Climbing Higher - new WW1 aviation blog

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Hello everyone! 

 

As you all probably know, WW1 aviation has long fascinated me. I believe the story of WW1 (and even more specifically, WW1 aviators) tends to be overshadowed by WW2 and doesn't get as much press as it deserves. I also enjoy reading/writing and now that I no longer have to write college papers (woo hoo! ?), I occasionally get the itch to research something and write about it.

 

That being the case, I present to you, "Climbing Higher" - my personal blog on all things WW1 aviation! Every so often, when I have the inclination and free time, I'll be posting articles about WW1 aviation to my personal blog (linked below):

https://rookieace.wixsite.com/climbinghigher 

 

My first post is a book review of a rarer WW1 aviation memoir: "A German Airman Remembers" by Hans Schröder. To see my thoughts on this unique read, just click on the link below!

https://rookieace.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/a-german-airman-remembers-book-review 

 

Subsequent blog posts:

• Nov 15, 2020: Do or Die: No Parachute High in the Sky
• Dec 17, 2020: Flying Circus Vol. II is coming!
• Mar 7, 2021: "Marked for Death" book review
• Oct 27, 2021: Pick Your Poison — An Exploration of How WW1 Aircraft Were Most Often Destroyed in Combat
• Sep 15, 2023: "Sagittarius Rising" book review
• Apr 4, 2024: "KEKs and Fokkerstaffels" book review

Edited April 4, 2024 by JGr2/J5_Hotlead
Updated to include latest posts

[No.23_Gaylion]

Outstanding! Looking forward to it!

[JGr2/J5_Baeumer]

Worthy project and thanks for sharing.

[J2_Drookasi]

Best wishes for success in your endeavor Hotlead!

[Dutch2]

only one remark about WW1 combatflysims, do not forget the “Wings over flanders fields” http://www.overflandersfields.com/index.html  think it is worth to mention that other WW1 cfs. 

[ST_Catchov]

There's something tantalising about WW1 aviation AND the earlier pioneers of aviation that has fascinated me since I was a wee lad. A long time ago now. We're talking about when the Beatles ruled to give you an idea. It's in the blood I guess and something that never fades. Amazing time, amazing machines, amazing stories of laughter and tragedy. And young ordinary lads thrust into an adventure that turned brutal. Forever young most of them.

 

It's great to see a young chap uncovering these times with such interest. An era that is fading fast in these crazy modern times. But then it was crazy back then too. Such is life.

 

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors Cole. 

[Zooropa_Fly]

Well said Catchy.

Cole's a fantastic dude btw.

Used to fly his younger brother and cousin (salute to both !) on the cheap servers and live stream often.

Great laugh they were.

He's contributed enormously to the community down the years, and so it continues..

And the swine's a cracking pilot into the bargain, even in an N28.

 

S!

[unreasonable]

Well balanced book review. Made me want to find the book.   

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Thank you, gents! ?

 

10 hours ago, Dutch2 said:

only one remark about WW1 combatflysims, do not forget the “Wings over flanders fields” http://www.overflandersfields.com/index.html  think it is worth to mention that other WW1 cfs. 

 

Good point! Currently on my website I only feature sims I've had personal experience in. However, I may take the plunge sometime and check out Over Flanders Fields. I've heard its immersion factor is excellent!

 

9 hours ago, ST_Catchov said:

There's something tantalising about WW1 aviation AND the earlier pioneers of aviation that has fascinated me since I was a wee lad. A long time ago now. We're talking about when the Beatles ruled to give you an idea. It's in the blood I guess and something that never fades. Amazing time, amazing machines, amazing stories of laughter and tragedy. And young ordinary lads thrust into an adventure that turned brutal. Forever young most of them.

 

It's great to see a young chap uncovering these times with such interest. An era that is fading fast in these crazy modern times. But then it was crazy back then too. Such is life.

 

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors Cole. 

 

I agree; I feel like this fascinating epoch gets under your skin and then there's no shaking it afterwards! ? I look forward to discovering more about this subject (and the young men who lived it) in the future!

 

8 hours ago, Zooropa_Fly said:

Well said Catchy.

Cole's a fantastic dude btw.

Used to fly his younger brother and cousin (salute to both !) on the cheap servers and live stream often.

Great laugh they were.

He's contributed enormously to the community down the years, and so it continues..

And the swine's a cracking pilot into the bargain, even in an N28.

 

S!

 

Aww, don't make me blush! ??? Those days were a lot of fun! We always had a blast running into you on the NFF servers. In fact, recently I've returned to ROF and have broken out the N.28 on NFF again. She's still a fun crate to fly! ??

Edited October 19, 2020 by JG1_Hotlead_J10

[NO.20_Krispy_Duck]

12 hours ago, Dutch2 said:

only one remark about WW1 combatflysims, do not forget the “Wings over flanders fields” http://www.overflandersfields.com/index.html  think it is worth to mention that other WW1 cfs. 

 

I agree. The historic immersion factor on WOFF is stronger than FC or RoF. The issue mainly is the continued use of the CFS3 engine as a base. The engine and physics are pretty dated now. WOFF offers a lot by way of a single-player experience and a wider historical environment.  Still, an impressive offering for scope. With multiplayer, you're still in RoF or FC either way.

Edited October 19, 2020 by NO.20_Krispy_Duck

[ST_Catchov]

1 hour ago, NO.20_Krispy_Duck said:

 

I agree. The historic immersion factor on WOFF is stronger than FC or RoF. The issue mainly is the continued use of the CFS3 engine as a base. The engine and physics are pretty dated now. WOFF offers a lot by way of a single-player experience and a wider historical environment.  Still, an impressive offering for scope. With multiplayer, you're still in RoF or FC either way.

 

It's true. I'm not really sure why WOFF seems to get dismissed here. Yeah it's got a dated engine but what the small OBD team have done with it is still impressive and it's well worth a look for immersive SP. It's what got me into WW1 flight simming way before RoF was released. I'll be buying the upcoming update.

 

Let's face it, there's not much choice for WW1 nuts anyway.

[No56_Badger85]

Great first article, @JG1_Hotlead_J10, and an interesting perspective in that German airman's book.

 

Just the other day, I was thinking it would be nice to have a Stormbirds type blog that focuses specifically on WWI flight sims like FC and RoF. I know your blog focuses more on aviation history (a great topic in its own right), but either way, I look forward to reading more of your posts as the project evolves.

[No.23_Gaylion]

We've actually kicked this idea around several times at 3PG.

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

19 hours ago, No56_Badger85 said:

Great first article, @JG1_Hotlead_J10, and an interesting perspective in that German airman's book.

 

Just the other day, I was thinking it would be nice to have a Stormbirds type blog that focuses specifically on WWI flight sims like FC and RoF. I know your blog focuses more on aviation history (a great topic in its own right), but either way, I look forward to reading more of your posts as the project evolves.

 

Thank you @No56_Badger85! ? I think that would be a great idea! On my blog, I currently plan to issue posts in these categories: "book reviews," "history articles," and "ww1 flight simulators." As long as the subject is WW1 aviation, it has a chance of appearing on the blog. ? But if someone wants to release a WW1 flight sim specific blog, I'd love to hear about it too! ?

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Good evening, everyone! In my latest blog post, I explore why most pilots during WW1 flew without the luxury of a parachute. To read more, just click on the link below:

https://rookieace.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/do-or-die-no-parachute-high-in-the-sky 

Edited November 16, 2020 by JG1_Hotlead_J10

[JGr2/J5_Baeumer]

Nice read, Hotlead.   I also ran across Jasta 5 pilot autobiography via the article in Over the Front you link to on your blog. 

 

It inspired/compelled me to make the purchase of a first printing of the actual book from a bookstore in Berlin earlier this summer.

 

Nice research.

Edited November 16, 2020 by J5_Baeumer

[ShamrockOneFive]

Congratulations! I'll definitely be reading

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Good afternoon, everyone! In today's blog post, I take a look at 1CGS's announcement of Flying Circus Vol. II and discuss what I think this means for the series going forward:

https://rookieace.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/flying-circus-vol-ii-is-coming

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Good afternoon, gentlemen! Today, I finally had some time to finish off a book review on James Hamilton-Paterson's "Marked for Death: The First War in the Air." A truly fascinating look at the RFC/RAF in World War One!

https://climbinghigher.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/marked-for-death-book-review

[J37_Spyboy]

20 hours ago, JG1_Hotlead_J10 said:

Good afternoon, gentlemen! Today, I finally had some time to finish off a book review on James Hamilton-Paterson's "Marked for Death: The First War in the Air." A truly fascinating look at the RFC/RAF in World War One!

https://climbinghigher.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/marked-for-death-book-review

Salute HLCF,

Good review. Hadn't heard of this so will check it out.

Have you read Peter Hart books? Bloody April, and Aces Falling are excellent.

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

9 hours ago, J5_Spyboy said:

Salute HLCF,

Good review. Hadn't heard of this so will check it out.

Have you read Peter Hart books? Bloody April, and Aces Falling are excellent.

Thanks Spyboy! I have not as of yet! I’ll have to look into those. ?

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Salute all! After months of work, I've finished a report on how WW1 aircraft took combat damage. You might want to pour yourself a glass of your favorite beverage while you read — it's a long one! ? Hopefully this helps by establishing a historical precedent as FC's damage model faces review soon. I know it certainly was eye-opening for me as I researched these past few months!

https://climbinghigher.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/pick-your-poison-an-exploration-of-how-ww1-aircraft-were-most-often-destroyed-in-combat

 

Thank you to @JG1_Dudley, @US213_Talbot, and @US93_Larner for compiling and submitting data to help me with this report! I sincerely appreciate it. ?

[J5_Gamecock]

Excellent stuff Hotlead. Well written and enjoyable to read.

[=IRFC=Gascan]

Great read. The USAS POW reports sound interesting, and you mentioned the possible survivor bias against wing shedding and the higher proportion of engine failures, but also gave a good explanation for how that might be accounted for in the other reports. I really hope this helps the devs in tweaking the damage model. If the simulation produces results that don't match reality/history, then there is something wrong with the simulation. There is so much that is really well done, but as your data suggests, there are some things that don't quite line up and probably need to be adjusted. (Wing shedding isn't a "probably needs adjustment," it needs adjustment, while things like pilot injuries in a crash and fires could probably use a closer look).

It is worth pointing out that while the chances of control failure have been reduced for all aircraft and many aircraft now have controls go floppy when control cables are cut, there are a few where the controls still jam (even if the rate has been reduced, jamming is the incorrect behavior). I believe the other planes will have the jammed controls swapped for floppy controls at some point soon, but the control issue is only mostly fixed, not fully fixed. Still better than it was.

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Good morning, everyone! It's been some time since my last blog post, but today I finally finished work on a book review of "Sagittarius Rising". To anyone who hasn't yet read this literary masterwork, hopefully this review convinces you why you need to add this one to your bookshelf: https://climbinghigher.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/sagittarius-rising-book-review 

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

Hey guys! I just finished my latest book review this morning. This time around, we're exploring Johan Ryheul's KEKs and Fokkerstaffels. I loved the early-war focus and how he organized the chapters! https://climbinghigher.wixsite.com/climbinghigher/post/keks-and-fokkerstaffels-book-review

[=LD=Bulldog*]

I published that book! ?

[JGr2/J5_Hotlead]

2 hours ago, Bulldog* said:

I published that book! ?

Wow!! You have good taste, sir! ?

[=LD=Bulldog*]

Hotlead!

 

Publish a lot of aviation titles as well as military history, tanks, ships and so on. 

 

And a new series as well!

 

Bulldog

 

Edited April 5, 2024 by Bulldog*