I came across this pic yesterday. The aircraft is a Rumpler C.IV, used during 1917 and 1918, mostly by Royal Bavarian units.
Apart from the ambiguity (a comma might have helped) I can't say that I've come across aircraft text like this before. A case of humour in uniform or an attempt to lure Allied pilots closer as they tried to make out the message?
In the early days of WWI, observers didn't have armed AC and the pilots even waved to each other as they passed. Then one day someone brought a pistol and all bets were off. Pistols became rifles, then rear armed observers until modern dogfights were born. The fact that this is a 1917-1918 AC means it was well into the "bad days" when chivalry during air combat was lost to anger and desperation. So, as to it's meaning... maybe an ironic joke, maybe plea against ground fire, who knows. But the fact that it's English written on a German plane makes it seem even more ominous.
486_Col_Wolf,
Ominous probably. It would be fascinating to find the back story to this paint job and the plane's crew.
What are the ten objects in the rack upon which our gunner is resting his left hand? Do those have something to do with it?
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Nagpaw,Originally Posted by nagpaw
A little grog so he can wet his whistle. Shooting tends to make you thirsty.
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Might be small grenades to drop on ground troops.
Flare cartridges
Yes, and the small bracket just to the rear of the cartridges was probably for the flare gun as they were usually stored there for the gunner/ observer.
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