Trials for the adoption of the He-51 biplane had been concluded. Even now, as the year 1911 entered its final season, Germany had managed to manufacture thousands of biplanes. The problem wasn’t manufacturing these metal birds; no, that was easy and cheap to do, even on such a large scale intended for a global conflict.
Rather, the real expense in the fielding of aircraft was not only maintenance and logistic support, but primarily the fostering of those brave souls who would ride them into battle. That’s right, founding a dedicated air school was expensive, and so was training pilots.
One couldn’t just raise a single crop of these knights of the sky. They would need to be consistently trained over the years. After all, many would certainly die in war, and those who didn’t would eventually retire.
Even then, it usually took a year or perhaps even longer to properly train these men, who would be the final exemplars of the ancient chivalric tradition in this world. They were the living legacy of a long-forgotten lineage of warriors who once rode on horseback at breakneck speeds, crashing into one another in an attempt to win glory for God, King, and country.
Such was the spirit not only at the German Air Academy, which was the first of its kind (though it was not its official name), but also among the ranks of those who had already earned their wings. Saying that Bruno had a functional knowledge of dogfighting tactics was an overstatement at best.
Did he understand what dogfighting was and the general principles behind how generations of pilots had learned to properly engage and eliminate their enemies? Eh, even that would be overestimating his knowledge in this regard.
He was an army officer, one who was so good at his job that in his twilight years he was tasked with training the next generation of General Staff for the Heer of the Bundeswehr in his past life. Close air support and how it changed the battlefield were more of his expertise when it came to the proper tactical and strategic employment of aircraft.
As for the battles that took place above himself and his troops in the sky, that was not his area of expertise, much like the wars waged between steel ships on the seas. Sure, he had more knowledge on how to utilize these weapons than even the greatest minds of the era, especially when it came to the importance of air supremacy on a modern battlefield.
But to say he was a genius in either naval or aerial-based warfare was incredibly far-fetched. Even so, what limited knowledge he had in such pursuits had already been given to those better suited to it than himself, such as the use of wolfpack tactics for submarines to the Admiralty of the Kaiserliche Marine.
As for the use of dogfighting tactics, only the most rudimentary knowledge was given to the pilots who founded the German Air Academy. Currently, Bruno stood on the ground outside an airfield that was now under the direct authority of the German Army, one he had invested significant sums in establishing for the testing of his own aircraft.
He, of course, had been properly compensated for his efforts and was more than happy to hand over such land to the German Army if it meant it could be used more effectively in the future war. In the sky above were several He-51s, engaging in a mock battle.
They were all painted in accordance with those used by the Reichsverteidigung during the final days of the Second World War in Bruno’s past life. These were the most advanced paint schemes of the era, featuring an “eggshell blue” underbelly, which blended in very well with the color of the sky over Central Europe for those flak guns gazing upon the planes from the ground below.
It also had a fairly decent camouflage paint scheme of green earthly tones on the top and sides of the aircraft to blend in with the spring and summertime foliage of Central Europe if one were gazing upon the aircraft from above.
In addition to this, the actual propeller of the biplanes and its mount were painted in a white and black spiral pattern, which disrupted the overall shape of the propeller in a way that made it difficult to detect in the background.
The basic science behind it was similar to how a zebra’s fur pattern concealed it from mosquitoes. It did this because the coat reflects light in alternately polarized and nonpolarized patterns, making it more difficult to single out the propeller from the rest of the aircraft, which was painted in camouflage.
Even so, as Bruno gazed through his binoculars on the ground while conversing with the general who had been placed in command of the Luftstreitkräfte, he could still detect the planes as they utilized basic maneuvers learned from his knowledge of future aerial warfare against one another in a mock display of battles.
Among this first crop of pilots, there was a decent number who proved rather exceptional despite being the first qualified fighter pilots in this world’s history. One in particular had scored over a dozen “kills” within the ruleset throughout the last week of mock battles, and he had continued to increase that number today.
This exceptional skill made Bruno immediately take interest in the man, as he showed a rare sign of emotion with a proud smirk on his face before asking General Hermann von der Lieth-Thomsen, who in Bruno’s past life had been the man who created the German Air Force, about the identity of the pilot in question.
“I have been observing that man for quite some time now, and I have to ask, what is his identity?”
The man Bruno was speaking to had created the German Air Force during his past life and was its current commander in this timeline. He too had a proud smile on his face as he boasted about the pilot he considered among his most capable.
“That man there? His name is Lieutenant Manfred von Richthofen. He was among the first volunteers to join the Luftstreitkräfte. Although we have many men who are proving to be exceptionally capable in piloting these aircraft, I have to say he is perhaps chief among them.”
Bruno was not the least bit surprised by the young man’s identity when he learned precisely who he was. Manfred von Richthofen was perhaps the most infamous fighter ace in human history.
While there were others, such as Erich Hartmann, who had proven superior in their success during the Second World War decades after Richthofen’s death in 1918, it was arguable that more people were aware of the moniker “The Red Baron” than they were of “The Black Devil.”
And it was only because Bruno was so familiar with the exploits of the Red Baron that he realized just how close they truly were to the outbreak of an event that had more or less been the cause of Western Civilization’s downfall in his past life.
Because of this, Bruno surprised the general next to him with a comment that was unexpected. After all, Bruno had a surly reputation among his peers. Though the men who had served beneath him swore that they would follow the man to hell and back if he asked it of them, those who had not experienced his authority considered Bruno a cold and antisocial person.
For him to go out of his way to request a meeting with someone who was not of supreme political importance was indeed a rare occasion. Thus explaining the general’s visible shock when he heard Bruno say the words.
“Manfred von Richthofen, huh? I would very much like to meet this young lieutenant, that is of course after the exercise is done, and only if you permit it.”
Bruno was a very hard man to gain the favor of. He cared little for meaningless gestures of friendship, nor was he at all fond of mindless flattery. He was a man who valued competency, intelligence, diligence, ambition, and most of all, loyalty.
It was hard for many to live up to these standards, especially if they never had a chance to display such qualities to begin with. Seeing this as an opportunity to please a man who had the Kaiser’s attention in a way that only his Chief of Staff shared, General Hermann von der Lieth-Thomsen was quick to grant this request.
“Of course. After the exercise is over, I will have the lieutenant greet you properly. You have my word.”
Thus, the two of them continued to watch the exercise in silence until a meeting could be arranged between the Red Scourge and the man who would one day become known throughout the annals of human history by the prestigious title of “The Red Baron.”
