This is brilliant. It really drives home that these are basically STOL aircraft!!
Do you have specific examples or more data about the use of aerial torpedos during WWI or incidents of Zeppelin attacks against maritime targets?
One guy you should read about is Fredrick Rutland, who was a brave man and had a fascinating career, known as "Rutland of Jutland" for his role in carrying out aerial reconnaissance of the German fleet on the eve of the battle. He was attached to the seaplane tender squadron at Rosyth in Scotland, home to Beatty's battlecruiser squadron and based at East Fortune airfield in East Lothian on the Firth of Forth. He did the pioneering flights when the idea of placing platforms on gun turrets was first put into practise on the cruiser HMS Yarmouth. He also attended a meeting of the head admirals at Rosyth about placing aeroplanes on ships, where he said to them he could fly a Sopwith Pup off a ship's platform in less than 15 feet. The admirals present were sceptical, so he arranged for them to head to the docks and meet him aboard HMS Manxman, equipped with a hangar and a flying off deck. He had 15 feet marked off on the flying off deck and jumped in the Pup, easily getting airborne before the 15 foot marker. Nothing like an active demonstration to make a point. He also made the first take-offs from the destroyer towed lighter and went on to command HMS Furious' flying squadron, based at East fortune once Edwin Dunning lost his life landing on Furious' flying off deck. He went to Japan with the British Naval Mission in 1921 and got himself lost in the country's culture. Once relations between Japan and Great Britain soured, he was accused of being a spy. Tragically he took his own life in 1949.
There are plenty of good books to seek to find out more about naval aviation in the Great War, so get out your credit card! The late Derek Layman wrote one of the best.
Naval Aviation in the First World War by Layman - The Nostalgic Picture Library
The following is a passage from an article I had published in Aeroplane Monthly some years back on the use of ship based aircraft during the Dardanelles campaign. It mentions the Cuxhafen raid as its leader commanded the seaplane tender from whence the torpedo attacks were launched.
"The Dardanelles campaign saw the first use of torpedo carrying aeroplanes in combat and although the Short 184 was a cumbersome seaplane of limited flexibility, the type remarkably managed success. Specifically tasked with providing a unique offensive aerial element to the fleet in the Aegean Sea, the seaplane tender HMS
Ben-my-Chree arrived on 12 June 1915. A former Isle of Man tramp steamer,
Ben-my-Chree retained her Manx name, meaning 'Woman-of-my-heart' in RN service and was modified by the incorporating of aviation facilities in a large rectangular hangar at her superstructure's after end.
Commanded by Cdr Cecil J.L'Estrange Malone, experienced in aerial warfare as he had commanded the RNAS Christmas Day attack against the airship sheds at Nordholz, near Cuxhafen, Germany,
Ben-my-Chree carried a handful of Short 184s, 830s and Sopwith Schneiders. Since the 830s proved unsuitable however, throughout the campaign, L'Estrange Malone's ship primarily operated an air complement of three torpedo carrying 184s and three Schneiders.
On arrival in the Aegean, trial torpedo launches with the Shorts were carried out, while the Schneiders were sent on armed reconnaissance patrols. Operating both types was fraught with mishap, as on many occasions, floats were holed from taxying into submerged objects. It was also found that in the warm local conditions, the 184s could not carry a torpedo and a second crew member aloft, therefore when carrying torpedoes, they were flown as single-seaters.
12 July was the date set for the first torpedo attack, piloted by Flt Lt George B. Dacre in Short No.184 and Flt Cdr Charles H.K. Edmonds, another Cuxhafen raid veteran, in No.842 against ships at anchor in Smyrna Harbour. Unexpectedly, the 14-inch Mark X torpedoes were ripped from their brackets mounted between the seaplanes' twin floats as they took off. The first attempted torpedo air strike in history came to a premature end as it was about to begin.
It wasn't for another month before another attack was attempted. At dawn on 12 August, Edmonds got airborne without losing his torpedo and flew towards the Sea of Marmara, with Flt sub-Lt John T. Bankes-Price airborne in Schneider No.1560 watching from afar. Edmonds' report of the attack;
"Approaching Injeh Burnu, I glided down and fired my torpedo at the steamer from a height of 15 feet and a range of some 800 yards, with the sun astern of me. I noticed some flashes from [a] tug, so presumed she was firing at me and therefore kept on a westerly course, climbing rapidly. Looking back, I observed the track of the torpedo, which struck the ship abreast of the main mast, the starboard side. The explosion sent a column of water and large fragments of the ship almost as high as her mast head. The ship was about 8,000 tons displacement, painted black, with one funnel and four masts. She was lying close to the land, so cannot sink very far, but the force of the explosion was such that it is impossible for her to be of further use to the enemy."
Unbeknownst to Edmonds, the ship had been abandoned, since it had been previously attacked by the submarine HMS
E.14. After retrieving its seaplanes,
Ben-my-Chree steamed westward for fear of a retaliatory attack; the ship was considered a precious asset and never sailed alone, being accompanied by a destroyer escort throughout the campaign.
A week later on the 17
th, a second torpedo attack opportunity was taken, this time at Ak Bashi Liman near Chanak, where supplies to the Turkish armies were being off-loaded by sea. This time, Dacre, whose Short refused to take-off after two attempts on 12 August, joined Edmonds in the air, but not before taking 15 minutes to get airborne due to his 225 hp Sunbeam engine giving trouble again. Once more, Edmonds launched his torpedo from 800 yards and it struck one of three steamers anchored together, which was destroyed by fire.
Once airborne, Dacre had an adventurous time of it, as his unreliable engine spluttered on his way to the target area and he was forced to alight on the sea. After repairs, which enabled him to start the machine, Dacre spotted a tug moored alongside a jetty and taxied to a firing position. After launching his torpedo, he turned and taxied away. On looking back he saw the tug erupt into flame, but found himself under rifle fire as he attempted to take off. After a three-mile dash through the strait, bouncing along the water's surface, he was at last able to get airborne, all the while under fire. His engine promptly died in flight with a bang however, and he had to glide back toward the awaiting tender, where celebrations had already begun.
Dacre's
Boy's Own episode was the last time that
Ben-my-Chree's torpedo bombers went into action. In his report, L'Estrange Malone portentously wrote; "One cannot help looking on this operation as being the forerunner of a line of development, which will tend to revolutionize warfare." The three successful sinkings earned Dacre the DSO and Edmonds a bar to his earned at Cuxhafen."
Short 184
I used this picture in my article. "Armed with a 14 inch Mk.X torpedo between its floats, Short No.184 is being swung outboard of the seaplane tender HMS
Ben-my-Chree. The exact date of this image is not known by the author, but No.184 was Flt Lt George Dacre's aeroplane, in which he suffered numerous engine failures during his torpedo sorties, but importantly sank a Turkish tug from the surface of the water on 17 August 1915."
As for Zeppelin attacks against maritime targets, one of the German Naval Airship Service's primary role was reconnaissance for the fleet, which was another reason why the RNAS was so keen on destroying their facilities ashore. This meant that airships did get airborne when the German fleets headed out to sea. Attacks against British shore targets were imprecise, although in the first air raids by German airships, the harbour facilities where warships were based at Great Yarmouth were attacked, but only damage to the town was done. A great read is The Zeppelin in combat by Douglas H Robinson.
Zeppelin in Combat: a History of the German Naval Airship Division by Douglas H. Robinson, 9780887405105, available at Book Depository with free delivery worldwide.
A neat wee encapsulation of the British raids against airship facilities is Osprey's book:
Welcome to the Osprey Members website. Visit our image collection and explore our database of Planes,Maps,Machinery,Uniforms and Battlescenes.
ospreypublishing.com
This is a good read as a starting point.