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Magnificent Courage by Stan Stokes.
On April 6, 1916 the RFC formed several new squadrons, including the No. 56 Squadron - Scouts. In March of 1917 the unit received the first of its new SE5s. The aircraft was disappointing to the pilots, being slower than expected, and its new Vickers machine gun with interrupter gear was next to useless. Many modifications ensued in the field, and many SE5s were fitted with Lewis guns located atop the upper wing, and in some cases an additional Lewis was installed which could be fired downward through the cockpit. In early April of 1917 No. 56 was ready to see its first combat action, and the unit headed off to France. About nine months earlier the pendulum of air superiority had swung back to the Germans. The Fokker scourge of 1915 had previously been negated by the deployment of DH2 and FE8 aircraft, but the newer German Albatros and Halberstadt fighters had regained the upper hand. The RFC was once again suffering unsustainable casualties. No. 56 Squadron was immediately pressed into service upon its deployment in France, and over the next several months gave a good account of itself. The Squadrons first victory came on April 22, and went to Albert Ball who would become a high scoring ace. On September 23, 1917 many of No. 56 Squadrons pilots would become engaged in what would be considered as one of the epic battles of early aerial warfare. At about 5:00 PM in the evening eleven SE5s took off for a routine patrol. There were heavy clouds at 9,000 feet, effectively limiting the ceiling. Several engagements took place prior to James McCudden noticing a lone SE5 from No. 60 Squadron under attack by a German triplane. Unknown to McCudden was the fact that the triplane was piloted by Werner Voss, a top German ace with 48 confirmed victories. During the next several minutes 7 SE5s focused their efforts on attacking Voss triplane. Voss had several opportunities to make a dash for the German lines, but chose to stay and fight. Demonstrating beautiful flying and determination, Voss held the massed SE5s at bay, and managed to inflict damage on each and every one. With maneuvers made so quickly and so unpredictably, none of the SE5 pilots could keep Voss in their gunsights long enough to fire a meaningful burst. Voss managed to damage two of the SE5s enough that they withdrew from the fight, and a red-nosed German Albatros joined in the fray for a short time. At one point in the battle McCudden indicated that the triplane was in the cone of tracer bullets from at least five machines simultaneously. Voss could out climb and outmaneuver all the RFC craft. Minutes later at about 2,000 feet the SE5 piloted by Arthur Rhys Davids managed to catch the German ace in a straight flat dive, and approached to within feet of the triplanes tail, firing a solid burst before pulling out of his dive. Moments later the triplane hit the ground and disintegrated. Later that evening the pilots of 56 Squadron recounted the epic battle speculating as to who might have been the pilot of the German triplane. The next morning General Trenchard sent an aide to 56 Squdron to elicit details of the battle. In this report James McCudden paid the following tribute to Voss, As long as I live I shall never forget that German pilot who single-handedly fought seven of us for ten minutes, and who put some bullets through all our machines. His flying was wonderful, his courage magnificent, and in my opinion he is the bravest German airman whom it has been my privilege to see fight. |
| | Item Code : STK0016 | Magnificent Courage by Stan Stokes. - This Edition |  Buy 1 Get 1 Half Price! |
| | TYPE | EDITION DETAILS | SIZE | SIGNATURES | OFFERS | YOUR PRICE | PURCHASING | | PRINT | Signed limited edition of 4750 prints.
Supplied with signed and numbered certificate of authenticity. | Print size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) | Artist : Stan Stokes | £15 Off! | Now : £35.00 |
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| The Aircraft : | | Name | Info | | SE5 | The third S.E.5 produced (A4563) became, in effect, the prototype S.E.5a with a 200hp Hispano Suiza power plant and shorter span wings. The S.E.5.a went to No56, No.40 and No.60 squadrons from June 1917, and by the end of the year No's 24, 41, 68 and 84 squadron had taken them on charge. After troubles with the reduction gear of the Hispano Suiza together with a general shortage of these power plants, the direct drive Wolseley Viper became the standard S.E.5a power unit. The S.E.5.a built a fine reputation for strength, performance and general flying quality, which together with the Sopwith Camel was the main reason for the Allies gaining and maintaining air superiority during 1918. Some aircraft were fitted with four 25lb (11kg) Cooper bombs on under fuselage racks. The S.E.5.a also service in the Middle East and several home defence units in 1918. At the end of World War I over 2,000 S.E.5.a aircraft were in service with the RAF. The type had served with 24 British, 2 US and 1 Australian Squadrons. After its 'demob' 50 of these aircraft were supplied to Australia, 12 to Canada with several more to other countries including South Africa, Poland and the United States of America. 50 came onto the British register and were used for developing the art of sky-writing. The S.E.5.a will always remain one of aviation's great warplanes. |
| Artist Details : Stan Stokes | | Click here for a full list of all artwork by Stan Stokes |
Stan Stokes
Stan Stokes is a California native with more than 37 years as a full time professional artist, who developed a passion for vintage cars, trains and airplanes at an early age. Model building and RC planes filled the many hours of the young enthusiasts free time. However, unlike most other young aviation enthusiasts Stokes also displayed a great gift for artistic talent. After studying art in College, Stan decided to pursue a career as a professional artist. Stokes initially focused his great talents on depicting uniquely realistic landscapes of the western desert and mountain scenes. More than thirty years ago a good friend suggested that Stan combine his passion for aviation history and flying with his artistic talents, and render an aircraft or two. The rest is history. Stan has won many prestigious awards including the Benedictine Art Award in 1975 and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museums Golden Age of Flight award in 1985. In May of 2000, Stan was honored with the National Museum of Naval Aviations R. G. Smith Award for Excellence in Naval Aviation Art. Commissioned by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, Stans 12 x 120 foot mural of the History of the Flying White House is on permanent display in the Air Force One Pavilion. In addition Stans painting of the USS Ronald Reagan is hanging in the Legacy Room of the library. In 2005 Stan also completed a painting of our nations next aircraft carrier, the USS George H. W. Bush, which is on permanent display at the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas. Stan has also completed several impressive murals for the Palm Springs Air Museum including: The Tuskegee Airmen at 12 x 60 feet and contains 51 portraits of the original Tuskegee Airmen. Dauntless at Midway at 12 x 34 feet and Corsair on Approach at 19 x 55 feet. Stans work also hangs in the Air Force art collection, the Pentagon, San Diego Aerospace Museum, and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC. Stan has had the pleasure of meeting and working with many of his boyhood aviation heroes, including the late General Jimmy Doolittle, the late Pappy Boyington, Chuck Yeager, and many many others. A true aviation history buff, Stan often spends more time pouring over research materials for his paintings to assure their accuracy to the smallest detail than he does behind the canvas. Noted for his incredible detail and strikingly realistic illustration, Stans canvases have a life-like three-dimensional effect that often leaves viewers spellbound. Today his work encompasses not only aviation and space but also portraits, landscapes, ships, classic cars and his new collection of cat-related fine art paintings. Stan particularly enjoys the tough assignment. During his 37 years as a professional artist, he has been asked to produce literally hundreds of paintings documenting historical events, people and places. Although Stan has logged many hours flying his own airplanes, in recent years pleasure flying has had to take a backseat to the artistic demands of his backlog. Stan was commissioned to paint more than twenty original paintings for an aviation museum being in the Philippines. Since the mid-1980s NASA has also tapped Stans talents from time to time and he has completed more than fifteen paintings ranging from the space shuttles to the SR 71 Blackbird. Stan has also painted numerous works for the cutting edge genius in aviation and space design, Burt Rutan.
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