”I decided to dive at her [a Zeppelin]… firing a burst straight into her as I came. I let her have another burst as I passed under her and then banked my machine over, sat under her tail and flying along underneath her pumped lead into her for all I was worth… As I was firing, I noticed her to begin to go red inside like an enormous Chinese lantern. She shot up about 200 feet, paused, and came roaring down straight on to me before I had time to get out of the way. I nose-dived for all I was worth, with the Zeppelin tearing after me… I put my machine into a spin and just managed to corkscrew out of the way as she shot past me, roaring like a furnace… then proceeded to fire off dozens of green Very lights in the exuberance of my feelings.”
- Lieutenant W. J. Tempest, Royal Flying Corps, 1915
Source:
Stephens, John Richard. “Firsthand Accounts by Famous People.” Weird History 101: Tales of Intrigue, Mayhem, and Outrageous Behavior. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2006. 96. Print.
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