WAR

when the battle of cambrai opened, Jagdgeschwader Nr. 1, the Richthofen
Circus, was moved in by train, set up and operational within two days. On November
23 and 30, von Richthofen scored his last victories of the winter of
1917-18. During the first half of December he visited the Pfalz works at Speyer
on the Rhine to look over some new machines, but was unimpressed with what
he saw and returned to J.G. 1 where he spent Christmas. Bad weather restricted
flying to a few sorties through most of November and December and January of
1918. In January von Richthofen, as an advisor in aviation matters, went to
Poland with the German delegation negotiating the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. He
took the opportunity to do some hunting, then stopped at Adlershof aerodrome
for a series of technical conferences and finally returned to J.G. 1 the first week
in March 1918.
He started active flying at once and began to score the way he had in the
spring of 1917. He shot down five machines from March 12 to 25; on the twentysixth
he shot down two; on the twenty-seventh, three. On March 28, he scored a
single victory, then on April 2, 6, and 7 he scored four more. In 25 days he had
shot down 15 aeroplanes, 12 of them fighters—Brisfits, Camels, and S.E.5's, the
best fighters the British—or anybody else—had. He had been out of the fight
three months and only semi-active for five before that. The better part of a
year had gone by since the Rittmeister had scored like that. His return to action
was spectacular. Der Rote Kampffieger was still the champion. Nobody could
deny that.
March 20,
1918, was a gloomy day of rain and heavy cloud. Toward evening
the rain began to let up and the Rittmeister led a patrol of Jasta 11 from the
field at Cappy, near Peronne, to the Front, which ran at that time roughly on a
line from Albert to Montdidier. The squalls of the day had left thick banks of
cloud ranged along the Front at various levels, and while circuiting one of these
the Rittmeister came upon a patrol of six
for
Camels of No. 3 Squadron RAF. There
had been 12 Camels in two flights, but in trying to rise above the clouds the two
flights had become separated, so six Camels faced 15 Triplanes. The Camel leader
spotted the Circus and turned to face the attack. The two patrols came together
head-on.
After the first pass von Richthofen turned onto the tail of one Camel and
literally blew it up with a burst into the fuel tank. He turned instantly and was
on the tail of a second Camel, sending splintering bursts into the center section
and struts. The pilot, 19-year-old Second Lieutenant D. Lewis, flung his Camel
about frantically to escape the fire
of the red Triplane. His goggles were shot off.
His tanks were hit and his machine flamed but did not explode like
the other one.
Lewis dived to the ground as von Richthofen broke off. Lewis hit the ground
hard and was thrown clear. Scorched, stunned, cut and bruised, Lewis got unsteadily
to his feet. He was standing between two blazing wrecks, von Richthofen's
last two victories.
The Rittmeister roared over,
a hundred feet off the ground, and waved.
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