EMPIRE AIR FORCES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 112, 5 February 1920, Page 5

EMPIRE AIR FORCES

A COMMON POLICY

AERIAL SUPREMACY IN THE . FUTURE By Telegraph-Press Association-Copyright London, February 2. Major-Genoral Sykes lectured on Imperial air routes before the Geographical Society, in the presence of a large gathering, including the Prince of Wales nnd official representatives of tho Dominions. General Sykes defined the rentes as being:—Egypt to India, Cairo to the Cape, India to Australia, England to Egypt, England lo Canada, and England to tho West l'udi"s via the Azores, lie emphasised the necessity for keeping tin? first line of a fighting Air Force always on a war footing. Military aviation, however, was circumscribed on tho ground of finance, while civil aviation must never cease to expand. Each would co-operate, one for Imperial defence and the other as an instrument for the development of Imperial trade, which could be used if necessary as a great aerial reserve. Tic hoped that before long the air forces of the Empire would be welded for strategical purposes into one force, co-ordinated by the Imperial Air Staff. Ho was.of oninion that the principles of the service a"d civil aviation experiments applied enual'v in the Nonunions and in the Mother Country. If the air power of the Empire, both Service and civil, were developed and eo-ordinated. its air simremney might in future be more vain, able in assisting, to maintain the world's peace than sea supremacy had been in tl' n past. Examining the rentes, he said that the one from Egypt to India held out many advantages, owing to the great saving of time po=sible compared with sea. voyages. Similarly, the. Cairn to Bagdad and Smith Hricen'routes offend potentialities which it was impossible to assess. The hna senbord of tho two islands of Kcw Zealand seemed chosen by- Nature for seaplanes. The practicability of Malta as an intermediate landing-ground was now being considered. The lecturer dwelt on the necessity for the- co-operntion of the Post Office. Air mails were the Teal foundation of the whole system on which the Imperial routes must be based in order to compete successfully' in commerce. Aircraft must aim at completing a journey in onethird of the time taken by other means of transport. Excluding the flights from Knglnnd to Australia, machines made by the principal firms between Mav 1 and December 31 last year (lew 5M.000 miles, carried 64,000 passengers, and only had eighteen accidents, resulting in five deaths.

General Sykes expressed the opinion that the future air policy of the component parts of the Empire would be to keep in close touch with Enitland in matters of common policy. Each of the Dominions should have a small service and a large civil air fleet, and ihe Empire ajr organisation "hould be able to quickly concentrate them for its assistance in ca°e of need.

Tho president of the society. Sir Francis Yminghushnnd. snid th" Prince of Wales was doing Empire work of the greate=t importance. TTe had. been successfully emlc-mnring to nut the vari""s parts of the Empire on good terms with each other, and V'l m"de himself «. very precious asset of the Empire'. TTe booed the Prnco would learn froni the lecture something as io how ho mirht i'i future nosMlilv go to Canada, Australia, New Z<\i'nnd. South Africa, nnd other parts of rbn 'Empire to opn" Pnrliaments. *H to India to open Durbars—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.-P,outer.