3/3. With No 4 Sqn AFC & No 88 Sqn RAF as escorts, Nos 103, 54 & 2 Sqn AFC attacked the airfield, destroying 3 & damaging 1 hangar. On the way home, the fighters flew at low level attacking troops & transport. 9 enemy AC were destroyed & 4 forced down. #AusAirForce #WW1.

2/3. On the same day, pilots of the #AusAirForce sqns in X Bde reported large numbers of German aircraft at Rebaix airfield, north of Ath. All 80th Wing sqns were ordered to make low level attacks which would be led by Lt Col Strange. #WW1.

1/3.30 Oct, the German Air Service lost 67 ac as it fought British day bombers & their escorts; 41 RAF ac were struck off with 3 pilots killed, 8 WIA & 26 missing. 98 Sqn, attacking Mons, lost 4 DH9s shot down & 2 destroyed on landing. 5 escorting Dolphins were also lost. #WW1.

4/4. German pilots found themselves facing the DH9, an ac that lacked the performance to fight its way through to the target. The 200hp BHP-engined DH9 equipped Nos 27, 49 & 108 sqns. No 205 was equipped with the 400hp Liberty engined DH9a. #WW1 #RAF.

3/4. The targets of day bomber sqns were railway junctions at La Louviere, Charloi & Namur. Handley Page night bombers of Nos 58, @OC207Sqn & 214 Sqn were allocated Namur, Louvain & Termonde railway junctions while FE2bs of No83sqn attacked Charloi station. #WW1.

2/4 The 30th October saw the most intensive air fighting of the war. It was vital to Germany that the railways that ran through Namur & Liege remained open to allow it's armies to withdraw from Belgium & N France. #WW1 #RAF.

1/4 By late October, German fighters were protecting locations the retreat had brought into the range of British bombers. Formations of up to 50 ac sought to protect the railway lines through Namur & Liege that allowed the withdrawal of German armies in N France & Belgium. #WW1.

RT @RCAF_ARC: The story of William Barker, VC : Canada's most decorated war hero.#RCAF #Today.100 years ago, on October 27, 1918, Wing Comm….

2/2. A series of missions flown between 28 & 30 Oct saw that even with fighter escort, the DH9 sqns were intercepted by formations of up to 30 German fighters. Whilst losses were not excessive, the DH9 sqns, with one exception, failed to bomb their assigned targets. #WW1 #RAF.

1/2. The 3 DH9 sqns operated at their effective service ceiling of 13000ft & were allocated 4 fighter sqns to provide protection both to and from the target. The DH9a sqns, which could operate at 17000ft, were not allocated any escorts.

5/5 Barker managed to avoid another formation of 8 German ac that tried to cut off his retreat & crash landed his ac near a British observation balloon. Barker, a Canadian, was awarded the Victoria Cross. #Canadas100Days #WW1 #RCAF.

4/5 Barker regained control at 12000ft, only to be attacked by another large German formation. He thought his ac was on fire & tried to ram a German ac just ahead of him. He fired at a range of 2-3yds & the German ac burst into flames. #WW1 #RCAF.

3/5 He was wounded in the left thigh fainted & lost control. Upon recovering he was attacked by more German fighters and got on the tail of one & shot it down. He was then wounded a third time when a round shattered his left elbow. Barker fainted a second time. #WW1 #RCAF.

2/5. He then spotted a Fokker 1000ft below firing at him & one of the bullets wounded him in the right thigh. Barker fell into a spin & recovered amongst a group of approximately 15 Fokkers. He attacked 2 which spum away but got within 10 yds of a 3rd & shot it down #WW1 #RCAF.

1/5 At 0825hrs on 27 Oct, Maj William Barker, flying on a 'refresher' with 201 Sqn, spotted an en 2 seater at 21000ft NE of Foret de Normal & fired short burst from underneath at point blank range. The ac broke up in mid air, 1 occupant seen to jump with parachute #WW1 #RCAF.

Army Staff Ride 2018, looking out towards Op BLUCHER

At 0920 on the 17th, a pilot of 204 Sqn noticed a lack of activity at Ghistelles airfield & decided to land. He was greeted by Belgians who told him the Germans had just left. Bad weather over the next 10 days provided the Germans with cloud cover that prevented air attacks #WW1.

Poor weather over Flanders on the 15/16th had curtailed flying. Visibility on the 17th saw low level reconnaissance flights being made at the request of the King of the Belgians to see if the Germans had evacuated the coastal towns & if the coastal batteries remained active. #WW1.

@TameCrab one for the Staff Ride?.

3/3. On the afternoon of the 14th, activity at the important sidings at Melle, south east of Ghent, was reported as 'intense' & they were re-attacked on the night of the 14/15th by Handley Page ac from No214 Sqn. HPs of No 58 Sqn also attacked Tournai & Audenarde junctions #WW1.