The raids carried out by
Marix, Collet, Briggs, Babington, Sippe and many others have
established this fact incontrovertibly. In all these operations
the airmen succeeded because of their intrepidity and their
decision to take advantage of cover, otherwise a prevailing mist
or low-lying clouds. Flight-Lieutenant Collet approached the
Zeppelin shed at Dusseldorf at an altitude of 6,000 feet. There
was a bank of mist below, which he encountered at 1,500 feet. He
traversed the depth of this layer and emerged therefrom at a
height of only 400 feet above the ground. His objective was
barely a quarter of a mile ahead. Travelling at high speed he
launched his bombs with what proved to be deadly precision, and
disappeared into cover almost before the enemy had grasped his
intentions. Lieutenant-Commander, now Flight-Commander, Marix
was even more daring. Apparently he had no mist in which to
conceal himself but trusted almost entirely to the speed of his
machine, which probably at times notched 90 miles per hour.
Although his advent was detected and he was greeted with a
spirited fusillade he clung to his determined idea.
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