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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 0277.PDF
FEBRUARY I, 1940 99 THE EMPIRE TRAINING SCHEME Further Details of Canada's Preparations THE arrival in Canada a few days ago of 71 officersand about 200 airmen of the Royal Air Force indi-cates the passing of the first milestone in the progress of the Empire Air Scheme. Planning has been completed ; now the scheme is under way. This party of officers and men are the instructional staff sent by the R.A.F. and will be drafted to five different stations: R.C.A.F. Headquarters at Ottawa, Air Training Command at Toronto, Technical School at St. Thomas, and to Trenton and Borden. The supervisory board, under the chairmanship of Mr. Rogers, Canadian Minister for Defence, has held its first meeting and received a detailed report from Air Vice- Marshal Croil who is in charge of the scheme. Mobile units will be used to travel in remote rural areas for recruit- ing purposes and examination of recruits will take place in their own localities, so saving unsuitable recruits long and fruitless journeys. Lord Riverdale, speaking in Sheffield on January 27, said that there would soon be a constant stream of young men pouring into Canada to get their final and complete training. Shortly after, they would be coming to this country and would prove a vital factor in winning the war. Trainer Aircraft News from Canada indicates that the provision of train- ing aircraft is receiving due attention. Negotiations are under way with Canadian manufacturers for construction of 1,282 training 'planes to be built in Canada except for engines, which will be supplied from England. There are 870 complete airplanes on order in England for assembly in Canada, and 593 airplanes being manufactured for Canada in the United States. In addition, 1,622 airplanes without wings are on order in England for assembly in Canada with the wings to be built in Canada. The War Supply Board is organising the Canadian aircraft industry for maintenance and overhaul of the training aircraft and is establishing the necessary depots for overhauling air- craft engines. When the training programme is at its peak, it is expected that between 3,000 and 4,000 airplane engines will be overhauled every year, requiring a maintenance staff of about 10,000. DH Tiger Moths and Fleet Trainers will be used for primary training, while Harvards, Ansons, Battles and Oxfords will be in use for Service and advanced flying. R.C.A.F. personnel remaining in Canada will use Lysanders, Bolingbrokes, Hurricanes, Sharks, Stranraers and Douglas bombers. An agreement has been reached by the Government and the 22 light airplane clubs in Canada whereby the flying clubs will provide 13 elementary schools for the scheme. There will be a total of 67 training schools, with seven additional ones for instructors, administration, repair and equipment. Fifty-eight of the 67 will be for training air personnel, the rest for ground and maintenance staffs. All recruits—future officers will be enlisted in the same way as all other ranks in accordance with the democratic principle—will have four weeks' ground training and will then be selected as pilots, observers or gunners. Pilots will then get eight weeks at one of the 13 elementary flying schools, followed by fourteen weeks of intermediate and ad- vanced training at one of the 16 service flying schools. Air observers will spend twelve weeks on reconnaissance and photography, then six weeks on bombing and gunnery. They will end their training with four weeks on advanced navigation. Air gunners will start with sixteen weeks on radio work and then four weeks on bombing and gunnery. Rates of Pay Under the Air Scheme pilots in training will be ranked as Leading Aircraftmen and as Sergeants on completion of training. Gunners will be Aircraftmen Class II in training, with possible promotion to Leading Aircraftmen when trained. Some pilots and observers will be given com- missions on passing out of training. Pay will be at standard R.C.A.F. rates while personnel are in Canada. These are, per day: Pilot Officer, $4.25; Flying Officer, $5; Flight Lieutenant, $6.50 ; Squadron Leader, $7.75 ; Wing Com- mander, $10; Group Captain, $10. Officers on the general list who are under call to fly receive an additional $2. Airmen's rates are as follows: Aircraft Apprentice, $1; Aircraftman II, $1.30 ; Aircraftman I, $1.40 ; Leading Air- craftman, $1.50; Corporal, $1.70; Sergeant, $2.20; Flight Sergeant, $2.50; Warrant Officer II, $3.10; Warrant Officer I, $4.20. Airmen receive an additional 75 cents per day if ordered to fly. Allowances for wives of officers are: For officers above the rank of Squadron Leader, $60 per month ; Squadron Leader, $55 ; Flight Lieutenant, $50 ; Flying Officer and Pilot Officer, $45; Warrant Officer I, $40; while allowance for wives of all other ranks is $35 per month. Male dependants under 16 and female dependants under 17 are allowed $12 per month, but maximum number of de- pendants allowed for, including wife, shall not exceed three. Training in Rhodesia RHODESIA will also take her place in the Empire AirTraining Scheme. Equipment and the majority of the instructors and pupils will be sent to Rhodesia by the British Government, which will bear most of the cost. A contribution will also be made by the Southern Rhodesian Government. When trained, airmen will be posted to the Royal Air Force and Rhodesian Squadrons will be formed as soon as there are sufficient numbers of personnel available. Preparations are now being made for the reception of pupils, aircraft and equip- ment. The Tallest Ever LAST week something of a flutter was caused by theannouncement in an American daily that " 250 bombers " were flying the Atlantic en route for England. Needless to say, the story was pure invention, and it was somewhat sur- prising that more than one English evening paper "fell for it." Flying has not yet reached the stage when it is feasible to send such air armadas across the Atlantic, especially at this time of the year, when icing conditions and other nuisances are to be expected. Moreover, the usual wireless aids to navigation are not available during the war. And anyway, the Allies are not in such a hurry as all that about deliveries. The story had it that the machines were manned by Frenchmen, and that they were Lockheeds. So far as is known, France has not ordered Lockheeds. Busy-ness at Wolverhampton WHEN war broke out Mr. Lindsay Neale closed down hislittle company and got a commission in the R.A.F. He has now been relieved of service duties, at the request of Boulton Paul Aircraft, Ltd., in order to take up a post with them as assistant to their chief test pilot. Fit. Lt. Heather. Next Week's Issue WE consider ourselves fortunate in having obtained, for ourAircraft Construction Number next week, a number of interesting features. These include articles by such well-known technicians as Mr. W. O. Manning, Mr. Robert L. Lickley, and Mr. J. D. North. Between them they will deal with struc- tural design in the past, present and future. Each of the three authors is particularly qualified to write on the subject he has chosen. A Centenary MONDAY next, February 5, will be the centenary of thebirth of John Boyd Dunlop, the veterinary surgeon who invented the pneumatic tyre. In sheer numbers the humble bicycle has derived the greatest benefit, as it is estimated that there are 72 million of them in the world, running on 144 million air-filled tyres. The motor industry comes next. In 1938 British factories alone made 6| million motor tyres. But aviation also would be in a sorry plight without the pneu- matic.
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