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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 0348.PDF
FEBRUARY 8, 1940 The Onslaughi on ShippingW E have noted before the sound strategical sense which has induced the Germans to concentrate their air efforts, such as they have been, on attempts to damage the naval and marine power of Britain. The three days of violent attacks on British and neutral shipping in the North Sea last week have obviously been part of the programme, and the machine-gunning of non-naval seamen can only have been carried out with the idea of terrorising. Sad experience has taught us that no considerations of international law, of plighted words, or of common humanity will restrain the Germans from a step which they think or hope will go towards achieving their purpose. We have learnt the German mentality. The Germans, on the other hand, have not grasped the spirit of British seamen, and it is only fair to add that they have likewise not realised the tough courage of the merchant sailors of the Scandinavian countries and of Denmark and Holland. These sailors will not be frightened off the seas. What is hard to understand in the Germans' use of their aircraft is the small numbers which they use for any given purpose. On each of the days of the onslaughts we counted about twenty raiders a day. Considering the size attributed to the Luftwaffe before the outbreak of war, those numbers are tiny. The risk to the crews was not very great, as the cloud-coveTed slty gave plenty of cover. The raiders sent were none of them able to dispute with our fighters when the latter made contact, for Germany is certainly short of types which can both cover the distance and put up a fight. Help for the FinnsI T would not be in the least surprising if some un-friends of this country, perhaps Lord Hee-Haw, made some jeering remarks about the sending of Gladiators to the help of the Finns. It would be quite in character it that remarkable commentator were to throw out suggestions that the British will only give the Finns second-best machines, but will not spare them Hurricanes or Spitfires. We would anticipate such criticism by pointing out that the Gladiator is the finest biplane fighter ever produced, and is unsurpassed in manoeuvrability. The batch sent to Finland had been earmarked for the Union of South Africa, a Dominion which certainly does not wish to invest in second-best stuff. We are ourselves using Gladiator fighters in the war, and instances could be quoted (only we must not tell the British, public what the German authorities already know) of German machines having turned and run for their lives when threatened by Gladiators. Cer- tainly in the hands of good pilots, such as Finland can undoubtedly supply, some of them having done periods of training with our Royal Air Force, the Gladiators will be quite good enough to master the bombers which Russia is sending against that martyred country. The fact that their engines are air-cooled will tend to reduce troubles with freezing. As for the Blenheims, the ' are the best bombers of their class, and we are using them extensively our- selves. Already, it is understood, they have done use- ful damage to some of the Russian air bases. We hope they will continue the good work, and will be helped by more bombers from other friendly countries. OUT LOOKING FOR TRObm r ighter Blenheims in a hurry over the English countryside. Our readers will appreciatethat this picture was taken some time ago.
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