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Aviation History
1931
1931 - 0880.PDF
FLIGHT, AUGUST 21, with a sureness not inferior to that of a regular bomber squadron. So far as target practice is a criterion, and it is the only criterion by which even the regulars can be judged, we can trust the Auxiliary squadrons to drop their bombs with accuracy, and to shoot straight at any enemy formations which attempted to intercept them. Of the " stuff " which is in the men there is, of course, no doubt whatever. There was once a foolish impression abroad that only members of regular fighting services would dis- play steadfast courage when under lire. The great war speedily dispelled that illusion. Our great army in 1918 was almost entirely composed of civilians, and our great air force at the same time was entirely so composed. The British fighting spirit is found in all classes and all callings of the people. When considering the place of amateur airmen in the scheme of national defence, the Cadre or Special Reserve squadrons should be classed with the units of the Auxiliary Air Force. In the former the officers are about half regulars and half Special Reserve, the commanding officer being a regular. In the latter all the officers are auxiliaries except the adju- tant and the assistant adjutant. Both classes of squadrons, however, provide openings for civilians to take part in the air defence of the country. One would like to see every large town provided with a squadron of one or other of these classes. There are 13 squadrons in all in No. 1 Air Defence Group. The present location of the squadrons is as follows. London has three, Birmingham, Glasgow, Belfast, Bristol, Nottingham, Durham and Edinburgh have one each, while three other squadrons draw their men from the counties of Lincoln, Kent, and the North Riding. Several of the squadrons are named after counties, but obviously depend chief] / on the chief own of the county. The backwardness of the North of England is noticeable in this geographical lisi, for the Durham and North Riding squadrons are stiil in their infancy, and as yet there is no squadron in Lancashn \ No one can cast any doubts on the nir-mindedness of Manchester and Liverpool, and so the ui.-ence of any squadron in the whole county of Lancashire is quite remarkable. We frequenti 1 receive letters from young men in the North-West of England who arc anxious to serve their country in the air and who inquire which is the nearest Auxiliary squadron which they can join. It is depressing to have to inform them that there is no sue h squadron in their part of the world. Yorkshire u\<w has a newly formed squadron, and Yorkshire is ii'.t far away from Lancashire. But the Territorial County Associations which raise the Auxiliary squadrons depend largely on local patriotism as a level in raising recruits. It is notorious that the age-long friendly rivalry between the counties of the Red Rose and the White Rose is still very strong, and a Lancashire lad would not ieel very enthusiastic about joining a Yorkshire unit. Belfast is also not very far away from his home, but a nasty stretch of water lies between, and steamer passages cost money. There really seems no obvious outlet for the patriotism of the Lancashire airman. The Midlands, a great industrial area, can boast two squadrons; but surely that is not enough Leicester strikes us as a city which ought to support a squadron, for it is a city which has won eminence in air matters. Other places might also be mentioned. The expansion of the Air Defence of Great Britain, to which all the Special Reserve and Auxiliary squad- rons belong, is taking place very slowly. Economy has dictated this slow rate of progress, and economy seems likely to become a still more biting nuisance in the near future. Still, expansion is taking place, and no form of expansion is more economical than the formation of A.A.F. squadrons. We believe that if a city or county approaches the Air Ministry, and urges that it is able and willing to raise and maintain an air squadron, it is usually met with enthusiastic sympathy. Why both Manchester and Liverpool have not firmly demanded squadrons is one of the mysteries of our time. It is a novelty for Lanca- shire to be led by London, by the South in general, and by those fellows on the other side of the Pennine range. We put it to the men of Lancashire that to win the county cricket championship is not more honourable than to win the Esher Trophy for the best Auxiliary Air Force squadron. We shall look for a response. On Tuesday evening last at 7 p.m. promptly the airship " Graf Zeppelin " made her second landing on British soil. The first landing was made at Cardington, and on Tuesday she landed at Han- worth. On each occasion she was ex- The " Graf tremely fortunate in her weather, which eppe m was j^ perfecf- from the point of view of airship piloting. There was no breeze to speak of, and no steep temperature gradient. These were con- ditions which made it easy to fly an airship down almost into the hands of the landing party. It gave no chance to Dr. Eckener and his very experienced coxswains to display their well-known great skill. None the less, in the very easy conditions of Tuesday evening, the ship was flown down with an accuracy and an apparent ease which aroused the admiration of all onlookers. It showed the pitch of perfection to which training and constant practice can bring an airship crew. A word of praise must also be given to the landing party of volunteers raised locally and commanded by Squadron Leader Booth, A.F.C., the captain of R 100. They, too, found their task as easy as landing an airship can ever be. But they did everything right, and held the nose steady while the tail was being worked down by trimming the ballast inside. As one watched, one could not help recalling a remark of Booth last year when, on a very squally evening, he laboriously but skilfully worked R 100 up to the nose of the Cardington tower. Very ruefully he remarked: "No one in this country has had much experience in handling airships for the last ten years." Dr. Eckener is in a much more fortunate position. 826
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