Up In
The Air
The World War I Diaries of Balloonist Cyril Gordon Jones
1916
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1st Feb
"...airship had seen German Submarine in Channel on Sunday..."
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4th Feb
"Our M cyclist reported meeting suspect spy...
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1916
1916
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14th Feb
"Blowing gale of wind..."
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15th Feb
"Gale of wind W..."
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21st Feb
"First to sleep in new Guard Tent. Awfully cold..."
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1916
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28th Feb "
Not feeling so well. Temp over 100..."
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12th March "
Wrote long letter to Brenda..."
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March 18th
"Loaded 14 trees onto..."
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March 24th " Thick snow on ground, very cold."
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1916
25th March
"CO told me to make ascent alone..."
14th April
"I was told I was ringleader of mutiny!!..."
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25th March " Cable badly lifted winch clear of ground."
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31st March
"Fine still day, thick fog up to 10am..."
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27th April "
Fine sunny day not much wind. Very misty
..."
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May 2nd "
Nelson got 2 shocks from telephone due to magnetism in air..."
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1916
4th May
"Howard handed me telegram from Mother. Brenda got a daughter..."
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7th May
"I was presented with special menu"
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May 8th
"...my teeth chattered."
22nd May "
Left Victoria at 7.50am
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23rd May
"I slept on floor in another hut."
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June 19th
"Mac did parachute descent from balloon from 1300ft."
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22nd June
" It continued turning over sideways and endways like a piece of paper."
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July 18th
"Plucked a lot of radishes from our garden there. Had some for tea. .."
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July 21st
"Nieppe was being shelled just as we started..."
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6th August "...Played cricket...."
23rd August
"...Bumble Puppy pole."
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1916
30th August
"...Tail line snapped between parachutes..."
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6th September "
Locre bombed at 10pm. Major and I were walking after dinner..."
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22nd Sept "Went to Elverdinghe and searched Church yard. "
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23rd Sept "
2 bits of shell fell on our hut making large dent in corrugated iron roof...."
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2nd Oct
"...Observers jumped out...burning balloon fell on one parachute...killed."
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1916
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11th Dec "...piece of shell went through the top of my tender as we were driving along."
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1916
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Dec 23rd "
Wind increased to hurricane. Blew roof off Major’s hut..."
25th Dec
"Cook drunk, turkey spoilt..."