hw97karbine
Airman 1st Class
- 213
- Mar 23, 2025
Handley Page O/100 1463 "L'Amazone" flown by Flt Lt Henry Connell Vereker, accompanied by Handley Page O/100 1462 of Sub Lt Sands left from Manston just before noon for Villacoublay in France on a foggy, wintery day, leaving within 15 minutes of each other for deployment to RNAS 3 Wing at Luxeuil-les-Bain under the command of Squadron-Commander John Babington.
Two attempts had been made to fly the Handley Pages to France in December, but each had been turned back by engine problems. Sub Lt Sands in 1462 reached Villacoublay by dead reckoning, but Lieutenant Vereker in 1463, with Lieutenant Hibbard with the rest of the crew, observer Lt. Sidney Reynolds HIBBARD, Leading Mechanics Duncan KENNEDY F.1866 RNAS, Francis Arthur WRIGHT F.9197 RNAS and Air Mechanic First Class Walter William HIGBY F.8940 RNAS (sometimes reported as Harold Vienna) went astray because of a compass error and on descending to an altimeter reading of 200 ft could find no break in the cloud, so they climbed back to 6,000 ft where they spent some time trying to fix their position. With fuel running low, they had to come down again and were able to land in clear air after sighting a church spire at an altimeter reading of 500 ft. They left their aircraft to enquire their position, but found too late that they were behind the German lines at Chalandry, near Laon; they hurried back to make an immediate take-off, but were met by an infantry patrol; in fact Vereker had already climbed up the entrance ladder, but was hauled down by the seat of his breeches, so he had no chance to set fire to the machine.
The amazed members of the German unit found themselves in possession of not only a new bomber type but also comprehensive performance documentation.
It is recorded by some that they landed at an enemy airfield, Flieger Abteilung (A) 208 at Chalandry near Laon, some 12 miles inside German-held territory. Vereker refused to fly 1463 again, so it was dismantled for transport to Johannisthal, where it was re-erected after detailed examination. Marked with the German Eisenkreuz, it was paraded with other captured Allied aeroplanes and is reputed to have been flown to 10,000 ft by Manfred von Richthofen at Essen in a demonstration before Kaiser Wilhelm II.
The aircraft was painted and flown in German markings until it later crashed at Johannisthal aerodrome on 22 August 1917 (some suggest 22nd April 1917) after its aileron cables had been inadvertently crossed during maintenance work.
