Meet the Fokkers

Saturday 31st July, 1915

After about half an hour Leutnant Schafer had started to get used to the sensitive controls; when he’d first pulled the stick back when taking off he’d nearly stalled as the Eindecker pitched violently up. He’d pushed the stick forward again instantly and nearly flew into the ground and had to pull back again – to the men on the ground he must have looked like some demented yo-yo.

When he had eventually got his plane into a gentle climb, he sat back and exhaled a long breath and wiped the sweat away.

Now, though, he was starting to get used to it – to ‘her’, as he always said. She was beautiful, he thought, so full of grace. He made a few low swoops over the aerodrome, even becoming bold enough to perform an Immelmann after his third pass. Leaning forward he patted the aeroplane’s cowling, grinning broadly, “Oh, yes, my lady! We will do well together!”

* * *

Rittmaster Max Zimmermann stalks an FB-5

I managed to paint up the two E/III Eindeckers allocated to Feldflieger Abteilung 8E this morning and they’re lovely little models, although the enlargements are a bit cruel. These will be in the hands of my two senior officers, coincidentally both called Maximilian; Rittmaster Zimmermann, the 29-year-old son of an eminent Berlin surgeon, and Lt. Schafer, 31, who was a novelist before the war.

Leutnant Maximilian Schafer in his E/III

I’ve ordered some Albatros C/Is from Tumbling dice to make up the rest of the force – two will represent Aviatik C/Is so I have a bit of variety. Tumbling Dice don’t produce the Aviatik but in 1/600 I think I’d be hard pressed to tell the difference, so I’ll be using the same models for both types.