I yet await the question; Why, in the name of all that has wings and is blessed with the power of flight, does the Flying Doctor choose to use the aircraft so wonderfully observed in the above photo?
I, of course, refer to the Flying Doctor who makes but few but heroic appearances in the pages of The Reeking Hegs. After all, he could have chosen to fly something a bit more aerodynamic, like this ‘Master of the skies’ (no refunds) pictured below.
Or even something with two motors instead of one – a very handy feature when the carburettor freezes up thus disabling engine A, which on a single-engined machine indicates a possible punishing return to terra firma presently. Thus our heroic disciple of Hippocrates could have swooped over the arctic wastes of Ugzcyk secure in the knowledge that if engine A went AWOL, well, he’d still have engine B. That such a choice was available to him you may verify for yourself by studying the image below (taken south of the ice)
Truth, as the sage once observed to the onion, is oftentimes stranger than fiction. The Doctor was swayed to opt for the Fokker Dr.1 Triplane, made world famous by Billy Smart’s Circus, for two principal reasons.
1: The aerobatic properties of the six-winged machine. While of little use in strictly medical terms, this feature was a cert to impress his beloved Belinda. What a dashing figure he cut as he Immelmanned polewards. Belinda, something of an aerial dare-deville herself, was suitably impressed.
2] The Fokker Dr.1 triplane was not only unmatched for its aerial dexterity, but also for its latent pair of 7.92 mm machine guns. While some may find the notion of an armed to the teeth Flying Doctor paradoxical, the truth is that in an environment such as Ugzcyk and its wasted hinterlands such was life that the occasional need to put them to use arose below. I here refer to the strafing of Buck’s Full House, as recorded in The Reeking Hegs– an event that many applauded in response to the energetic efforts of the studio-floor animators. Busily dedicated as ever, the Doctor immediately abandoned the mangled Fokker and went to work on the unfortunate hosts of pieces of 7.92mm lead strewn across the studio floor, ably assisted in his staunching efforts by the demure Belinda.
So there you have it. Man and machine wedded and welded together in perfect harmony always ready to rise above the squall and bring succour to those in need . I leave you with an image of the hero himself, standing proudly aloof alongside his trusty steed: The Fokker Dr.1!
To learn more about the history of airborne medical attention look no further than The Reeking Hegs, available from any Amazone outlet in paperback, digital and audiobook format!!
The Reeking Hegs 