Mid 1918
By this time, the strain of combat flying and the fear of his own fiery death got to Mannock. But he kept flying, repeatedly scoring multiple kills. He fell sick with influenza, aggravated by tension. By June 1918, he had made 59 kills, and had also earned a home leave. When he left 74 Squadron, he wept publicly.
On starting his third tour of duty in July, as CO of 85 Squadron, he confided his mortal fears to a friend, worried that three was an unlucky number. He became obsessed with neatness and order; his hair, his medals, his boots, everything had to be 'just so.'
On 20 July, at a farewell luncheon for his friend "Noisy" Lewis, Mannock took their mutual friend George McElroy aside to counsel him on the hazards of following a German victim down within range of ground fire. When he shot down an aircraft on 22 July, a friend congratulated Mannock. "They'll have the red carpet out for you after the war, Mick." But Mannock glumly replied, "There won't be any 'after the war' for me."
Read more about this topic: Mick Mannock
Famous quotes containing the word mid:
“There, on the mountain and the sky,
On all the tragic scene they stare.
One asks for mournful melodies;
Accomplished fingers begin to play.
Their eyes mid many wrinkles, their eyes,
Their ancient, glittering eyes, are gay.”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)