Black Flight

What is Black Flight

It is May 1917 and you are in command of No. 10 (Naval) Squadron. A few weeks ago, the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) experienced the disaster of "Bloody April". Approximately 250 pilots were lost in combat against Germany’s best, including the famous Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen. The RFC begged for relief and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) stepped in to hold the line.

Everyone expected a massacre. The leadership of the RFC, expected that “Bloody April” would extend and “Bloody Summer” would follow as the hastily assembled relief squadrons from the Royal Navy, almost all Canadian pilots, were swept from the skies. Yet the Canadians of RNAS proved everyone wrong. Not only did they not get massacred, they turned the tide.

One squadron among them, Naval 10, as it was called, bore the brunt of the challenge. Within that squadron, one Flight – just five pilots and aeroplanes – known as “Black Flight” and lead by Flight Sub-Lieut. Raymond Collishaw, took to the skies over the Ypres Salient and set a record in aerial combat that stands to this day – in eleven weeks, Naval 10 downed 87 German aeroplanes, many of them drawn from among Germany’s finest.

Today, despite being the highest scoring naval aviator of all time, the name of Raymond Collishaw is little known. In skill, he rivalled the prowest of the Red Baron himself. Flying his Sopwith Triplane, over the course of those eleven weeks, personally he downed 30 of the Germans.

Game details

Players

1

Age

+14

Duration

60 min

Difficulty

—

Type

Board game

Year

2025

Mechanics

Area Movement · Campaign / Battle Card Driven · Critical Hits and Failures

Categories

Aviation / Flight · Book · Dice

Designer

Thomas Van Hare

Publisher

Historic Wings