Somme Success: The Royal Flying Corps and the Battle of the Somme, 1916

by Peter Hart

The experiences of the British army on the Somme in 1916 have become a legend of endurance and sacrifice, but little has been written in recent years on the air war above the battlefield. This detailed work draws on never-before published accounts recorded by the Imperial War Museum Sound Archive in London. The conflict between fighters turned into a war of its own, with new weapons, tactics, and aircraft constantly being developed to gain the upper hand.

Genres: History, Military History, World War I, Nonfiction, Aviation, War, Military Fiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2001

About the author

Peter Hart is a British military historian.

He has been an oral historian at Sound Archive of Imperial War Museum in London since 1981.

He has written mainly on British participation in the First World War. His books include; The Somme, Jutland 1916, Bloody April on the air war in 1917, Passchendaele, Aces Falling (on the air war in 1918), 1918 A Very British Victory and Gallipoli.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Jonny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of the RFC's success over the battlefield of the Somme. Mr Hart briefly details the growth of the force, it's woeful underequipping and resurgence with modern aircraft. The measures undertaken to provide effective reconnaissance of the battlefield area and the defeat of the Fokker Scourge are told through the letters and reports of the men strapping themselves into the De Havillands and BE2C's.
The narrative is well illustrated (in the Kindle edition) with portraits of the contributors alongside their stories, which adds immensely to the story.
Recommended to anyone with an interest in the First World War in the air, or who want to fund out how the Somme wasn't a total disaster.

[Spad53 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was about the battle for air-supremacy over the Somme battlefield. The RAF had learnt their lesson well at Marne, where air reconnaissance played a big part, and they were determined to exploit the advantage of a well-trained and well equipped (for the time) air reconnaissance and artillery spotting force. 1916 was also when the Fokker monoplane was in its decline, the DH2’s and Fe2b’s were superior, even the humble Be2c could still survive in the air. As the battle for the Somme came to its ghastly conclusion on the ground in Autumn 1916, the balance of power in the air turned, with the introduction of the Albatros scout the German Air Force were able to sweep the now completely outdated Be2’s from the skies. I’m particularly interested in the Somme because my Grandad lost an eye in that battle, he wouldn’t talk about it, so I try and read about it. Unfortunately it’s so awful and depressing that this book has lingered on my Kindle for years. I made an effort and finally read it, and found a very well written and interesting book about a subject that very little has been written about. Being about aviation made it an easier read for me, but there was enough about the slaughter on the ground to give me nightmares, what hell my then 18-year old Grandfather must have gone through.

[John Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Somme Success" is based on personal diaries and combat reports and takes you to the cockpits of the aircraft operating and fighting over the Western Front in 1916. The aggressive nature of the RFC was essential to support the monstrous struggle going on below, namely the Somme Offensive. The swing of fortune and fate in the air was inextricably tied to whoever had the technical advantage at the time. The German innovation of the synchronised machine gun, countered by the DH2 and FE2 pushers who were in turn overwhelmed by the high performance twin gunned albatross scouts.
I have read much on WW1 in the air (although not for some time) and this book is exceptional in its attention to detail. The development of air combat doctrine, the role of the artillery spotters, bombing and photo reconnaissance, and also well illustrated with period photographs. Interesting also is the 'stiff upper lip' capacity for understatement in the British combat reports.
The only negative comments I can make are that I feel the author relied perhaps too heavily the combat reports, sometimes it seemed you would read one after another with just a line or so by the author in between. Secondly the reports are heavily sourced from the British side, I would have liked to read more from the German perspective.
Still, this is an excellent book, a worthy read for anyone interested in general history, military history or aviation.

[Hyarrowen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've never come across the word “success” in conjunction with the Somme before. But this book suggests that lives on the ground were saved because of the RFC's work in the skies – at the cost of the brief careers of the pilots and observers who flew there. The book goes through the battle, month after dreadful month, and allows pride of place to first-hand accounts and photographs and sketches by the young aviators themselves, giving weight to both sides in the catastrophe. I found the omission of an index a real problem – I practically had to make my own – but although it made the book difficult to use I can't bring myself to drop a star because of that.

[Sleepy Boy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent easy to follow prose. Really enjoy learning more about WW1 from Mr. Hart.

[Iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first half of this title was a bit of work. The text is filled with anecdotes, about half the prose are quotes from participants. Which makes this a rather unique treatment of aerial warfare in WWI. That said, the first months covered are less interesting, rarely including the German perspective for example. My favorite part of this portion of the book was seeing how people came to grips with flight, and the perspective of the battlefield from the air. We don't think of it in this age of air travel, but people had to learn how to interpret shadows in aerial photos as an example. I found pilots' description of WWI ground combat particularly engaging.

But it's the second half of the book that really shines as events turn to September 1916, and the German scout / fighter aircraft improve. The stories of both protagonists become more intense, and often portray the same dogfight from both perspectives.

In the end this is a fantastic book for those interested in WWI aerial combat. It left me wanting to immediately read the sequel.

[Andrew William · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading the first hand accounts of the battles, thoughts, and feelings of the pilots from both sides. This was an amazing read!