The Dominion. TUESDAY, MAY 6, 1913. WAR IN THE AIR.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1742, 6 May 1913, Page 4

The Dominion. TUESDAY, MAY 6, 1913. WAR IN THE AIR.

# The state of Britain's air defences is just now coming in for a good deal of comment in Home papers. Itis generally recognised that Britain has allowed Germany and Franco to get a good start in this matter, and as a result a lot of leeway has to be made up. In March last the Aerial 'League issued a manifesto pointing out the urgent need for a vigorous forward move. The fact that Britain's air power is so much inferior to that of Germany is a serious matter; "but what is most serious," the manifesto points out, "is that wc lack the experience which is essential for. building large airships of long range and the factories and equipment for the purpose." In view of the imperative need for strengthening the Army and Navy the Government has been inclined to put off the evil day as regards aerial defence: hut the fact has bccome patent that no modern army or navy can be said to be properly equipped without the support of_ up-to-dato aircraft. Before Britain's position can be considered satisfactory as compared with that of Franco and Germany the Government must make provision for very large expenditure. Mr. H. Massac Pi ("IST, writing in the Morning l'ost, expresses the opinion that the main headings under which aviation expenditure must be divided in the year ahead are as follow: —

1. The acquisition of land for the establishment of essential aviation cenlres; tho setting upon these.areas of airship halls, aeroplane sheds, works stoves, and barracks; the acquisition of transport to enable aircraft to be used; ami the acquisition of special guns fur rendering if. passible fo enforce the new regulations concerning the prohibited areas. 'I. The maintenance ami development of I lie Royal Aircraft. Factory with its essential and necessarily costly experimental v.-ork. a ml the charges of conducting experiments elsewhere, as at the .y.-itional Physical Laboratory. The wages and cost of personnel of all classes in conncction with the national aviation service; the cost of maintaining, repairing, and using aircraft, including hydrogen gas, fuel, and so forth: and the cost of training the personnel, as at the Flying School at IJpnvon. 4. Tho cost, of acquiring a minimum of a hundred and Ofty aeroplanes for the service of the Military Wing of the Royal Flying Corps, and a minimum of fifty aeroplanes and hydro-aeroplanes for the use of tho Naval Wing of the Roynl Flying Corps. 5. Tho cost, of acquiring large and small scale airships to make a start at the creation of a fleet. The cost of aconiring engines has to be included in the last two seel ions. In a speech delivered in the House of Commons on March 20 (a summary of which appeared in Saturday's Dominion) Coi.om Seely, the Secretary for War, gave a decidedly optimistic account of what is being done to build up an adequate air fleet. Some of bis announcements certainly came es a pleasant surprise, especially (lie fact (hat; the .Army already lias 101 aeroplanes and hopes to have MS by May 31.,

This statement seems to have puzzled the expert critics not a little. One of them remarks that "a greater mystery than the question where these 101 army aeroplanes that we already possess have been and are accommodated, and when and where they have been used, is the mystery where they have been brought iuto being." ,It is pointed out that the position will never be satisfactory until these aircraft are manufactured in the country, and it is stated that the Government is not giving sufficient encouragement to British manufacturers. The fact that the Array has no large airships like those owned by Germany has also culled forth adverse comment, and Colonel Seelv's explanation that an expeditionary force does not require them, but only small dirigibles, is not regarded as satisfactory. The Times military correspondent points out- that this point of view omits entirely from the calculation all question of home defence, whereas aviation has deprived Britain of her insularity. "When M. Bleiuot landed at Dover a new chapter was opened in the military history of the British Isles, and only the first few pages of that chapter have as yet been revealed to us. The air knows neither' coasts nor frontiers." Whatever Colonel Seely may say, the fact remains fhat the Germans place great value on the large airships, and during 1913-M Franco and Germany are each spending about three quarters of a million in increasing their airship fleet. One of the most interesting parts of the speech of the Secretary for War was the statement that Britain had got the best aeroplanes in the world, having evolved a type far superior to that in the possession of any other nation. Every patriotic Britisher will fervently hope that this claim is based on solid fact, and that it is something more than the optimistic expectation of a Minister anxious to allay anxiety. The aeronautical correspondent of the Morning Post declares plainly that the claim is not justified by facts. He states_ that Britain has an army pattern biplane which is as good as any other, but is not in a class by itself as "the best'." Colonel Seely, he states, appears to consider it something wonderful that it has been timed to attain a maximum mean speed over a short distance of 91.4 miles an hour. Franco has aeroplanes that travel at the rate of 120 miles an hour and, have flown 119 complete miles in sixty minutes; so that we are only three-quarters on the way to attain such speed as is already possible. Corning back to the strength of Britain's air fleet, when compared with that of France Colonel Seely's announcements seem to have placed the generally accepted figures largely out of date; but it is quite clear that, whatever Britain's position may be with regard to aeroplanes, she is much behind the two countries named as far as the large airships are concerned. The most recent comparative statement given in The Times of March 21 shows that the Germans have about 27 dirigibles built or building, with j a range of WOO to 1500 miles, and a speed of over 50 miles an hour. J They have also more than twice as many aeroplanes as Britain and 100 more are on order. Each German army corps will this year possess 12 aeroplanes, and more than 100 arc expected to take part in this year's manoeuvres. The French have seven dirigibles on order besides those existing, and 450 aeroplanes in army charge, besides many hundred others. Russia comes next to France in air power, according to The Times, but Colonel Seely will not'admit this,; and everyone will hope that the Minister is right. In any case it is cheering to know that real progress is being made. There must, howover, be no standing still, for the other great European Powers are pressing forward year by year, and in such matters there is no such thing as finality. Let us hope that Colonel Seely was not unduly optimistic when he stated in concluding his speech that "we have made an advance without parallel in the period named, and I think it will be found that in at least two respects, of the nations of the world, we stand first. In another respect wo stand second, in another respect we stand third, and in no respect do we stand lower than third among the nations of the world. That has been achieved in a short time, and by complete co-operation between the Army and Navy. I hope and believe that that co-operation will continue,- and that as a consequence we may be able to show a similar advance, if nob in numbers—for that is a matter for consideration—at any rate in scientific advance in the year that is to come."