On May 25th, 1917, a new phase in German aerial warfare against Britain began. Increasingly vulnerable airships were being replaced for raids by fixed wing Gotha aircraft in Operation Turkenkreuz. The first involved 23 planes setting off to bomb London, but cloud over the capital meant secondary targets were chosen, notably Folkestone.
The following day's Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph gave the official account of the raid without naming the targets. That said 16 aircraft had attacked the South-East of England the previous evening between 5.15 and 6.30. It gave figures of 76 people killed (including 50 women and children) and 174 injured (including 62 women and children).
It was almost a certainty that someone from Luton would be in the thick of the enemy air raid on the south-east coast on Friday evening, said The Luton News (May 31st, 1917). Sure enough, a graphic account comes from Mr T. G. F. Carter, son of Mr H. Carter, 6 Lyndhurst Road, Luton, who is a surveyor of taxes at Folkestone.
Writing to his parents he said: "I was at the office at the time and heard one or two reports which sounded different from the frequent reports of guns one hears in this neighbourhood. This gave some sort of idea that a raid was on, and I went downstairs to investigate and to seek a possible safe refuge.
"The raid was, however, just passing over us by the time I had descended the stairs, terrific explosions taking place all round. I eventually got down into the cellar, by which time the raid had passed right by, and the raiding machines driven off by gunfire.
"We had ourselves quite as narrow an escape as was pleasant, for a hotel 40 yards away was wrecked by an aerial torpedo, a house 40 yards further on blown in half, while on the other side two bombs fell about 100 yards away, both fortunately in gardens.
"It was the poor part of the town that came off rather badly, most of the casualties having been caused by one bomb which fell in a crowded street.
"Nothing fell anywhere near the house, although Nellie and the children heard very heavy explosions not far away. Nellie was at a shop in the main road only a few minutes from the house at the time and, while alarmed, was able to return quickly and without danger to find everything all right."
Mr Carter added: "I am inclined to the view that the danger of a raid is now less than before, because the defence has been put on alert. The Germans had all the advantage of surprise, but even so lost 20 per cent of their machines. What would happen if they found the strong defence ready for them would be much more serious, and I don't think they are likely to invite disaster by trying again.
"In any case, we are not worrying. We have live for four years in East Kent, including the whole of the war period, and so are used to being close to the war."