Alan Bott joined the Royal Flying Corps as a member of the 70th. Squadron (Umpty Squadron) in April 1917.  He was credited with 5 ‘kills’ during the time he was in France. It was after he joined the 111th Squadron that Captain Bott crashed in the desert on April 22nd. and became imprisoned by the Turks. He later  wrote about his escape to Constantinople in Eastern Flights which had earlier been serialised in several publications notably Harper’s Monthly Magazine where it appeared in 5 parts from September 1919. The ‘crash’ was featured in a painting by Stuart Read which is currently in storage at the Imperial War Museum in London. He continued to fly and in 1928 he got his certificate of competence from the Hampshire Aeroplane Club.