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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0625.PDF
FLIGHT, JUNE 28, 1934 17 (Fighter) Sqn. 19 (Fighter) Sqn. 20 (Army Co-operation) 23 (Fighter) 24 (Communications) 25 (Fighter) Sqn. Sqn. Sqn. Sqn. The Fighting Area The Fighting Area consists of 13 fighter squadrons, and also administers the Cambridge University Air Squadron, and the Duxford Station Flight which caters for it, and several other detached flights. The Area is commanded by Air Vice-Marshal P. B. Joubert de la Ferte, C.M.G., D.S.O., "who has his head- quarters at Uxbridge. The squadrons are all regular. All the machines are single-seaters except the " Demon," which is a two- seater. No UNIT1 Fighter i 4325 3 ,17 19 ,29 56 32 41 ,54 111 ,23 Squadron STATION Tangmere . Hawkinge . Kenley DuxfordNorth Weald Biggin Hill .Northolt Hornchurch ,( Biggin Hill. AIRCRAFT12 12 12 12 1212 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 " Fury " "I i'ulldcg". " DFIIKJH " . 156 aircraft. ENGINE . Kestrel • Jup ler Kestre It has been decided to re-equip No. 41 (Fighter) Squadron with two-seater'' Demons '' in the near future. The three squadronswhich have the " Fury " are known as interceptors. Theyhave an exceptionally rapid climb to great heights andgreat speed at those heights. Their tanks allow them tostay in the air about 1 hour 50 .minutes on an average.The '' Bulldog'' has for some years past been our standardday-and-night fighter, and has an average endurance inthe air of 2 hours 30 minutes. For work at night a some-what longer endurance is needed than is necessarv by " Gordon " (" Panther ") day bombers of No. 35 (Bomber) Squadron. (FLIGHT Photo.) day, as the fighter patrolsmust be up (they fly singly by night and not information) before an enemy raid comes overhead, so thatthey are ready to attack the moment that the beams ofthe searchlights show up the raiding bomber. But the" Bulldog " must now be considered as obsolescent,and the Gloster " Gauntlet " with " Mercury " engine hasbeen chosen to replace it. This machine has the amazingtop speed of 228 m.p.h. at 15,000 feet. The Fighting Area works TWIN-ENGINED BOMBERS : " Sidestrands " in close co-operation with the (" Jupiter ") of No. 101 (Bomber) Squadron. Observers' Corps, volunteer (FLIGHT Photo.) special constables. who takeup observation posts round the London area and send in prompt reports of each raid which crosses the coast. The Fighting Areamust also work with the anti-aircraft batteries of the Territorial Army Royal Artillery and the searchlight groups of the. TerritorialArmy Royal Engineers. Specimens of the guns, searchlights, and sound-locators belonging to the Territorial Army will be on viewat Hendon during the Display. It is a maxim of air defence that at night there can be no interception of raiders without successfulwork by the searchlights. It is fairly obvious that 13 fighter squadrons are all too small a force to defend the whole of theLondon area continuously by day and night for any length of time. We badly need more fighter squadrons. NIGHT BOMBERS : Twin-engined " Heyfords " (" Kestrel ") of No. 99 (Bomber) Squadron. (FLIGHT Photo.) 26 (Army Co-operation) Sqn. 27 (Bomber) Sqn. 28 (Army Co-operation) Sqn. 29 (Fighter) Sqn. 30 (Bomber) Sqn. 32 (Fighter) Sqn. 625 c
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