SUPREME IN THE AIR

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2874, 12 September 1916, Page 5

SUPREME IN THE AIR

STRIKING TESTIMONY TO BRITAIN. Zealand Cablo Association. London, September 10. Mr. Bell, the Chicago correspondent of tho "Daily News," in a. striking article on tho development of,aircraft, says that directly the war started Great Britain decided to incroaso her iieet by 600 per cent. Forty million pounds had already been spent in construction alone compared with inly ono million before tho war. Instead of eighty aeroplanes there are now thousands. The air mechanics number tens of thousands. Engineers had solved the problem of automatic stability. Great Britain's policy was not to star her aviators, though many had brought down five, 6ix, and seven of their opponents. There had been cases of two or three British machines accepting battle with twenty Fokkers. Sometimes after bringing down the Germans tho British airmen descended and fought their -opponents on the ground. Aoroplanes had been known to continue to fly after being riddled by three hundred bullets. During the Somrao push > the aviators fly for four and eight' hours. Already they had flown,'a million miles over the enemy lines. Youthful pilots were the host; men over forty were' generally useless. There wero many instances of shattered and lost nerves. It is not everyono who has tho moral fortitude to stand the deadly conflicts in' tho air. Tho British aviators wore now thoroughly export night-fliers. Their aeroplanes aro equipped with tho most effective guns, hence the fate of recent Zeppelins.'