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The Hat in the Ring Gang: The Combat History of the 94th Aero Squadron in World War One (Schiffer Military History) ReviewTHE HAT IN THE RING GANG: THE COMBAT HISTORY OF THE 94TH AERO SQUADRON IN WORLD WAR ONECHARLES WOOLLEY
SCHIFFER PUBLISHING LIMITED, 2001
HARDCOVER, 274 PAGES, $49.95, PHOTOGRAPHS, ILLUSTRATIONS, MAPS, APPENDICES, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX
Although the aircraft was an American invention, military aviation had been neglected, and despite some limited experience gained during General Pershing's Mexican operations, as a neutral the USA had been unable to profit from developments made by the combatant powers. At the time of the U.S. entry into the war, the Army Air Service comprised only 131 officers and 1,087 other ranks, originally part of the Signal Corps, with only about 55 aircraft, not fit for combat service. Expansion was rapid (195,000 strong by the Armistice), and an intensive training program (with British and French instructors) produced more than 11,400 aircrews by the Armistice, of whom some 4,300 were overseas but fewer than 1,250 on the Western Front. Instead of more than 260 squadrons which it was hoped would be operational in France by the end of 1918, there were actually only 45. Squadron-strength was set at 12 pilots and 250 other personnel, and squadrons were classified as observation, pursuit (i.e., fighters), day bombardment, and night bombardment. Squadrons were organized in groups (normally three or four squadrons per group); ultimately the AEF included seven corps and one Army observation group, two day bombardment groups (one of only one squadron), and four pursuit groups. These were deployed slowly, as aircraft and pilots became available; there were, for example, only fifteen squadrons deployed by July, 1918, though the first combat deployment was in April, 1918 (four pursuit squadrons) and July, 1918 (bombardment). The most famous squadron was The Hat In The Ring or 94th Aero Squadron which was officially activated at Kelly Field, Texas on 20 August 1917. On September 30, 1917, two officers and 150 enlisted men left Texas for France where they were sent to seven different aircraft factories for maintenance and repair training. On April 9, 1918, the 94th was re-united and stationed at the Gengoult Airdome near Toul, France, where it began combat operations as the first American squadron on the Western Front. As the first American squadron in operation, its aviators were allowed to create their squadron insignia. They used the opportunity to commemorate the U.S. entry into World War One by taking the phrase of tossing one's "hat in the ring (a boxing phrase to signify one's willingness to become a challenger) and symbolizing it with the literal image of Uncle Sam's red, white, and blue top hat going through the ring. The squadron's roster contains a number of names that have since become part of U.S. aviation history-Edward V. Rickenbacker, Raoul Lufbery, Carl Spatz, Hamilton Coolidge, Reed Chambers, Harvey Weir Cook, Douglas Campbell, Samuel Kaye, Jr., and James Meissner. Flying the highly maneuverable with an unreliable engine Nieuport 28 and then the SPAD S.XIII, the 94th Aero Squadron was able to amass a total of 70 kills, win battle honors for participation in 11 major engagements, and be awarded the Croix de Guerre with Palm by the end of the war. In a new book entitled, THE HAT IN THE RING GANG: THE COMBAT HISTORY OF THE 94TH AERO SQUADRON IN WORLD WAR I, author Charles Woolley skillfully combines both official and personal accounts into a long overdue tribute to one of America's first aviation squadrons. Using combat reports, letters of the aces, and diary entries of other pilots as well as photographs, Woolley has put a human face on the men who served in the "war to end all wars." As a footnote, America's "Ace of Aces" Eddie Rickenbacker's 26 aerial victories came in only two months of combat flying. His real last name was originally spelled Reichenbacher and his parents came to America from Switzerland.
Lt. Colonel Robert A. Lynn, Florida Guard
Orlando, FloridaThe Hat in the Ring Gang: The Combat History of the 94th Aero Squadron in World War One (Schiffer Military History) Overview
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