Fictional Diary of a World War I Fighter Pilot

June 2nd 1916: My name is John Miller, I am twenty years old, and I am stationed at the No.3 Naval Squadron aerodrome in Fernes, France. I enlisted my services just two months ago, and now I find myself in a squadron led by the great British ace Raymond Collishaw! The airfield is large, housing many different kinds of aircraft, from the Sopwith Camel to the Nieuport.
I have only been in the Squadron for two weeks and I have already logged five missions and countless hours of flying. Up until today, I had no encounters with enemy aircraft, as most of my missions were reconnaissance and did not take me inside enemy lines. Today however, was a different story.
I awoke to the sound of mechanics scurrying around the airfield, hammering on parts of the plane and yelling orders to one another. …