Viewing page 2 of 236

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

-2-
Service alone installed, and a complete new change of base made. For instance, every group of aeroplanes consumed an average of 1,5000 gallons of gasoline and 400 gallons of oil per day, while each bombardment group dropped five tons of bombs. This whole move was so arranged by the Air Service that, first, an air barrage was kept up to prevent hostile reconnaissance, both by day and by night. In the latter case, the anti-aircraft artillery and searchlights were carefully disposed along the usual routes of enemy night reconnaissance. Then, our air reconnaissance of the enemy back area was pushed with the greatest vigor in combination with the air services of the armies on both our flanks.
Above all, we had to maintain as much secrecy as possible in the move. Artificial or camouflage hangars and aeroplanes had been constructed and set up on many oof the new fields that we intended to occupy. Our construction squadrons took these down and erected the real hangars during the night, so that no difference would be apparent during the day from above. To make the deception as complete as possible, we feigned an attack on Metz. We talked guardedly about it to the men who, of course, passed it on confidentially from one to the other. Our long range artillery shot at the forts of Metz; our bombardment aeroplanes attacked the railway station and all their depots of supplies there, while farther away to the east we sent day bombardment and pursuit air groups as far east as Chateau Salins.
An amusing incident occurred in connection with our air demonstration in front of the French Eighth Army. For all but the first few months of the war, their front had been very quiet - nothing more than a small trench raid or the pushing of air reconnaissance had taken place. Now the Germans made raids every night ;  air fighting went on at a great rate with every appearance that the attack was to take place. The commander of that army became so alarmed over the prospect that he protested to French General Headquarters against the air demonstrations, because