THE AIR FLEETS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 1300, 22 September 1914, Page 4

THE AIR FLEETS.

AIRSHIPS AND AEROPLANES. THE TEST OF WAR. QUESTIONS TO BE SETTLED. Although a few exploits went to the credit of aeroplanes during the wars in Tripoli and in the Balkans, not much experience was gained to indicate the true value ot the aeroplane in a military sense. The theoretical value of flying has been very thoroughly discussed, and in the present war, tor the first time in history, men are fighting in the air, Germany and France are the leading flying nations in the military sense ; and Russia has done lar more in this direction than is generally supposed. Great Britain has made a marked recovery from the apathy which only a year or two ago raised up a host of incensed critics who foresaw the islands smothered by a fluttering army. British experts believe that they have now, as the result of quiet and patient experiment, developed the best military aeroplane in the world. In this department, as in others of military affairs, one cannot quote figures with confidence. At the end of r9i3 the number of aircraft possessed by the Powers in the Triple Entente were : Great Britain —130 aeroplanes and 5 airships, France—7so aeroplanes and 21 airships. Russia —380 aeroplanes and 8 airships. In the Dual Alliance the figures were : Germany—3so aeroplanes and 21 airships. Austria—lso aeroplanes and 6 airships.

But while it is comparatively easy to keep an eye on the construction of such large and impressive objects as airships, no one knows how many aeroplanes each nation may have provided secretly , and in any case the machines are so inexpensive and can be .c quickly made that a nation s equiment can be doubled in a very short time. Probably the nearest available statement of the British position was given in May. Mr Harold Baker, Financial Secretary to the War Office, stated in the House of Commons that the War Office had 176 aeroplanes, of which at that time 70 were, under repair. The number of Britishmade machines was 136. Whatever the nominal numerical strength of the flying arms of any nation in war time it may be greatly increased almost immediately. Germany, France and England especially abound with flying schools ; and there are perhaps some thousands of privatelyowned aeroplanes more or less efficient. The schools have been turning out certificated pilots, many of them accomplished fliers, at such a rate that the new profession is already overcrowded. Here, then, is an ideal source of supply, both of men and of implements. These young pilots, all of whom have a dash ol mote than average daring and certainly a strong yearning for distinction, are eager in the warmth of patriotic enthusiasm to burn their petrol in a good cause. THE TYPES OE AEROPEANES. The new art of flying has given birth to a new vocabulary, and it is obvious to anyone interested in the subject that the great majority of the public do not yet grasp the meaning of many of the vital terms. First of all it is well to understand that an aeroplane is not an airship. The aeroplane flies and is sustained by wings ; the airship is an elongated balloon propelled by screws, and floats whether it is driven or not, while the aeroplane must descend if its engine stops.

Next there is the distinction between the aeroplane and the sea plane. There is, from the flying point of view, very little difference. Both are aeroplanes, but the sea plane is an aquatic bird. It is equipped with floats so that it can rise from or alight upon water. Conversely it cannot use the land. The more comprehensive word aeroplane is becoming restricted to mean the machine which has wheels for starting from and landing on the ground. It is as helpless on the water as a hen. Quite obviously the wheeled aeroplane is the army machine, and the sea plane’s province is that of the navy. In both cases machines may, be either biplanes or monoplanes, though for sea work the biplane seems to be; used almost exclusively. In both cases, too, very similar requirements exist in the flying qualities of the machines.

It is interesting to note the directions in which the military point of view has affected aeroplane design. The sporting flier can fly when and to a great extent where he chooses. The military or naval aviator must fly when and where he must; and he cannot always land upon a lawn. He has certain duties to perform, and certain risks to run. One of the most important outcomes of the trying conditions of service requirements is that machines are now being made which will fly at various speeds, the slowest being sometimes little more than half the fastest. That enables an aviator to cover distances at a high speed, and yet make a fairly comfortable landing, which is not easy at very high speeds except in favourable circumstances and on good ground. There are roughly two types of military aeroplanes. One is a weight carrier, which may carry a gun, and there are several makes now in existence. They are large and not extremely fast. As a rule the “Nacelle” or cockpit is set far forward and the passenger occupies the front seat where he has a clear view all round. If the plane is armed, it is with a light machine gun capable of being turned in any direction and set just in front of the passenger. The pilot has nothing to do but drive and control the aeroplane which is quite enough. These machines are all biplanes. THE FAST SCOUT. The second broad division is the scouting type. They may be either bi-planes or monoplanes, but they are all comparatively small, and very fast. Their engine power is high, so that they climb fast; and herein lies their means of safety, for they are unarmed. If they are attacked either from the ground or by an armed aeroplane, they need not stop to argue, but can take refuge in a direct flight from the spot, or in a steep climb which the heavier armed machine has no hope of emulating. The scout type now includes some aeroplanes of highly interesting design, for the makers, faced with special conditions, have in some cases broken well away from earlier practice. This is particularly noticeable, for instance, in the methods of bracing the wings. In some of tbe new machines the numerous wire stays and wooden struts have been very much reduced in number, so as to avoid the considerable resistance they offer to swift flight. Scouts carry either the . pilot alone or a pilot and an observer. Subject to the drawback that two men are heavier than one, the latter is much the better arrangement, because observation tor military purposes is no trifling task, and only by the greatest care and attention can an observer collect data for a report without being misled by peculiar natural appearances or by the ruses of an enemy. AIRSHIPS. As for airships, they have for years been the peculiar love of the

German nation, Most unhappy, too, has been the history of their use, for disaster after disaster has befallen the Zeppelins which have flown with such success as has only made the disasters all the worse. Since the war commenced two ot these ships are reported to have been destroyed. The Zeppelin type is a greatly elongated body of which the outer envelope surrounds a rigid framework of aluminium girders- Within are a number of spherical balloons, filled with hydrogen. The Zeppelins are of huge length, and carry a car near each end. The Zeppelin has a big carrying capacity, and can be imagined as loading up with as much as a ton of explosives. Other airships are of the semi-rigid and non-rigid type. The former is provided with a metal keel to which the passenger car and engines are fixed, while in the non-rigid machine the car and propelling machinery are suspended from the long balloon by a system of ropes. In these types the inflation of the balloon is the most important factor in keeping it in shape. Germany, with many Zeppelins, and a fleet of 51 dirigibles altogether, and France, with as many airships, none of them of the rigid type, are far the strongest Powers in respect to these arms ; and it is quite likely that there will be some remarkable happenings with these strange and untried monsters. England has never troubled much with dirigibles, and has only five small ones. FIGHTING FROM THE AIR. How much fighting can be done from aeroplanes ? Here is a problem which, without experience, cannot be solved, even by flying men. It is at present rather hopeless to expect much in the way of gunnery. Only a light machine-gun can be carried, and it is intended for use against other flying machines rather than against forces on the ground. The more likely source of damage to an enemy lies in the bombs which an aviator can carry, and which, as experience has proved, can be dropped with reasonably good aim at a target of fair size—a ship, or a body of troops close together, or a big building. The aeroplane is not, as far as present theory goes, a true fighting machine except in a sort of guerilla warfare ; it is primarily a scout. The case of the airship is different. A big dirigible can carry a score of men and a big load of explosives ; if it is not frightened by the defensive measures of the laud forces, it can do one thing which the aeroplane cannot —it can keep still; and it can rain down a shower of bombs with almost unerring aim. Naturally, it is at a disadvantage because it is a huge and attractive target, and because any aeroplane can overtake it, and wreck it in half-a-dozen ways ; but there is no doubt that a dirigible equipped for war is a nasty enemy.