SIR CYRIL NEWALL

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 85, 7 October 1940, Page 6

SIR CYRIL NEWALL

POPULAR AIRMAN

NEW GOVERNOR-GENERAL

LOOKING FORWARD TO N.Z. VISIT

LONDON, October 5

One of the pioneers of the Royal | Air Force and holder of the 144 th . flying licence issued in England, • Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir ' Cyril Newall, Goyernor-General- ; designate of New Zealand, during a i discussion with representatives of the j United Press Association on the general war situation revealed the clear intelligence and profound! , knowledge of the problems of aerial j warfare which enabled him to outlast ; three Chiefs of the Imperial General ■ Staff and two First Sea Lords during his three years' membership among ; the Chiefs of Staffs. i Three rows of ribbons illuminate his uniform, on the left breast of which the fading and discoloured wings give some indication of his length of service. His subordinates in the Air Ministry pay tribute to Sir Cyril Newall's remarkable attention to detail and deplore the loss of the chief who guided the Air Force to the highest pinnacle of service yet achieved. The new Governor-General learnt to fly while on leave from the Indian Army in 1911, when he undertook a course at the Central Flying School at Bristol. He flew a Bristol box-kite, which was described as being kept together by string, rubber bands, glue, and nails. It was capable of a speed of 60 miles an hour and an altitude of 3000 to 4000 feet. SERVICE IN GREAT WAR. Sir Cyril Newall returned to India fired with the desire to initiate a similar flying school there, but he encountered opposition. However, he persevered, and two years later induced the authorities to lay the foundation for a school which had scarcely begun operations before the war broke out. Sir Cyril Newall's regiment went to France, and he joined the Royal Flying Corps as a flight commander. He was appointed in 1917 to command the 41st bombing wing, which carried out an offensive against German objectives in order to counter the air raids against London. Sir Cyril Newall's wing was the forerunner of the independent air force created in; 1918, in which he commanded the Bth Brigade. In 1916 he was awarded the Albert Medal for conspicuous gallantry. When fire broke out inside a large R.A.F. bomb store containing 2000 high-explosive bombs, he led a small party which extinguished the flames. "Though I am sorry to leave my present post, I am tremendously honoured and pleased, particularly as my wife and I have always been interested in New Zealand- and hoped' for an opportunity of visiting it," Sir Cyril told the United Press Association. "As for the job here, I am always in favour of changes, especially when I have a successor like Sir Charles Portal, who is a first-rate fellow. "I was greatly touched to receive a message of congratulation and greetings from the New Zealand Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, and also one from Air Headquarters at Wellington. "I am taking my two daughters, aged 14 and 13, and my son, aged 10. They are delighted at the prospect. DEFENCE PROBLEMS IN N.Z. "I am looking forward to meeting the people who are making such a noble contribution to the defeat of the enemy. I am also eager for close association with the defence forces, particularly the Air Force, and desire to study the defence problems at first hand, though my work on the Chiefs of Staffs Committee has given me an insight into the defence of the Empire as a whole. I have never before been further east than Calcutta, though I have once crossed the Equator by motor-car and several times by air." Fishing, particularly fly-fishing, is Sir Cyril Newall's principal hobby. He has never done any big-game fishing, but hopes to learn the art in New Zealand. He is also intensely interested in music and painting. The Royal Air Force swears by Sir Cyril Newall, whose command is always personal—never that of the impersonal administrator. When the i complete history of the Royal Air Force is written after the war it will also be the biography of Sir Cyril. There are few aspects of its growth in which he did not have a hand. He nursed the Royal Air Force throughout its two most critical years. APPOINTMENT AT HEIGHT OF HIS CAREER. The "Daily Mail" says there is no muddle or crushing defeat behind Sir Cyril Newall's departure. He has spent a lifetime flying, and no man has relinquished the command of the fighting force at a moment of greater achievement. "The Times" says that Sir Cyril Newall will take to New Zealand the good wishes of all ranks of the Royal Air Force, with whom he is exceedingly popular. After his appointment as Chief of the Air Staff in 1937, he worked untiringly to make the Royal Air Force the finest air force in the world. He has seen it grow out of all knowledge, both in size and efficiency. He retained the command long enough to see his ambition achieved. Sir Cyril's appointment has sur- : prised aviation circles, who pay a tribute to his great tactical gifts and state that he has borne the brunt of organising the Royal Air Force's < struggle, both in defence of the Homeland and in hammering Europe. One aeronautical authority declared that the modern Royal Air Force w«sr>avtly Sir Cyril's creation. He was Chief of the Air Staff throughout its tremendous expansion, and forged a formidable weapon.