TEN THOUSAND ARMOURED AEROPLANES.

Taranaki Daily News, 6 November 1915, Page 11 (Supplement)

TEN THOUSAND ARMOURED AEROPLANES.

A REMARKABLE STATEMENT. The Xe\v York Herald is responsible for the following remarkable statement: A fleet of 10,000 armored aeroplanes equipped with machine-guns, searchlights, and a newly-perfected bomb-drop-ping device is being hurried to completion in this country, Canada, and elsewhere for use by the British Government in protecting London and the English

coast from further attacks by Zeppelin dirigibles. Great Britain already has a fleet of '2OO aeroplanees of various types and speed, but who id constructing here, in Canada uud in England the n)ighiiest fleet aerial war craft i* existence, it was said, and already the flrat flotilla ol 20 aeroplanes, of which the giant, America, built to cross the Atlantic Ocean, was the forerunner, are in operation.' The waiplane Canada is on the wa f to England, and aboard the same vessel are half-a-dozen of her prototypes, while in the works at Toronto hundreds more of a liLf pattern are being constructed. In Kn;j Canada and the colonies students are being taught to fly in leaf tiian nnt-tjnarter the time usually con*' sumed. Already more than one hundred Canadians, drilled in the art of flying at the Curtiss plants, are in England, awaiting the arrival of the great warplanety before going into active service.

ONE HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR. These aeroplanes have a maximum speed of one hundred miles an hour. They are capable of carrying six men and a large amount of explosives, and are equipped with four machine-gun's and a powenul searchlight. Fully equipped the great ivarplanes are expected to fly at an altitude of l'J,oooft for [our hours. This 'a ;](ji)oft higher than the usual altitude of the Zeppelins. With their revolving searchlights and a signalling system, it is expected it will be possible to circumvent any attack by German dirigibles on any vital spot along the Knpliuh coast., and to make it impoa* sitile tor any Zeppelin to reach Londou.

I'rotiling l>y Hritain's lesson, Italy, too, is ]iiop;iriii« against Zeppelin -Invasions, .Mr. Albert lleinricii, an aero* nuuti.-a! engineer and member of the American Society of Aeronautic Engineers, said. lie, has just returned from that country, whore he aided army experls in demonstrating to aviators a MW army tractor biplane.

AX EXPERT'S STATEMENT. "There is a perfect frenzy throughout the world by nations, neutral and ftti war, to obtain aeroplanes," he said, "la Italy great plants are at, work turning out armored warplanes, the like of which were not dreamed of a year ago, They are constructed with two '2BQ-hor»e--power engines, similar to the Canada, recently built for the British Governs nient. These planes, equipped with s»4 chine-guns, a crew of four or six men, and bomb-throwing devices, make a formidable weapon of offence and defence."

Germany is making her Zeppelin raids on London iu a wild attempt to revenge the great damage done by the Allies in aeroplane raids on important munitions' depots, Mr. Henry Woodhouse, governor of the Aero Ciub of America and managing editor of Flying, said. "But England is developing the most amazing air fleet of the world to combat the Zeppelin," he added. "f ilave information which makes certain that there will soon be, not hundreds of great, armored war planes guarding London, but thousands. 1 '