Luck seemed to have temporarily deserted us, and we felt it keenly because the Squadron was due for relief early in February, and we wanted particularly to finish up with a roar. Instead of that, we had a very anxious time, and although several combats took place, no more Huns were accounted for.
Mackenzie’s loss on the 24th was followed by Woods having to go away
owing to a breakdown in health, and we had Soar adrift for twelve hours on the 26th, and Shaw missing for the same period on the following day. Fortunately both of them turned up, but at the time we thought they had gone. To add to these misfortunes, the weather remained intensely cold and several of the pilots were suffering from severe colds and from frost-bite. We continued our work over the lines until February 2nd, when we were relieved by Mulock’s Squadron (No. 3). The new Squadron took over all our machines and we returned to Dunkirk by road on the 3rd.
And so ended the first phase, and I think this is the moment to sound the “Still” in order to give a thought and a cheer to our very splendid Ship’s Company. One knows that all the time it was hats off to C.P.O.s Rosling and Scott, and to one and all on the “Lower Deck" whose single thought from the word go had been to do their damnedest for the good name and the efficiency of the Squadron. There had been times when life had little to offer beyond discomforts and difficulties: wet billets, frozen guns, fractious engines, trials of the road, and all the rest of it. But with all hands pulling together as our fellows pulled, these times passed practically unnoticed - they certainly left no mark. Said Sir Douglas Haig: “The care of the machines has been above reproach and the discipline of the Unit very good," and with these words as a record of how well they had done their job the men of the Squadron moved off along the road to Dunkirk.
The Squadron 
remained at Dunkirk, giving leave and being re-equipped until the 15th February, when it moved to Furnes and took over the aerodrome from Naval Squadron No. 1 on their transfer to the Somme. During the rest period at Dunkirk “C” Flight had been taken away to form the nucleus of a new Squadron (Naval Squadron No. 9), and a number of changes had also occurred amongst pilots.
