The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Tunes FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1932. BRITISH AIRCRAFT.

Hokitika Guardian, 25 November 1932, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Tunes FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1932. BRITISH AIRCRAFT.

In view of the present i: .certainty of affairs in Europe, and the Far Fast, seme comment lias btvn made in regard to the position of Great Britain in regard to her aircraft as compared with other countries. In a recent speech in Parliament Mr Baldwin emphasised tiny menace to British comm unities through the use of aircradt in war time. It is practically established that aircraft will play an. impoitant and destructive part in the next war. Having reaching the point that another war is no longer “unthinkable,” British people throughout the Empire are not unnaturally concerned' about the state of their air defences. According to official figures compiled for the League of Nations Armaments Year Book, the- relative positions of the great in respect of fighting aircraft placets Great Britain numerically at a bottom of the list. It was pointed out in a recent message published that Rritair, who at the end of th-» War possessed the world’s largest air force, has reached the present position of numerical inferiority through her own action, The diminution of strength, however, is more apparent than real. The balance has been adjusted by achievements in engineering design and workmanship which have placed Great Britair in the lore-front of world airmanship. What has been lost in numbers has been made up in quality and performance. Great Britain possesses the fastest and most efficient aircraft in the world, and since speed and reliability are the winning factors in aerial warfare, quality, rather than numbers, is the best measure of comparative strengths. A,s a matter of fact,” states ‘The Aeroplane” in. an editorial comment, “we probably have just about as inafiy effective first-line aeroplanes as has France, and perhaps more, because all of ours actually fly.’ This, of course, is a comforting assurance, but it is not enough to quieteh public 'apprehensions concerning the future. Conceding all that may be argued*in regard to quality a> against numbers, the fact remains that the odds in actual warfare acre in favour of numbers. The French preponderance over Britain is nearly one thousand. The disparity is too great. It is not a 'question of Britain versus France, or aiv’ o'-’-.er nation, but of having at hand an effective argument in international diplomacy. That hs the point that was made by Sir Austen Chamberlain In a speech last year against the reduction of our naval strength, and it applies with even greater force in regard to our strength in aircraft.