ATTACK BY AIR.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 July 1922, Page 5

ATTACK BY AIR.

f‘A MENACE TO BRITAIN.” REPORT BEING OBTAINED, STRENGTH OF THE FORCES. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received July 28, 8.50 p.m. London, July 27. Tn the House of Lords, Lord Londonderry asked whether the Government was aware of the nation’s anxiety regarding the alleged deficiencies in the air service and serious menace threatening the country from the air. Lord Long said he believed Britain was spending more proportionately than other countries on air services, but was not achieving anything like adequate protection, notably in the direction of providing fighting machines. Lord Gorell, replying, welcomed the increasing public attention to the question of air power. As far as could be estimated now a separate Air Ministry was less costly than a separate Naval Ministry of Air Servicer.. Undoubtedly there was a m-qat potential air menace to Britain. Probably, if war came, there would be continuous air raids on docks, factories, food depots and mobilisation places, which would demand a revision of the older ideas and methods. Lord Gorell said nothing that land or sea forces could do could prevent the menace from the air. The Committee on Imperial Defence was investigating the whole subject, and would shortly report whether the situation demanded the provision of more machines and expenditure. There were now 32% air squadrons, twenty of which were serving overseas. The navy had 358 machines and the army 111, in addition to six>v held as the) first reserve and six for field training.—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. NAVY OR AIRCRAFT? CONTROVERSY AS TO VALUE. Received July 28, 10.30 p.m. London, July 28. A spirited controversy is being continued relative to the value set on warcraft aeroplanes, being accentuated by Colonel L. C. Amery’s statement when replying to a question in the House of Commons that so far as the Admiralty was aware no navy possesses an aeroplane capable of sinking a capital ship by a bomb or a torpedo. The Daily News says the position taken up by Stato air service advocates is: “Give us a battleship and we shall be delighted to sink her in a few minutes, but there is no battleship at our disposal for the purpose of experimental destruction.” The News instances the case of the German twenty-eight thousand tonner Ostfriesland. which was sunk by two bombs, each of two thousand pounds weight, which were dropped alongside and exploded several feet below the sifrfaee of the water.—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.