of Hohenzollern on 17 March. The following day, Voss downed two British aircraft, doing so in a mere ten minutes. The first one burned; the second managed a crash-landing behind German lines. The second downed aircrew protested to their captors that they had supposedly been strafed at by Voss after landing. Following his 23rd victory on 1 April, Voss strafed at both the pilot and his plane after he too had crash-landed. On 6 April 1917, he claimed to have scored another two victories 15 minutes apart. Having brought down a two-seater scout plane and a Sopwith Pup who were near one another on either side of the front lines. The two-seater pilot braved both Voss' strafing and incoming German artillery to retrieve aerial photography plates for their military intelligence value. The Sopwith Pup, though later seen with Jasta 2 in German markings after its capture, was marked as an unconfirmed victory despite landing behind German lines. Voss was awarded the Pour le Mérite on 8 April 1917. It was customary to award a month's leave to a Pour le Mérite winner. Voss immediately left for his holiday and did not return to combat until 5 May. By the time of this leave, Voss had gained impressive marksmanship and situational awareness skills during his many hours of combat. The timing of the holiday allowed him to spend both Easter and his birthday at home. There was a large family reunion; to the family photos, he added a formal photo, in which he's sitting wearing his Pour le Mérite. He also tinkered with, and roared about upon, his motorcycle. He was out of action during Bloody April, the most intense air fighting of the war, when the Luftstreitkräfte and its aces inflicted heavy losses on the Royal Flying Corps. Richthofen, who had scored 11 victories before Voss began his own tally, achieved 13 additional victories during his absence. Referring to his "dear friend", Richthofen stated: "He was ... my most redoubtable competitor." Upon his return from leave, Voss was dissatisfied with his commanding officer, Franz Walz, whom he considered insufficiently aggressive. Voss shared his sentiments with another Westphalian hussar, Leutnant Rolf Freiherr von Lersner. Walz had assumed command on 29 November 1916, just after Voss joined the Jasta. An older man of 31, he was a prewar pilot and professional soldier who had flown over 300 combat missions in reconnaissance two-seaters