THIS week we have a short story by renowned pulp author Frederick C. Davis. Davis is probably best remembered for his work on Operator 5 where he penned the first 20 stories, as well as the Moon Man series for Ten Detective Aces and several other continuing series for various Popular Publications. He also wrote a number of aviation stories that appeared in Aces, Wings and Air Stories.

This week’s story features that crack pilot for World News Reel, the greatest gelatine newspaper that ever flashed on a silver screen—Nick Royce! Davis wrote twenty stories with Nick for Wings magazine from 1928-1931.

Tip-Top, the biggest photoplay production corporation in the world, is still planning to add a news-reel to its releases, and they intended to buy up one of the existing independents. They were almost ready to buy, and their choice had narrowed down to either the Compass outfit or the World News. The reel they bought and gave their name would become the biggest in the world; the others would simply pass out. Compass was hell-bent on landing that deal.

This time Nick is sent out to cover a balloon race in western Pennsylvania that’s back on. Thanks to a bad engine in the Compass plane, Nick and Jim manage to get superior shots of the balloons launching—but when the Compass plane goes down in the wilds of Pennsylvania on the way home, Nick has to stop and aid the stricken crew, putting his own plane in danger!

From the July 1928 Wings, it’s Nick Royce in Frederick C. Davis’ “Flying Fire!”

It was his job! But when the fallen eagles called, Nick Royce, flyer, placed the unwritten law of the air above the demands of reel rivalry!

• Download “Flying Fire” (July 1928, Wings)

THEIR familiar war cry rings out—“Let’s Go!” The greatest fighting war-birds on the Western Front are once again roaring into action. The three Spads flying in a V formation so precise that they seemed as one. On their trim khaki fuselages, were three identical insignias—each a huge, black-painted picture of a grim-looking mosquito. In the cockpits sat the reckless, inseparable trio known as the “Three Mosquitoes.” Captain Kirby, their impetuous young leader, always flying point. On his right, “Shorty” Carn, the mild-eyed, corpulent little Mosquito, who loved his sleep. And on Kirby’s left, completing the V, the eldest and wisest of the trio—long-faced and taciturn Travis.

Were back with the second of three Three Mosquitoes stories we’re presenting this month. Nach Felt 21. Field 21. Important, time-sensitive information needs for an Allied offensive against the Boche has been hidden in the crotch of a forked tree down a dirt path in the woods on Field. 21. Intelligence operatives have been unable to retrieve this informations a last ditch effort, they figure a lone flyer may be able to land on the field, retrieve the information, and get out before the Germans in the area could stop them. Kirby is this flyer. Landing in the midst of German troops and retrieving the info is the easy part, keeping his two pals—Travis and Carn from tagging along is the hard part. From the July 1928 issue of War Birds, it’s “Stacked Cards!”

It was Intelligence stuff, and Kirby could not even tell his two buddies. He took off alone—for Germany—and how was he to know that the cards were stacked against him? Another of Oppenheim’s breathless thrillers.

• Download “Stacked Cards” (July 1928, War Birds)

If you enjoyed this tale of our intrepid trio, check out some of the other stories of The Three Mosquitoes we have posted by clicking the Three Mosquitoes tag or check out one of the four volumes we’ve published on our books page! A fifth volume will be out later this year. And come back next Friday or another exciting tale.

THIS week we have a story from the pen of A. Kinney Griffith. Griffith penned a number of stories featuring Rex “Wrecks” Norcross that ran in the pages of War Birds and Sky Riders in the late ’20’s. He gained his nickname by crashing his first time back from patrol in a shot-up plane that was barely holding itself together, but as time went on he returned as less of a wreck, while wrecking the German planes!

In the first of Griffith’s Wrecks Norcross stories from the July 1928 War Birds, Wrecks leads a bombing mission on a German munitions plant!

It was when Lieutenant Rex Norcross, wounded and flying a bullet-riddled plane, crashed in landing that the C.O. called him “Wrecks.” The name stuck, but as time went on it meant more and more. Then came the big bombing mission—and Wrecks was there!

• Download “Wrecks” (July 1928, War BIrds)