FIRST AIR FORCE

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 225, 17 May 1932, Page 2

FIRST AIR FORCE

EARLY BALLOONS PBSERVATIONS FOR £UNS IN ACTIQN AGAINST AUSTRIANS? USED IN 17p4. Among some old French recprds tyere recenfly diseovered detailed tidings of a properly organised Air Force which was used by the French armies in their operations agaiinst the invading Austrians so long ago as 1794. The projeet began by the urgings of the balloonist Guyton-Morveau that his fellow-members of the Scientific Copimission pf the Np.tional Committee of Publie Safety should test out the possibilities of aerial co-ope-ration \yith troops. This they agreed to with the stipulation that no sulphur was to be use'd in the making of the necessary hydrogen gas, as the war with Englarid had put an end to imports of that commodity from Sicily. France's powder mills already were running sliort. Lavoisier had produced hydrogen hy playing a steam jet on red-hot iron. It seemed doubtful, however, if by this means enough could be obtained to inflate a balloon. Captgin of the Engineers Coutelle and Citoyens Conte and Charles were put to wqrk in the old Salle des Marechaux of the Tuileries. Passing otmerous steam jets through a series of cast iron pipes filjed with iron filings, they soon made more than 500 cubic feet of hydrogen, which appeared to show that the Lavoisier discovery was of practieal use. The Brass Hats. Then came trouhle with the "brass hats." The cavalry command especially, in the true cavalry tradition since the days of Xenophon, opposed this new development with bitter scorn. However, the projeet went ■ through. At the chateau of Meudon, Coutelle, now made captain commandant of the new force, established a filling station, called L'lnstitut Aeronautique, of which the enginser Conte took charge. Here a large brick furnace was built and the world's first military balloon was made. L'Entreprenant, as she was called, was about 30ft in diameter. She was able to carry two men. Her deadweight, without passengers, was 21 cwt. She lifted 5cwt. She was held by two guy ropes, each ahout 1370ft long, attached to her middle. A signal system of red, white and yellow hurgees and pennants was^ devised for communication between the basket and the ground force. The first method of sending down reports hy guy rope did not work well, so they were tied up in little sandbags to which coloured pennants were attached. Now came the great day when the world's first Air Force set out to war. It arrived at the Maubeuge camp on May 3 without its balloon, which followed a few days later. It was received with sarcasm, jealousy and contempt, blended with not a few forebodings as to what would happen should the enemy pick up the handbag messages, or, capturing the balloon, extract from its passengers, hy torture, information ahout the posicions of all the detachments of troops scattered ahout the battlefield. However, L'Entreprenant was inflated, and there were daily ascents by Coutelle, accompanied hy a general staff officer, who more than once was sick. The Austrians took pot shots at thern now and then. There was one sticky moment when an enemy field gun, hidden in a ravine, opened up on them and cannon balls came whizzing by as they were rapidly hauled down.

First March. Orders came to join the command-er-in-chief, Jourdan, who was advancing on Charleroi. It was L'Entreprenant's first "march" on active service, and an exciting one. She left Mapbeuge on June 19 at noon, the basket and equipment travelling on a waggon covered with an awning. The balloon herself "marched" as low as possible. Fully inflated, she staggered along just over the heads of the cavalry, to the disapproval of the hopses. A stiff breeze was blowing It was a difficult job, but the Charleroi region was reached without disaster on June 22. At the Battle of Fleurus, fought on June 26, L'Entreprenant put in the first eight-hour day of aircraft battle in history, observing at various points, according to an article in the Manchester Guardiam A high wind blew. They dared not rely on the entire Air Force holding her in. Fifteen horses were attached to each of the two guy ropes. Divisional General Morlot was up two hours with Coulette, watching the Austrians. Guy-ton-Morveau, present at the battle^ wrote to the Committee of Publie Safety next day: "I have had the satlsfaction of seeing the General approve the use of this machine of war" "The halloon is an important aid tha1 must not be neglected," wrote Carnot Soon afterwards two accidents occurred. The halloon was punctured by a splinter of wood in a sudden gust of wind, but the hole was soon mend ed. A more serious matter was a rip against the side of a tree, in anothei1 gust, which deflated it. It was sen+hack to Maubeuge for repairs. Cou telle went to Paris to organise an ad jitional company of Aerostiers. Pre sently, mended and reinflated, she wa^ rafted across the Meuse, to a base near Aix-la-Ghapelle, where a furnace filling station was built. She did useful work at the battles of Char--treuse and Aldenhoven and at the capture of Bonn. At Ehrenbreitstein she , ivas Jiard presse4 hy the Aus trians, but escaped. The new Aerostjers, unjer Coutelle got their baptisna of fire with thd army at the jlhine. Their balloon was named Le Telemaque. Coutelle's let ters tell of the discomfort and danger of the work.

Sad End. "I received prders to make a reconnaissance of Mayence. I accordingly posted myself- between our lines and the town, at about half a cannon-shot distance. The "vdnd was very high. so to counteract it^ effects as far a» lay in rny power I ascerided alone, • 1 1 . T T*rti)S

at a he^ght of 500 metres when three successive gusts dashed me to the ground, with sueh violence that seve ral portions of the car were smashed to bits. Each time the balloon dashed up again with so much force that 64 men — 32 at each guy rope — were dragged some distance. Had the guys been made fast to grapnels, a« had been suggested hy me, they must infallibly have given way. . . "The ene.my's soldiers were fully persuaded that every movfement of their s was observed hy us. A like idea prevailed among our own men, who had hy this time diseovered in the hallooners a novel sort of courage, which gained their eonfidence and won their admiration." Not long afterwards both balloons came to a sad end. Le Telemarque broke loose on the east banlc of the Rhine, and was ripped to bits. L'Enfreprenant, at Frankfort, was found, a crumpled mass, full of shot holes. Sabofage by her own men was strongly suspected. She was repaired, but was captured by the enemy at Wurtzburg in 1796.