The enemy, too, was firing his machine gun at every opportunity, but thus far the maneuvering of the American plane had been too sudden and swift to permit of anything like an aim, and the nearest shower of bullets went harmlessly by, several yards to the right.
Again Jack gave his engines all the petrol they would take, and there was another skyward spurt at hair-raising speed. No one direction was maintained for a full minute at a time, however, and even at that the enemy finally got a head-on opportunity and sent a charge that lodged several bullets in the outer fusilage. There was an instant change of course, and a few seconds later Don was given another opportunity to show what he knew about machine gun firing. He gave a most excellent accounting.
The rudder of the enemy plane was almost entirely shot away!
A skilful pilot may not necessarily regard that as a disaster, but already the pilot of the other machine was disabled, and the battle was raging so furiously that no opportunity offered for another of the crew to take his place.
With only one able hand and arm to work with the fellow did remarkably well, but he could not handle the giant plane successfully under such a handicap.
Even then, and in that desperate situation, Jack and his crew would have let up in mercy had not the enemy, in a long, circling dive again renewed the fire.
Jack nodded his head to Andy, and Fred, understanding the signal, got ready to do his part. They banked at a dangerous, nerve-racking angle, and then in a long, sweeping curve came down upon the already crippled machine which could not get out of the way.
Don loosened such a miniature artillery that two of the crew fell over either mortally wounded or killed outright. The firing never ceased, nor was the course of the plane changed until it was within fifty yards of the other machine and it seemed that a fatal collision was imminent.
The final volley tore both wings of the other plane so badly that she wavered, washed in the wind for a few seconds and then, as a spurt of flame appeared where fire had started from a leaking petrol tank, she settled into a swift and disastrous nose dive.
Don saw what happened; the others had too much to do in righting their own plane at that instant to pay attention to anything else. Jack and Andy had come literally as near as a hair losing control of their own plane in making the final attack which disposed of the other. As a matter of fact, had they not been such masters of their machine, all might have gone to the fate that the others found as the reward for their treacherous undertaking.