Athol photos - flying in the desert

These two photos appear to have been taken by Athol  whilst he was serving with 'A' Flight, AFC, at Sherika.  Each photo is the usual size, 80mm x 60mm, and there are no notations on the reverse.

Taking off in the desert.

The first two digits on the tail read "41..'" so maybe it is the same aircraft in the post dated

30 October. That was aircraft 4155 a BE2c.

Athol photos - 30 October 1916 - aeroplane 4155

Athol appears to have taken these photos at Sherika whilst attached to 'A' Flight. They are the usual size, 68mm x 43mm, quite faded and not at all clear. I have grouped them together as I think they all record the same event.

I believe this is a B.E.2c type aircraft. The B.E.2c came into the AFC in July 1916 and was originally part of 16 Sqn, RFC (see more at: http://www.adf-gallery.com.au/afc4.htm). In the ADF-Gallery list this plane, 4155, is noted as a B.E.2c aircraft.

The notes on the reverse read:

'30.10.16'

The notes on the reverse read:

'4155 crashed Sherika 30.10.16'

The notes on the reverse read:

'Ellis getting out of 4155 30.10.16'

The notes on the reverse read: 

'4155      30.10.16'

The notes on the reverse read:

'4155 burrowing  Sherika  30.10.16'

The notes on the reverse read:

'Casely Kilburn Andrews Soames    4155 Crew'

Letter - 26 October 1916 - the soft Englishman

Athol writes home to mother. An English journalist arrives to join 'A' Flight and they play a couple of pranks on him.

Sherika
Egypt
26.10.16

Dear Mater,

Many thanks for your letter Aug 22 No.58. Also for two Punches. I expect the rest will be along in a day or two from the I.C.C.

We are expecting to move from here any day now as this show is finished bloodlessly and successfully. Canal next I expect. Nothing else to report.

We have an Englishman attached here as observer, a reporter out of the Daily Mail. His Pa must have got him the job because he's just about as soft as ever. We talk the utterest rot at meals about Australia and pretty well everywhere else and he swallows it like a lamb. Told him that we could stay under water 6 minutes. He offered 5 pounds to any of us that could do it. 

We got a tin lined case air-tight, and tied it under the water with an anvil and stand as anchors to make a little diving bell. Mr Englishman held the stopwatch and Capt Sheldon went down and got his head out of water in the box and we dived in and tapped his leg every minute. He came up at 5:45 minutes. Then another chap went under for 4:30 and came up in a fake collapse. Mr E. swallowed the lot. You can see the idea if you put a tin..... topside down in a basin.

Then yesterday G.... took me up and we landed at Meherique about 6 miles away. We had morning tea there. G came back solo and said to Mr E that I had fallen out onto a sand dune from 30ft whilst trying to crawl out on the wings. I had breakfast at Meherique and came in on a camel. Painted my right arm and leg with strong iodine and had a lovely limp. Mr E laments that he cannot send it in to the 'Mail' but has promised to write it up for me in proper paper style, headings and all. 

We have nothing else to do till we go, so are all busy trying to think out something else to work off on him.

Love to Aunts and Pater.

Yours lovingly

Athol

Athol photos - possibly Sherika

I think this image was taken by Athol when he was based in Sherika as an AFC observer. I can just make out a small railcar behind the men. The camp there was at the end of the small railway spur. 'A' Flight, AFC, did make camp in the bell tents at Sherika which you can see on the left and they also had a few timber huts (as on the right). The pith helmets are a bonus.

Probably Sherika - mid-late 1916

'A' Flight, Australian Flying Corps

Letter - 19 October 1916 - flight up the Nile

Athol writes home to his step-father, Guy Sherwood. Athol writes Guy about his trip with pilot Lt Jones up the Nile on a reconnaissance mission. Athol thinks that there will not be much need for 'A' Flight at Sherika for too much longer as there is not much enemy activity about.

Sherika

Egypt

19.10.16

Dear Pater,

Two of your letters arrived in the last mail, 17.8.16 and 22.8.16 for which many thanks.

Sorry they put you out of your job, but I should think that a spell wouldn't do you any harm. I wouldn't mind a month in Melbourne as a common or garden order civilian.

Had a trip up the Nile a week or so ago. About 200 miles. Jones, one of our pilots, and I went up and two other pilots brought machines from Cairo. Jones and I did the first reconnaissance and one of the others did the second. Then they flew back to Cairo and Jones and I came back here per train. We were away six days which made quite a good break.

This show looks as if it was about finished so perhaps we will get away to somewhere where there is more doing.

Bad luck for W.J.A .... I met him in Cairo nearly a year ago. He was a reinforcement to the 2nd Brigade Infantry. I suppose things are pretty slow in the H.P. [Huddart Parker] office. If you go there remember me to Messrs Hughes, Whelan, Joy, as well as the heads. Cheerio.

Yours very sincerely,

Athol G. Adams

Athol photos - camp life

These images make up a series showing camp life at Sherika. They are all the same size - approx. 80mm x 60mm and quite clear showing lots of detail.

Athol outside a bell tent wearing flying helmet.

Unknown officer at work. Note the lovely carpet on the floor. He wears the wings of a pilot on his uniform and smokes a cigar.

Athol outside a bell tent

Sleeping quarters with a rush mat on the floor as well as some kind of animal skin. Everything very neat and tidy with polished boots lined up, suitcase and trunk stacked

and a cartoon on the wall above the desk.

Athol photo - sports day

We know that Athol and many of his colleagues enjoyed playing sport in their free time. Soccer was usually played against the English units but if there were Australian's about they seem to prefer Aussie rules.

There are no annotations on the reverse so no names or date. I presume this is a sport photo but can't even work out what sport they were playing. Suggestions welcome. (No - not netball).

Can you see the photo-bomber?

Athol photo - train ride

Sherika was at the end of the railway line. Athol refers to this as a 'toy railway' and we can see from this photo that it was indeed a much smaller type of rolling stock than the main system running along the Nile valley.

This image is quite faded and measures approx 80mm x 60mm

Athol photos - Pets

We know the men enjoyed the company of pets in their camps. Famously a kangaroo was taken from Australia to the Mena camp in Egypt in 1915 (see https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C02588/). It appears that 'A' Flight at Sherika kept a fairly tame monkey and a dog.

These images are about 80mm x 60mm and quite faded. I do not know the people in the photos, nor the dates as there are no annotations on the reverse.

Dog on a box with the lower half of a monkey on top.

Monkey on the top of a bell tent.

It looks like there are some cartons of stores, some washing hanging out to dry and

a dog and monkey on that same box. 

Athol photos - aerials

Athol mentions in one of his letters to his mother that he took some photos whilst travelling as Observer in one of 'A' Flight's machines. None of these images have dates on the reverse. The first two images measure approx. 80mm x 55mm. The final image is larger and has interesting annotations on the reverse.

This appear to be the Kharga Oasis and township. You can se ethe struts from the aeroplane on the top-right of the image.

Another aerial photo.

Athol mentions that they were flying too high for some of the images to make sense.

See letter dated 12 September 1916 (posted yesterday). The pilot was Lt Jones.

     

This pairing shows the photograph and the annotations on the reverse.

This appears to be the base for 'A' Flight at Sherika.

The annotations on the reverse read (from top and clockwise): 

'Tarmac, H.Q., Bath, Officers, Egyptian Cavalry, Hangars.'

It is tricky to make this out as they are written in reverse and you need to read them in a mirror.

Approx 120mm x 90mm. 

Athol photos - 5 September 1916 - horse riding

These two photos show Athol horse riding and a column of Egyptian cavalry. The photos are quite small being about 80mm x 60mm.

Athol is on the left

The notes on the reverse read:

'2Lieut Hanmer and I on ponies

of Egyptian Cavalry. Taken by 2Lt Cruickshank

5.9.16'

There are no notes on the reverse of the photo. However I have grouped these two images together as this appears to show a column of Egyptian Cavalry. The composite force at the Kharga Oasis, Sherika, included Egyptian Cavalry as well as 'A' Flight AFC and other units.