Seven seaplanes launched on Christmas Day 1914 from a force that also included light cruisers, destroyers, and submarines. Low cloud forced the aircraft down into short-range fire, yet they remained aloft long enough to gather intelligence and bomb military sites. German aircraft, Zeppelins, and submarines simultaneously attacked the supporting ships. Its recovery plan was equally revealing: E11 waited inshore to rescue airmen forced down by fuel shortage, while another pilot reached neutral Holland after engine trouble. The mission combined carrier aviation, surface escorts, submarines, reconnaissance, bombing, and recovery only months after war began.
Chapter · 25:20-31:50
The Cuxhaven Raid as an early carrier air operation
The 1914 Cuxhaven Raid combined seaplane carriers, cruisers, destroyers, and submarines in a reconnaissance and bombing mission against German coastal targets.