READY RESPONSE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 May 1940, Page 6

READY RESPONSE

AERO CLUBS ANSWER CALL FOR ASSISTANCE

INTEREST FREE LOANS GIVEN TO GOVERNMENT

GIFT AIRCRAFT HANDED BACK.

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day

A tribute to the response of aero clubs to the call for assistance in the war effort was paid by Mr Nash, who said that on the outbreak of war it was necessary for the air board to requisition for training purposes their aircraft and other equipment. The New Zealand Aero Club, with whom the provincial clubs were affiliated had resolved that the balance of compensation due to each club, after allowing for any cash required to meet liabilities should be treated as an interest free loan to the Government for war purposes for *the duration of the war.

The Minister supplied the following list of clubs who had made such interest free loans, together with the amounts in each case: Canterbury, £6305; Hawke's Bay and East Coast. £1441; Marlborough, £722; Middle Districts (Palmerston North), £1713; New Plymouth, £639; Otago, £2030; Southland. £1228; Waikato £1235; Wairarapa, £1193; Wanganui, £1236: Wellington, £5440; Western Federated (Taranaki), £424; West Coast United. £101: total, £23,707. In addition, certain aero clubs which had received a Government subsidy in the form of gifts of training aircraft had agreed to hand the aircraft back to the Government on the understanding that they would be replaced at the end of the war, with other training aircraft. Following is the list of clubs, togethei with the number of aircraft handed over under this arrangement:—Canterbury, Marlborough. Middle Districts, Otago. Waikato. Wairarapa, Wellington, West Coast. United, one each, Hawke’s Bay and East Coast. New Plymouth, Southland, two each.

INTEREST-FREE LOANS

SOME FURTHER CONTRIBUTIONS

WELLINGTON. This Day. The total interest-free loans received by the Government Io date is £1,861,131. It includes contributions from the Christchurch Press Company, £5,000 for the duration of the war and six months thereafter; New Zealand Locomotive Engineers' Firemen and Cleaners’ Association. Wellington, £l.OOO for the duration of the war and twelve months thereafter, and Mr W. 11. Reid, Wanganui. £l,OOO for the duration of the war and six months thereafter.