The RNAS, RFC and RAF in Aden, 1916 – 1918

The first aircraft to fly over Aden were seaplanes of the Royal Naval Air Service. In June 1916 the seaplane carrier HMS Ben-my-Chree with five seaplanes aboard, three Shorts and two Sopwiths, paid a short visit to Aden from her normal operational area at the northern end of the Red Sea. With typical naval panache, although the Staff had been forewarned, the first the Aden garrison and civilians knew of the ship’s coming was the appearance of a seaplane flying in from seaward. During the ship’s brief 5-day stay 15 bombing sorties were flown over enemy lines, during which 41 bombs of various sizes were dropped, causing little damage. A number of very useful aerial photographs of Turkish defences were also taken.

Planes flew as far as Lahej. Due to the heat the aircraft were nearly always limited to operating for an hour or two after first light and their ceiling was a maximum of 1,500 feet above sea level. Most attacks were made flying at about 700 feet above the Turkish positions, sometimes less, and it was surprising that there were no loss of aircraft or casualties to aircrew. In case a plane was forced down over enemy territory there was laid on the 1916 equivalent of a Black Hawk rescue helicopter: ‘Rescue parties’ of 5-7 men, well mounted and with spare horses, supported by two galloping ambulances, were sent out from No.5 Sector to points averaging three quarters of a mile from enemy’s front to watch flights.’

On the way back to Suez two seaplanes from the Ben-my-Chree bombed the Turkish fort at Sheikh Syed and spotted for the guns of the three warships offshore. This spotting was not as effective as it might have been as the Short equipped with wireless was unable to get off the water and had to be replaced with a Sopwith with no set.

In March 1917 another seaplane carrier, HMS Raven, called at Aden to rendezvous with a French cruiser prior to hunting a German raider (the Wolf) at large in the Indian Ocean. Her arrival was rather unpleasant, as through some error the ship had hoisted an old recognition signal instead of the current one and she was greeted with three large shells, one of which passed too close for comfort. Apart from the Wolf being in the area, three days previously a ship captured by the Wolf off Socrota had laid some mines off Aden. Whilst waiting for the other ship seaplanes from the Raven carried out a number of sorties over enemy lines. The seaplanes were a more powerful version than eight months previously, which allowed them to fly considerably higher. To the extent that the GOC was taken up and as far as Lahej without being put in undue danger.

One can perhaps assume that it was as a result of the GOC’s experiences and reports, especially as regards his seeing at first hand the possibilities of aerial reconnaissance, that he then put in a request for aircraft to be permanently based in Aden. In November 1917 a half-Flight of 114 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was transferred to Aden from India, personnel arriving on 6 November with aircraft in crates and stores following a week later. An airfield was selected at Khormaksar and the equipment was brought forward on the light railway that ran past the camp. Whilst the first plane was being assembled three possible emergency landing grounds were identified just inside the piquet line, two of which were then prepared for use. The first plane flew on 30 November and the first flight over enemy lines took place on 5 December.

The detachment initially consisted of four Henri Farmans, although one was a reserve aircraft. By early February 1918 three planes were in use and between them they averaged about 20 flying hours each week. The fourth plane was assembled towards the end of February, when it was also reported that two further planes in their crates, but without engines, were at Maalla Wharf. At that stage there were five serviceable and two unserviceable engines at the airfield. A peak with the Henri Farmans was reached in mid-March when for a brief period all four assembled aircraft were serviceable.

The planes were given a range of tasks of which bombing and general reconnaissance were the most frequent. Reconnaissance included the taking of photographs of enemy positions. Bombs carried were mostly 20 pounders, but occasionally 112 pounders. Some sorties included a psychological warfare task, which involved dropping pamphlets over enemy held territory. The remaining group of tasks came under the heading of ‘cooperation’ with cavalry, infantry or artillery, the last-named being the most important but also the most ineffective due to difficulties of communication. Useful information on enemy movement or patrols could be passed to the cavalry by means of messages dropped from an aircraft, but reporting fall of shot to the artillery really required the use of wireless. Although at least one set was in use in the closing months of the war, no RFC aircraft had wireless fitted for perhaps the first six months of air operations in Aden. (It will be recorded that at least one of the Short’s on the Ben-my-Chree some 18 months before had been fitted with wireless.) A report in February 1918 mentioned that “with no wireless, artillery work is difficult.” But by August 1918 there were daily classes for all RAF pilots and observers “for the practice of Morse buzzing and also reading of lamp and panels.”

Until the introduction of plane-mounted wireless the principal ‘eyes’ of the artillery were provided by a balloon from 57 Kite Balloon Section, which was also operated by the Royal Flying Corps. This section kept one balloon operational and this was “flown” on average for about 10 hours each week. Each balloon had a life of only 10-12 weeks and when balloon BM 173 replaced AM 74 in February 1918 it was reported that three other unserviceable balloons were still on charge of the Section. 173 was replaced in early May by SB 239; by mid-July there was no replacement for 239 and the Section was dismantled and moved to Egypt. These balloons were particularly useful in directing counter-battery fire by the two sections of long-range artillery, one of 5 inch howitzers and the other of 6 inch guns, since an observer in the balloon could be in direct telephonic contact with the gun positions. In addition, since the observer was operating from a fixed position, accurate alterations were possible. The balloon appears to have been moored in the same location until towards the end of May when it was moved to a new position forward of Robat, from where it was much better situated for artillery cooperation.

In France and Flanders observation balloons were very vulnerable to attack by enemy aircraft, but in Aden there was no such danger as the Turks had no aeroplanes in theatre. This also explains why there was no need to arm the Henri Farmans or BE2es with Lewis guns for use as an air-to-air weapon. Lewis gun training only commenced in June 1918 and from July onwards that year limited use was made of this weapon against troops caught out in the open.

The Aden Flight received some BE2s in late March or early April 1918. It is likely that the two crated planes reported as sitting at Maalla Wharf in February were not two extra Henri Farmans but the first of a total of five BE2es that eventually arrived in Aden, since no subsequent reports mention more than four Henri Farman. With the arrival of the BE2s the main problem was the lack of hanger space, since to maintain serviceability it was essential to keep the planes under cover when not in use. In fact one unserviceable Henri Farman had to be dismantled to make room for a second BE2 to be assembled. In mid-May two Farmans were damaged by enemy fire, only one of which was repairable. The other was dismantled and by mid-May the Flight had a maximum of five operational planes - two Farmans and three BE2s.

Given the extreme climatic conditions the serviceability rate was very satisfactory, although the Farmans appear to have been slightly the more reliable. However by the end of June the last of the Farmans had been dismantled. Having flown more than 100 hours it could no longer be considered serviceable.

Although there was no danger of being shot down by Turkish planes, Turkish anti-aircraft fire was always a worry, and many weekly reports mention fire as having been “very active”, especially around Lahej where the Turkish headquarters was located, and at Waht where the main Turkish force was encamped. Anti-aircraft fire was by no means just from small-arms; a report of July 1918 mentions AA fire bursting up to 6,500 feet and in mid-May the Turks came very close to bringing a plane down from AA fire, one shell bursting very close which severely damaged the plane and wounded the pilot in both legs. He managed to make an emergency landing at the advanced landing ground at Robat. The pilot was awarded the MC. This was one of three occasions when planes had to make emergency landings. Most sorties were not far into enemy held territory, although in early February two Farman had ventured some 50 miles over the line and had dropped bombs on targets 20 miles inside Turkish-held territory.

From 1916 onwards there was in effect a stalemate as regards the military situation in Aden and in particular as regards the offensive capabilities of both sides. In nine months of Flight Reports for the period December 1917 to August 1918 the nearest the British land forces came to mounting an attack was a ‘demonstration in force’ in August 1918 against ‘Point K’, a strongly held piquet, when three planes supported cavalry, infantry and artillery. Messages were dropped on the infantry and on Brigade Headquarters and at least one plane spotted for the 6 " gun and 5" howitzer sections.

Postscript, July 2007. Since writing the above article some years ago I have just come across evidence that the seaplane that flew in from the Ben-ma-Chree in June 1916 was not the first plane to be seen at Aden. On 31 March that year the seaplane carried aboard HMS Euryalus, on her way East to become the flagship of the East Indies Squadron, was put on the water whilst the Euryalus was in the harbour. The ship’s log states that the plane ‘ascended’.