THE WINGS OF WAR.
Symeon Waller Doncaster was at the centre of the fight when it came to air power, having a permanent aerodrome constructed by the Government for the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). The three large ‘Belfast’ hangars, each measuring a colossal 200ft by 64ft, were sited to the north of the racecourse on the opposite side of Leger Way, taking up a large proportion of what is now the Westminster Crescent estate of Intake. The original intention for the aerodrome was for training purposes only as the perceived threat of an invasion from the air was not entertained. Not, that is, until the second and third years of the Great War. German aircraft called Gothas crossed the sea in 1916 to bomb England, particularly the south. The Zeppelin threat was also very real and we eventually came to recognise it and began to prepare for the eventuality that this town might become a target. The Doncaster aerodrome came under the command of 6 Brigade, North-East Area, 24 Group, 46th Wing for Home Defence, and 16 Group, 8th Wing for Training. The first units that came to Doncaster for training arrived on 1 January 1916 in the forms of the 15 RAS (Reserve Aeroplane Squadron), and 15 RS (Reserve Squadron). They had various aircraft at their disposal including H. Farmans, Avro 504s and BE2Cs and had the backing of the War Office who had, in 1915, after the Kaiser’s introduction of the deadly airborne weaponry, instructed that the station be
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created at Doncaster. Immediately before and during its construction in 1915, a small fighter detachment had been based on the racecourse itself but had left before the RFC station was opened. The new base welcomed its first detachment, 41 Squadron equipped with BE2Cs, later to be replaced by 33 Squadron from Bramham Moor. The first real excitement for the lads stationed at the Doncaster aerodrome came on the night of 4 April 1916 when two Zeppelins, en route to London, were blown off course and found themselves at the north Yorkshire coast. Captain A.A.B. Thomson of 15 RAS took off at 2300 hours from Doncaster in a BE2C to intercept them. After a lengthy search he failed to see the enemy and crashed at Tealby, near Market Rasen, at 0145 hours. Another interception was scrambled on the night of 2 May 1916 when more than a dozen Zeppelins were crossing the coast to England. One of the BE2Cs was sent but, again, the attempt was unsuccessful. It would be November 1916 before a successful flying mission would present itself. Flying in those days was a dangerous business. On one occasion, an Avro 504 crashed and caught fire with the pilot trapped inside, the bystanders being utterly helpless. Shortly afterwards, within minutes in fact, another Avro 504 crashed on Leger Way between the airfield and the racecourse. The accidents and incidents in connection with the Doncaster aerodrome
are too numerous to mention here. Some of the dead were buried at the Hyde Park cemetery in Doncaster. But, as if we weren’t losing enough of our lads, the following advertisement appeared in the Doncaster Chronicle newspaper in September 1917: ‘A CHANCE FOR ADVENTUROUS BOYS - A thousand more boys are required for the Royal Flying Corps. Those with knowledge or an aptitude for engineering or woodwork are the most urgently needed, and teachers of these subjects at technical schools would do well to keep an eye on suitable pupils who have these acquirements. The following are some of the conditions:- Medical Classification “A”; Age - 16 to 171⁄2; Period of Service - duration of war; Education - must have passed standard VI; Pay - from 8d to 2s per day. Enrolment is at the recruiting office, Trafford Street.’ To my knowledge only one account of life at the aerodrome survives, coming from Lieutenant W.M. Fry, as he wrote about his stay in Doncaster in 1916 before the station was fully completed: ‘I arrived at number 15 RS at the end of May after six weeks of elementary training with others of my course for advanced flying training. The Commander was Captain J.E.A. Baldwin of the 8th Hussars, later Air Marshal. The Sergeants’ Mess and other offices were housed in the racecourse buildings and the Officers’ Mess was in what is now the Grand