BOMBS FROM AIRSHIPS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 3151, 31 March 1909, Page 3

BOMBS FROM AIRSHIPS.

"Can England be invaded?" The question is asked in all seriousness by a writer in the February number of "La Revue de I'Aviatici)." The navy, he presumes, can dispose of any attempt in that direction by sea. But what of the air? The progress of aeronautical science, he says, has caused some stirrings of unquietude among thinking minds in Great Britain. Not so far as France is' concerned, the implicit alliance between the two nations removes uneasiness on that scure. But the stories of what have been done by German dirigible balloons have given rise to some uneasiness. The writer. M. Larisson, is inclined to scoff at the idea of invasion, and, above all, of invasion by Zeppelin balloons. Invasion by aeroplane now would be quite possible. But—it is a big "but" —an effective invasion would mean tha construction of 20,000 machines, each capable of carrying five persons. The cost of such an aerial fleet would be at least A' 4,000,000, and suitable landing places would have to be found. If they were found, he remarks drily, it is fairly certain that they would be kept under observation, and suitable preparations in the way of artillery would be made for the landing parties. No, on the whole, Larisson thinks there is no need for England to be alarmed by the prospect ot invasion by aero- j planes. But as to dirigibles. Obviously the most desirable operation for hostile dirigibles would be to wipe out the Channel and Home fleet. The difficulty would be for the balloon to find out where the warships were, and a voyage of exploration to this end would simply mean almost certain loss. So far, M. Larisson is comforting. But he turns to another aspect of the question, as to which his words deserve to be carefully weighed. "There exists," he says, "another way in which enormous damage might be inflicted on England—the destruction by dynamite of the ports of war, the shipbilding yards, the dockyards, the arsenal, the depots of supplies." He continues:— "Let us suppose, in fact, a dirigible, of a rapacity of 15,000 cubic metres, specially Jesiaed to have a lifting capacity of 5,000 kilos, as would be the case in an auto balloon of the Astral pattern. With this capacity it could carry a 500 h.p. motor and sufficient spirit, oil, and water for a journey of 1,000 kilometres, as well six passengers, the necessary sandbags, and a ballast margin of 1,500 kilos, which would represent a weight of dynamite or torpedoes. "Here, then, you have a balloon capable of braving the air for a minimum of 12 hours, travelling at 50 kilometres an hour for a distance of 600 kilometres, and carrying 1,500 kilos of dynamite; 300 kilometres out and 300 back —that would be sufficient to explore the British Isles. "Let us carry the idea further, and suppose 20 ballons of the type described, which could compensate for lost ballast by balloonets in the interior of the envelope. These 20 dirigibles could bring 30,000 kilos of dynamite on a single journey. These are appalling figures, and they suggest the total destruction of the great English ports of war, such as Portsmouth, Hull, Dover, Plymouth, j etc. "The dirigible is, in fact, the only war engine capable of inflicting injury on the British power, by attacking her at*weak points insufficiently protected against incursions attempted along the aerial route. Relatively it would not be a costly matter — £1,200,000 would suffice for the cons ruction of 20 aerial torpedo cruis.eis and of tn«ir sheds. It is not impossible that the governing classes in England have lifted this corner of tne veil Lehind which the future is mapped out. In that case their uneasiness is intelligible. "The future (a future which might be the present) is left, then, to a l partial destruction by means of the dirigible. For her security England would not do badly to study practically the question of guns or mortars capable of discharging sharpnel to a height of 1,000 metres."