the envelope which indicates that the letter has been passed by the Censor. The letter is written in pencil.

Write to No1 Squadron

A.F.C.

Egypt

"A" Flight

1st Squadron. A.F.C.

Egypt

15.7.16

Dear Mater,

I've run away from my letters again. This time right down south nearly due west of Luxor about 100 miles west of the Nile. Objective: the same old Senussi. I am attached, at present, as an observer and hope, if the transfer goes through alright and I'm reported on satisfactorily, to get my pilots wings in about 5 or 6 months. 

I suppose VHA (that's Athol's older brother Harold who had left for the UK to train as a pilot with the RFC) will be a pilot long before that as they turn out pilots by the dozen, in a few weeks, in England. I only got here on Thursday night having reported to Major Rutledge on Tuesday and leaving Cairo Wednesday. Friday morning I had one hour in the air and today 45 minutes which is A1 as in some places one won't get that much in a fortnight.

We fly at 5am, as it is too hot during the day. Generally about 110F maximum.

Captain Sheldon (portrait below), brother of 'Shack' of MCEGS about 1910 & 11 is Officer Commanding here and the other pilots are Ellis, late Scotch College, and Jones also of Melbourne. All good chaps and I think they'll put me in the way of as much flying as possible.

This is a pretty good spot. There is artesian water here, just the faintest little bit of sulphury smell and we have a swimming bath 4 metres by 10 and 1 1/2 deep with some young date palms round it just high enough to shade it but without long trunks. [Photo in next Blog-post].

They are also building one 80 feet x 20 for the men. There are not many troops here - mostly yeomanry without horses and also No1 Company ICC is in this district.

No more news.

Love to all,

Yours lovingly

Athol 

Captain William Sheldon

Australian War Memorial ref: DAAV00006

This portrait was taken by Darge Photographic Company it is an image made from a glass original half-plate negative in March 1916 not long before his embarkation. Captain Sheldon travelled with the 1st Squadron AFC in March 1916. He was Officer Commanding of Athol's unit and an Old Melbournian about 2 years senior to Athol. Sheldon would probably have been in the same year as Lt V. Harold Adams (Athol's elder brother). 

You can make out the embroidered badge with his pilot's 'wings'.

Map showing Sherika where Athol was based with

'A' Flight, 1st Squadron A.F.C. in July 1916

From Australian War Memorial digitised Official War History

https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1069787/

Volume VIII - The Australian Flying Corps in the Western and Eastern Theatres of War,

1914-1918 (11th edition, 1941).

Entraining camels

In his letter of 9 July 1916 Athol wrote that he was sent to Shellal to collect 58 camels and accompany them back to the Imperial Camel Corp base at Abbassia, Cairo.

This is a journey of about 900km and these days takes about 12 hours by train. The line follows alongside the Nile the whole way from the Aswan Dam to the capital. I did wonder how one got a camel onto a train. These images give the reader some idea. No doubt this was a tricky task.

 Camels Entrained

Ref: Australian War Memorial image J00419

You will notice that the camels are secured by chains and ropes and in open wagons.

The wagons are marked with E.S.R - the acronym for the Egyptian State Railway.

This image is undated but believed to be taken at Abbassia.

Wagons of Camels

Ref: Australian War Memorial image J00451

The AWM caption for this image reads: 'Entraining Camels at Abbassia.

In the background is the nurses quarters of the 4th Australian General Hospital'.  No date indicated.

Camels on a Train in Palestine

Ref: Australian War Memorial image J06033

The AWM caption notes that this image, dated 1915, shows entrained camels at Deir el Belah after the second battle of Gaza (donated by Col A J Mills). They were packed in very tightly weren't they?

Abbassia Landscape with Cameleers

Ref: Australian War Memorial image H02695

This image gives an idea of the landscape just beyond the edges of Cairo/Abbassia.

The men are members of the 4th ICC battalion, Anzac Section.

In the centre is Capt. Oliver Hogue (died of illness is March 1919).