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Aviation History
1937
1937 - 2043.PDF
JULY 22, 1937- FLIGHT. 93 there were only twenty-four boats in all, and they could not cover all the western approaches to the Channel, naval vessels took over one area off the coast of France. When the weather blinded the eye in the air, the ships had entire charge of the problem of locating the enemy, working on the latest reports sent in by the air, which sometimes meant a half-told tale. It seems to have been really good co-operation. As for striking power, the Red Navy had no striking force except its submarines, which were used very effec tively. The most mobile striking force was three squadrons of Ansons (Nos. 206, 220 and 269 G.R. Squadrons), two torpedo-bomber squadrons (Nos. 22 and 42 from Doni- bristle), and the Heyfords of No. 99 (Bomber) Squadron. One flying boat tried to convert itself into a striking force, but did not live to reconnoitre another day. It may be noted that, with the exception of the Heyfords, all these squadrons had been trained in working over the sea and in the difficult task of ship recognition. The Ansons were used for striking and not for reconnaissance. Some day it will be very useful to train more bomber squadrons in work over the seas, but obviously when the main job in hand is to train three staffs to work together one wants to em ploy units which know how to set about carrying out their XERCISES How the Army, Navy and Air Force Worked Together : Portsmouth Heavily Bombarded : The Great Black-out By MAJOR F. A. de V. ROBERTSON, V.D. (Illustrated with "Flight" Photographs) In charge of Redland's defence (left to right) : General Sir John Burnett-Stuart, G.O.C.-in-C, Southern Command; Admiral the Earl of Cork and Orrery, C.-in-C, Portsmouth, and Air Marshal P. B. Joubert de !a Ferte, A.O.C-in-C, Coastal Command (Flight photograph.) orders. One cannot profitably train units and Com manders-in-Chief at one and the same time. Here it may be as well to mention some minor instances in which co-operation between everybody did not seem quite perfect. The war started at 15.00 hours on the Wednesday, when the Blue Fleet was still many hours steaming away from the British shores and no aircraft from the Blue carriers were anywhere within flying range of Portsmouth. Yet about 15.15 some Red anti-aircraft gunners opened fire on single aircraft which they saw flying overhead. These gunners belonged to the regular Army. Now, this indicates (1) that the R.A. officer in command knew so little about the general idea of the exercises that he did not realise the impossibility of Blue aircraft having got to the Gosport peninsula by that time ; (2) that he did not know that by day bombers do not usually fly singly over a fortress which is sure to be strongly de fended ; and (3) that he could not distinguish between dif ferent types of aircraft. It was almost certainly a Walrus or several Walruses in turn at which he fired, and, though the Blue cruisers and capital ships carried Walruses on their catapults, bombing raids would almost certainly be carried out by squadrons of Ospreys, Sharks or Swordfish, with Nimrods perhaps putting in an appearance. A know ledgeable man would have been up to all these points; and who ought to be knowledgeable about aircraft if not an officer of an anti-aircraft battery? I do not suppose the T.A. Archies would have been so out in their reckoning, but A.A. is A.A., whether its job is air defence of Great Britain or defence of the Army's lines of communication. Wild Searchlights My second criticism is that the work of the searchlights was too wild and undrilled. Both T.A. and regular search lights were at work, and I could not say which were the wild ones; but when a bomber was caught by one beam a dozen or more would dash at it, some of them from long distances. Three beams ought to be enough. But on all air exercises I have noticed the same tendency of search lights to cry "Me too," when someone else spots a bomber. Beams ought not to be exposed without good reason. These searchlights round Portsmouth also were inclined to try to expose aircraft flying with navigation lights on, which were most evidently Red fighters on patrol.
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