Floatplanes Over The Desert

• Introduction

  • The British in Egypt

• Chapter 1: Early Aeronautics in Egypt

  • The Aeronauts

  • The Aviators

  • Paris – Constantinople – Cairo Flights

  • The Turkish Constantinople to Cairo Flights

  • The Final Season

• Chapter 2: On Land and Sea

  • Ottoman Forces

  • Military Operations 1914 to 1917

  • The Arab Revolt

  • The Naval Situation 1914 to 1918

• Chapter 3: L’escadrille de Port-Saïd

  • A Base at Port Said

  • Early Operations from Port Said

  • Akaba

  • Aenne Rickmers and Rabenfels

  • Defence of the Suez Canal

• Chapter 4: After the Suez Canal Attack

  • A Typical Cruise

  • A Return to Akaba and the Red Sea

  • Gallipoli

  • The Gulf of Alexandretta and the Railway

  • Anne at Ruad and Musa Dagh

  • Back to Beersheba

  • Reinforcements

• Chapter 5: The East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron

  • The East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron

  • Ben-my-Chree and Empress

  • Pilots and Observers

  • Shorts and Sopwiths

  • An Island Base, 1916–1918

  • A Word about Photography

  • Island Life

• Chapter 6: Early Operations of the EIESS

  • A Squadron Operation

  • Final Flights of l’escadrille de Port-Saïd

  • The East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron Restructures

• Chapter 7: Aviation in the Middle East, 1916–1918

  • Fethi — A False Start

  • Growth of the RFC

  • Flieger-Abteilung 300 in Palestine 1916–1917

  • Turkish 3ncü Tayyare Bölük and 14 Squadron, RFC, in the Hejaz

  • Turkish and German Aviation at Adana and Mersina 1916–1918

  • Turkish Tayyare Bölük in Palestine and Syria 1918

• Chapter 8: Samson in Command

  • Coastal Work

  • The Crusader’s Coast

  • More Coastal Work

  • Romani and the Advance to Gaza

• Chapter 9: Attacking the Railway

  • The Attack on El Afule Junction

  • Attack on El Afule, 25 August 1916

  • The Price of Admiralty

  • Supporting the French

  • Another Loss

  • The Attack on the Chicaldere Railway Bridge

• Chapter 10: Aden and the Red Sea, 1916

  • Aden in WW1

  • Raven at Aden

  • Ben-my-Chree at Aden and Jeddah

  • With Regard to Coal

  • Raven and a Survey of Akaba

  • Anne’s Two Month Visit to the Red Sea

  • Raven at Yenbo and Wejh, December 1916

• Chapter 11: Castellorizo

  • A Brief History of Castellorizo

  • Castellorizo and the Seaplane Carriers

  • Castellorizo -vs- Ottoman Empire

  • Arrival of Ben-my-Chree

  • The Sinking of Ben-my-Chree, 9 January 1917

  • On The Island

  • An Attempted Landing

  • Salvage of Ben-my-Chree

• Chapter 12: Empress with the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron

  • The Northern Aegean

  • The Salonika Campaign, 1915 and 1916

  • RNAS in the Northern Aegean area after Gallipoli

  • Bulgarian, German and Turkish Aviation in the Northern Aegean

  • Empress and the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron

  • Budrum, the Aydin Coast, and the Gulf of Scalanuova

  • The Problem of Greece

  • Back to Anatolia

  • Stavros

  • Changing Shorts

  • Back to Stavros

• Chapter 13: Anne Carries On

  • Return of the Ben-my-Chree survivors

  • Red Sea, January 1917

  • The Damascus Flight, February 1917

  • First and Second Battle of Gaza, 26 March and 19 April 1917

  • Short 184 Model D Bomber

• Chapter 14: Raven’s East Indies Cruise

  • Raven Heads South

  • The Laccadive and Maldive Islands, and Chagos Archipelago

  • Laccadive Islands Adventures

  • Marooned in the Maldives

  • HMAS Brisbane and the EIESS, Colombo Detachment

  • A Final Visit to Aden

• Chapter 15: Maintaining a Steady Course

  • The EIESS in 1917

  • HMS City of Oxford

  • The Military Situation in 1917–1918

  • A Visit to Beirut

  • The Raid on Tul Keram, 23 June 1917

  • The Raid on Adana, 15 July 1917

  • Back to Beirut

  • A Final Visit to Adana and Chicaldere, 9–11 October 1917

• Chapter 16: From Gaza to Goeben

  • Naval Participation in the Third Battle of Gaza

  • Spotting For The Monitors

  • The Baby’s Last Hurrah?

  • One More Unto The Wadi

  • Two Lone Ships

  • Night Bombing Goeben

• Chapter 17: The Final Cruise

  • The Red Sea in 1918

  • The War in Asir

  • City of Oxford’s Red Sea Cruise

  • Flying Over The Jebel Al Milh

  • The End of the Asir Campaign

• Chapter 18: Royal Air Force Days and Ways

  • Final Days of the East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron

  • The Croix de Guerre Investiture

  • From RNAS to RAF

  • From EIESS to Naval Wing, RAF, Egypt

  • Report on Present Position of RAF in the Mediterranean, August 1918

  • Submarine and Convoy Patrols

  • U-boat Operations off Egypt

  • Submarine Sightings, 1918

  • The Perils of Patrolling

  • What Might Have Been

  • Not With a Bang…

• Afterword

  • L’escadrille de Port-Saïd—Rôle d’honneur

  • East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron—Role of Honour

• Appendix 1: For the Family (James Leslie Kerry, Eliot Millar King)

• Appendix 2: Samson’s Serials for EIESS Floatplanes

• Appendix 3: Nieuport Hydroavions serving with l’escadrille de Port-Saïd, 1914–1916

• Appendix 4: Shorts and Sopwiths serving with EIESS, January 1916–March 1918

• Appendix 5: Aircraft serving with 64 (Naval) Wing, RAF, Egypt, from April 1918

• Appendix 6: L’escadrille de Port-Saïd, Known Pilots and Observers

• Appendix 7: East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron, Known Pilots and Observers

• Appendix 8: Summary of Shipboard Operations of l’escadrille de Port-Saïd, 1914–1916

• Appendix 9: Summary of Shipboard Operations EIESS, 1915–1918

• Appendix 10: Some Comparative Ranks

• Bibliography

Maps

Theatre maps

• The Eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea, 1914–1918

• Northern Sinai

• Palestine Coast – Gaza to Tripoli

• Gulf of Alexandretta and Surrounding Region

• Castellorizo and SW Anatolian Coast

• North Aegean and NW Anatolian Coasts

Chapter maps

• Akaba and Region

• Port Said showing French and British Seaplane Bases

• Aden, 1914–1918

• Battery Locations, Castellorizo, 9 January 1917

• Gulf of Orfano

• Naval Operations, Gaza, 28 October to 7 November 1917

Index

Index – Floatplanes Over The Desert (195KB)