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3. Under the Gun: NAS Dunkirk 1917–1918
- University Press of Florida
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3 Under the Gun NAS Dunkirk, 1917–1918 From the moment the first ratings arrived on a blustery autumn day in 1917 until equipment, aircraft, and personnel hurriedly relocated to Belgium a year later, the naval air station at Dunkirk was under the gun. Established to combat U-boat operations in the North Sea and English Channel and bomb German facilities in Flanders, the base stood on the northeastern coast of France, astride the Channel approaches, just a few miles behind the front lines. With its proximity to determined and skilled enemy forces, Dunkirk endured continuous attack from the air, raids from the sea, and long-range bombardment from large-caliber artillery. The exposed station also battled atrocious weather, a crowded harbor, inexperience, and serious shortages of equipment and aircraft. Nonetheless, personnel carried out the most extensive combat operations against enemy aircraft, submarines, and shore installations undertaken by any American naval air station in World War I. This included activities originated there and those undertaken by aviators, observers , and mechanics temporarily attached to neighboring English and French squadrons.1 The story of NAS Dunkirk actually began in June 1917, shortly after Kenneth Whiting reached France. While bluejackets took up temporary quarters, Whiting hurried ahead to Paris before embarking on a tour of possible sites for future American stations. He headed first to Dunkirk, focal point for offensive work against German submarines based at Ostend, Bruges, and Zeebrugge . His thorough inspection, combined with extensive discussions with Allied officers, convinced him the United States should operate a station there. After returning to Paris, Whiting participated in several conferences in which his hosts agreed to provide initial materiel and labor to begin construction at several sites, though Navy men and supplies would be required to complete the work. While other proposed coastal stations such as Ile Tudy, St. Trojan, and Le Croisic received careful analysis regarding topography, logistics, and 56 Stalking the U-Boat strategic placement, Dunkirk did not, an omission that exerted a far-reaching impact on its operations.2 During the summer the French employed local contractors, Moroccan laborers , and a few soldiers to level the ground. Work commenced July 20 but proceeded very slowly, belying the original promise to complete the project by September 1. With France straining every sinew in the war effort, meeting the needs of newly arrived Americans often proved beyond their capacity . Contractors completed the first barracks September 2, and the first Bessenau hangar October 5. By the time Ens. C. R. Johnson arrived October 10 to oversee operations, six dirt-floored barracks were up, with work on a seventh under way. A crane for raising and lowering aircraft was on its way from England . The nascent station still lacked facilities for cooking, and a shortage of masons left latrine construction with little hope of completion except by American forces. Later in the month work began on a galley and washroom and installation of electric lights, but progress continued to lag. Excavation for a bombproof dugout began October 13 but foundered due to lack of materials for walls and roof. Nor was building activity immune from the war. That same day a small bomb struck a hangar, part of the nearly continuous raids that rattled the city. Nearly all French forces quartered below the port fortifications , but little (and relatively safe) space remained for the Americans. The local commander urgently requested heavy searchlights to counteract night attacks.3 Several unassembled aircraft arrived in late October and early November, the first for the embryonic base, including five Donnet-Denhaut (DD) flying boats and two Hanriot-Dupont (HD) seaplanes. The Royal Naval Air Service promised to supply stores, oil, lubricants, and other miscellaneous materiel. A draft of 52 seamen reached Dunkirk November 4, the first installment of an envisioned complement of 200 ratings. Lacking suitable places to eat and sleep, the bluejackets bivouacked in an old city building, obtaining blankets and mattresses from the French and eating at a local restaurant. Godfrey DeC. Chevalier soon joined the men, assuming command November 10, accompanied by Asst. Paymaster Thomas Stockhausen as Supply Officer. Chevalier, at that time perhaps the best-trained flyer in the Navy, had just completed the entire French instruction regimen for pursuit pilots. At Dunkirk the Americans operated under command of the Commandant de Patrouille and Admiral at Dunkirk, who in turn reported to a British admiral at Dover. Construction continued into November and December, with special attention given to assembling aircraft and excavating dugouts, the latter...