St Edward's Rhubarb - 2018

10 ST EDWARD’S r h u b a r b

Louis Strange (E, 1905-1907): An amazing escape over the Menin Road By Chris Nathan (G, 1954-1957), School Archivist

machine gun. Only seconds earlier he had been cursing the gun for becoming jammed – now it was his life saver. With no parachutes available at this time, his only option was to save himself which he somehow managed to do, by taking one hand off the drum and making a grab with the other ‘in the general direction of the central control section strut’. Still upside down he found the vital strut transferred his other hand onto it and after several attempts swung his legs back into the cockpit, managing once again to jam the control stick between his knees. In his own words: “I do not know what exactly happened then, but the trick was done. The machine came over right way up, and I fell off the top plane into my seat with a bump!” By now the plane was no longer spinning but diving however he throttled back, bracing himself against the fuselage and managed to lift the plane’s nose, just clearing the trees on the Menin Road.

His comment the next day was “But Lord, how stiff I was next day!” Amazing though this whole instance was, it was not that uncommon and there were other similar stories to be told in the aerial Great War. Nevertheless Strange’s story appeared in the national press of the day and a generation later appeared as a cartoon strip in the then popular magazine ‘Top Spot’ (Amalgamated Press Ltd). One of the cartoon pictures (there were nine) appears here, together with a portrait of Louis Strange a year earlier. In the Second World War, although over fifty years of age, Louis Strange again served with the Royal Air Force where he founded a parachute school as well as serving as in Northern France as an Aerodrome Control Officer. For his service in the conflict he was awarded the American Bronze Star, the OBE and Bar to his DFC. He died in 1966.

F E AT U R E S

Louis Strange

Louis Strange was, with Noel Hudson (D, 1903-1912), the most decorated service man in the Great War from the School. He was one amongst the first thirty-seven British pilots in the Royal Flying Corps to fly across the Channel to commence the aerial war with Germany in 1914. He later became one of the foremost experts on early bombing techniques as well as one of the foremost pilots who fought throughout the war. His younger brother Gilbert (also an OSE), also a pilot, was shot down and killed in 1918. By the end of the war Louis Strange was a Wing Commander and was awarded the DSO, DFC, MC and was Mentioned in Dispatches. In 1915 Strange had an extraordinary escape over the Western Front at Menin when he was in an engagement with a German Aviatik aircraft whose pilot was taking pot shots at him with a pistol. To his horror Strange realized that his ammunition drum on his own machine gun had jammed. He therefore wedged his control stick between his knees and stood up in the aircraft to replace the faulty drum. In so doing he inadvertently relaxed his knees and his aircraft (a Martinsyde Biplane) went into a downward spin, turned over and emptied Strange from the cockpit. He now found himself hanging in the air, clinging with both hands to the still wedged drum in his

From the cartoon series in 'Top Spot'