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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 1774.PDF
548 JUNE 20, 1940 them directly. In parts of the countries for whose de- fence they are responsible the supply of water is a vital necessity. If water supply can be destroyed or cut by means of air attack, the garrison might have no option but to evacuate, unless its supply can be made good by the only other aqueduct available: aircraft transporting the supplies. Turning the Tables Again, in many of the Colonial possessions of Italy the overland lines of communication are scanty and not easily capable of duplication. It ought to be possible to cut the lines of communication by means of air attack, and make the maintenance of ground defence extremely difficult. Indeed, aircraft well handled strategically ought to be able to isolate garrisons which do not have immediate sea access; in collaboration with naval forces aircraft ought to be able to do much to disrupt the value of sea access ; the tactics employed by Germany in Nor- way can now be turned against Italy. But even more important than the minor considera- tions of the comparative ease of isolating and reducing the various Italian possessions overseas is the tre- mendous advantage which the Allies possess in the matter of supply. Germany and Italy are together dependent upon internal means of supply. All the material requirements of their combined armies and navies and air forces must come from within a now well- defined area. Certainly Germany has captured so much territory that she can now spread her manufacturing resources over, a much greater area than formerly. But even so, there is no part of that area which cannot be attacked by air. And from the central cauldron of in- dustry the supplies must go out to the peripheral points of contact with the opposing forces. To get those sup- plies to the overseas possessions of Italy may be a big problem. It may prove an insoluble one. In some cases, as in Eritrea, Abyssinia, and Somaliland, it may be impossible. To the Allies, however, the means of supply is ever increasing. Aircraft from Australia, aircraft from Canada, from the United States can all be diverted to the zones whence Italian overseas possessions will be attacked. No supplies of any kind are denied to the Allied forces with the exception of a number of French and one British possession; for it might be difficult to maintain normal communications with Algeria, Tunisia, Corsica and Malta.* TKe R.A.F.'s Chance Certain it is that the air weapon will come into its own in the conflict against the Italians. And let us remember that Germany has no air experience in terri- tory of that kind. Let that ignorance be exploited to the full if during the course of the campaign Germany tries to use Italy as a bridge to cross the Mediterranean to gain a foothold in the continent of Africa towards which she has cast envious eyes for many years. The entry of Italy into the war may increase the odds we have to meet in France and Britain for an interval. But it gives the Allies an area in which to strike for propaganda victories wherewith the hearts of men can be gladdened pending the final victory. * This article was written before tlie French Army laid dowu its arm*.-El). ECONOMICS OF AIR TRANSPORT THE chair of Air Transportation at the Norwich University,Vermont, U.S.A., has been responsible for the publication of several excellent papers on various aspects of this latest phase of civil engineering, using the words in their broadest possible meaning. Dr. Edward Warner, now of the Civil Aeronautics Authority, has written two, one on Early History and another on Technical Development. International Aero- nautic Organisations have been described by John jay Ide, and Jerome Lederer has covered Safety of Air Transportation. Publication No. 5 which has just been released, has been written by J. Parker Van Zandt, Ph.D., and is entitled Euro- pean A"ir Transport on the Eve of War—71939. It is a very useful study of the economics of European Air transportation, contrasted with that of the United States. Even on the score of its historical value alone, the writing of this pamphlet of 71 pages would have been justified, but it has a much greater value than that, for it will help to shape the future world which must be built when the present difference of opinion has ended. Accurate Estimating Dr. Van Zandt's lecture will be exceedingly useful to anyone studying the economics of transport by air, which was, until the war, a subject of increasing importance in Europe; it still is in America. Air transport has now arisen to the stage where before new air routes are established or new equipment bought for routes already in operation, accurate estimates must be made of the cost of operation and consideration must be given to the suitability of the aircraft, not only now but during its estimated life. The lecture provides information which traffic executives will no doubt be wise enough to study in order to arm themselves to deal with the problems of the future. Twenty-six tables have been compiled covering subjects such as average fares, average speeds, route mileages, passenger- miles flown, mail ton miles, freight ton miles, ratio of non- paying to total passengers, average length of journey, com- parative accident rates, operating expenses, comparisons ofcsub- sidies and passenger revenues, airport traffic statistics and per- formance data of air transport planes of various nationalities. With the lecturer's comments on the significance of the figures given and the analyses made, the whole pamphlet becomes a most interesting document. Dr. Van Zandt's present position is as technical and economic consultant to the Civil Aeronautics Authority, but his lecture has been written from information collected during a recent tour of the airlines of Europe before he joined the Authority. Previously he served Pan American Airways in the development of the trans-Pacific route between 1935 and 1038. Publication No. 5 can be obtained from the secretary of the James Jackson Cabot Professorship, Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont, U.S.A., for the price of 25 cents. An additional three lectures by Edward Warner are in prepara- tion and are on Modern Development of Air Transport, Future Technical Development, and Relation to Surface Transport. The price of publications' No. 1 to 4 is 50 cents each. . C.A.A. Loses Independence THE U.S. Senate refused to reject President Roosevelt'sPlan IV for the reorganisation of the Civil Aeronautics Authority and the plan has consequently become law. The Authority has therefore been transferred to the Department of Commerce as from June 11 and will be known as the Civil Aeronautics Board. It will sfill consist of five members and the post of administrator will be retained. Under Reorganisa- tion Plan III, which also became effective, the administrator was given greatly increased powers, including complete charge of the Civil Pilot Training Program. The Air Safety Board loses its independent identity and becomes part of the C.A.B. The position of chairman, occu- pied by Mr. Tom Hardin, is abolished and there is speculation as to whether Mr. Hardin will be given the vacant seat on the Civil Aeronautics Board if Mr. Hinckley, former chairman, becomes Assistant Secretary for Commerce as is expected. Exactly how much control Commerce will exert over the C.A.B. remains to be seen, as the Board is said to be an independent unit within it, and the stern fight put up by the aviation organisations and the Press has indicated clearly to the De- partment that they earnestly desire £hat a real measure of independence be accorded to the Board. The Department has, however, budgetary control which is certainly one of the strongest forms.
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