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Aviation History
1917
1917 - 0989.PDF
Flight, September 27, 1917. ENGISE&R? First A«ro Weekly in the World. Pounder and Editor: STANLEY SPOONER. A Journal devoted to the Interest*, Practice, and Progress of Aerial Locomotion and Transport. OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE ROYAL AERO CLUB OF THE UNITED KINGDOM. No. 4M7. (No. 39, Vol. IX.) SEPTEMBER 27, 1917. L POM Free, 4d. and The Aircraft Engineer. Editorial Office: 44, ST. MARTIN'S LANE, LONDON, W.C. 2. T«legrams : Truditur, Westrand, London. Telephone: Gerrard 1828. Annual Subscription Rates, Post Free. United Kingdom .. 15$. 2a7. Abroad.. .. .. 10s. od. CONTENTS. Editorial Comment : • • PAGE Night Air Raid Warnings .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 989 "The Air as a Career" .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 989 The Work of Our Airmen .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 990 "Only in the AirJ' .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 992 Honours .. .. 993 .The Roll of Honour . 994 Wing Bracing and Head Resistance. *hy Marco Polo 99s The Burgess Speed Scout Biplane (with scale drawings) 997 The Royal Aero Club. Official Notices 1000 Answers to Correspondents '.. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1000 Turin to London Non-Stop .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1001 Airisms from the FOOT Winds .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1002 Personals .. .. .. . .. 1065 "X"' Aircraft Raids 1006 The British Air Services .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1007 Aircraft Work at the Front. Official Information „ 1009 Magneto Ignition .. .. .. .. .. .... .. .. 1010 The Society of British Aircraft Constructors .. .. .. .. .. 1012 Side-Winds .. .. 1013 Correspondence .. .. ..' .. .. .. .. .. .. 1014 Imports and Exports, 1916-1917 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1014 EDITORIAL COMMENT. ITH the full moon this week end and favourable conditions for enemy airmen to carry out further raids on the Metropolis, a great deal of interest centres about the question of to warn or not warn. It is one to which there are dis- tinctly two sides, as has been found in the case of daylight warnings in London and in other parts of the country. If the warning was AiUnL*.* invariably, or even in a majority of Warnings, cases, actually followed by an attack from the air, then the case for giving warning might be considered as proved up to the hilt. As a matter of fact, however, it is all the other way, and the number of cases in which warning of a probable raid upon London is followed by actual attack is relatively small, and it is to be questioned if the nervous tension inflicted on the population by the anticipation of raids that do not materialise is not almost as harmful as the actual damage to life and property caused by those that do. So far as the specific case of London is concerned, it must also be remembered that we are dealing with a * city of vast distances, so vast that it is possible for a raid of considerable magnitude to take place in one district without others being aware that anything untoward is happening. If warnings are to be given at all, they must be general warnings. 'It is impossible for the authorities to say that an enemy raid is likely to happen and that bombs will probably be dropped, let us say, wdthin a mile radius of Kennington Oval and that the population of the district will do well to get to cover. All the outlying observation stations can say is that x number of enemy machines are mak- ing for London, but whether they will get there at all, or whether they will drop their bombs on Chiswick or Barking, no one can say. Therefore, it logically follows that both Chiswick and Barking—with the whole of the districts intervening—must be given a general warning. That means some seven millions of people have their nerves put on edge by a warning which, perhaps, remotely concerns a quarter of a million. We say remotely because it is not more than one in four or five anticipated raids which actually comes off. Apart from the nerve strain, there is always the real danger that a system of night warnings might actually increase the number of raid casualties by bringing people out of their homes, where they are reasonably safe, into the streets where they would be in danger not only from enemy bombs but from our own gun-fire. Taking the case all round, we are decidedly with the authorities in their decision not to institute general warnings of threatened night raids, although there exists a strong case in favour of warning being given up to, say, about midnight. Under this heading a writer in the " The Air Daily Mail sees in the aircraft industry Career." °^ the future at least a partial solution of the vexed problem of " what to do with our boys.'' He believes that by the air thousands of lads now in their teens will gain not only comfortable livelihoods but really big incomes in the years to come after the war. Aeroplanes in 1923, he says, are going to be very much like motor cars in 1900—the rich man's hobby; and the aeroplane industry in its many branches offers splendid opportunities for the right sort of boy who is given the training now to fit
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