DEFENCE EXPANSION

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20001, 28 July 1939, Page 11

DEFENCE EXPANSION

ARMY AND AIR FORCE BULK PETROL STORAGE OFFICERS AS INSTRUCTOR (rer Presß Association.) WELLINGTON, this day. Further plans for tire development of the army and air force were announced by the Minister o. Defence, ihe Hon. F. Jones yesterday. The Minister emphasised that th work of m..k.ng tae D„minLn's defences effective were proceeding apace and, although it was natura.iy not possible to tell the pub everything about the measures in hand, the people could rest assured taat nothing was being overlooked. It had been decided, he said, . t retain for another year the servicer of Wing-Commander G. S. Hodson, who is in charge of the flying training .school at Wigram, and is on in.erchange with Wing-Commander J. L,. Findlay, who is at present in England. Authority had been given, said the Minister, for the purchase of two Fraser-Nash gun-t.urrents for high■peed aircraft and these would boused for ground training at Oh alee" and Whenuapai. Further develop uent at Ohakea would include the installation of six 20,000-gallon tank c and one 11.000-gallon tank for the storage of bulk petrol. Dealing with the air force exoansion at Blenheim, he said tha. arrangements were being made for the installation there of directionending wireless equipment. An electric power and water tower would also be installed there. The army development, said Mr. Tones, included the expenditure of <25450 at Narrow Neck camp on a new garage and gunpark and store expansion. Thirty-six officers of the > 'e c erve of officers and 72 non-com-missioned officers, selected from the •■oen 'who have registered with tlr Military Reserve to undergo refresher courses of six days at the dis*v'ct instruction schools. At the comoletion of their courses, these me” would be in a position jo undertake ‘.he training of class reservists.