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Aviation History
1942
1942 - 2178.PDF
428 FLIGHT OCTOBER 15TH, 1942 IN PARLIAMENT Post-war Air Freighters : Shoes for Airmen : W.A.A.F. Clothing : Age Limit for Ferry •+) Pilots : Raid Localities : Ground Training of Aircrews I regret that 1 am unable to give a detailed reply to this Question. The bombing of this exceptionally difficult target was remarkably successful and there is no issue calling for an inquiry. Mr. Liddall asked the Secretary of State for Air the dates of the photo graphs taken of Gien before and after bombing which were supplied by his Department and which were published in the Press on August 30? Mr. A. Sinclair: I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to-day to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Stretford (Flight-Lieutenant Etherton). Air Crews' Footwear Mr. Perkins asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he will consider allowing air crews to wear shoes instead of boots while in the air? Sir A. Sinclair: There is no rule that flying boots must be worn, but the prac tice in operational commands is to wear them because they give ankle support in the event of a parachute jump. In non- •perational commands shoes may be worn by officers at the discretion of Commanding Officers. Cargo Carriers Captain Strickland asked the Minister of Aircraft Production what steps are being taken to plan for a large future construction of cargo-carrying aircraft in this country to meet post-war needs; and whether, in view of the peacetime im portance of this means of transport as well as its wartime value, he will now set up a special commission of expert engi neers and business men to consider the whole problem and report? Colonel Llewellin: While the Govern ment intends to deal with this matter at the appropriate time, I am afraid that at the present stage of the war the whole effort of the expert engineers of the air craft industry must be concentrated on work for war purposes. P.T. Kit for W.A.A.F. Major Proctor asked the Secretary of State for Air whether it is proposed to make a free issue of physical training kit to all women in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force? Sir A. Sinclair: This question is now under consideration. Wing Cdr. Grant Ferris asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he is aware that numbers of Women's Auxiliary Air Force personnel will be serving at balloon sites this winter; and, bearing in mind that this is arduous work for a woman, whether he is satis fied that there is an abundance of warm clothing, other than the usual issue, available for aircraftwomen on duty at Balloon Command sites? Sir A, Sinclair: The standard issue of clothing to W.A.A.F.'s is supplemented in the case of those employed at balloon sites by the issue of working serge suits, ankle boots and blue-grey socks and sweaters. There are ample stocks of these articles. A.T.A. Pilots Major Marlowe asked the Minister of Aircraft Production whether he is aware that Captain B. T. Monier-Williams passed the necessary flying test for train ing as a pilot in Air Transport Auxiliary in February, rc)4i ; was told by the chief instructor that he would be re quired to report as soon as it was pos sible to provide him with the requisite training; chat this ex-officer has excep tional qualifications, including experi ence in all three Services and in civilian flying; why, as vacancies exist, he has not yet been required to report; and upon what grounds, as he is eligible so far as age and physical fitness are con cerned, he has recently been informed that he is considered unsuitable when older men of lower medical grade have been accepted? Colonel Llewellin: The answers to the first two parts of the Question are Yes, Sir. In regard to the third, the report on the gentleman referred to contained the comment that he had done no flying since the last war and would require complete training on modern types of aircraft. In the light of recent experi ence the age limit for entry into the A.T.A. for anyone who lacks experience in modern types has been fixed at 32, and I regret that it is therefore impossible to admit a man who was born in 1892. I should, however, like to express my appreciation of Captain Monier- Williams' keenness so patriotically to wish to undertake this important duty. Washington Interview Mai. C. S. Taylor asked the Secretary of State for Air what appointment A.V-M. Lloyd now holds; whether his attention has been drawn to reports of an interview given by this officer in Washington; and whether he authorised the statements in that interview. Sir A. Sinclair : A.V-M. Lloyd has been appointed Senior Air Stafi -Officer at Headquarters, Royal Air Force, Middle East. I am responsible for what the Air Vice-Marshal said in his very suc cessful interviews with the Press in Washington. I am not responsible for statements which were incorrectly attributed to him. Maj. Taylor : Can my right hon. Friend say that the very damaging state ments which were reported in the Press were untrue, and, if so, will his Depart ment consider publishing a denial? Sir A. Sinclair : No, Sir; but if the hon. and gallant Member has any state ment in mind and will ask me about it, I will gladly give him an answer. This officer is the very gallant officer who commanded the air defence of Malta during the worst months of the blitz, and the interview he gave in America at a time when there was a good deal of depression about the war and the description he gave of the gallant re sistance of Malta to air attack were of the utmost value to the Allied cause. Gien Photographs Flight-Lieutenant Etherton asked the Secretary of State for Air what is the date of the photograph released by the Air Ministry and published showing the Gien tank farm in occupied France be fore it was bombed; and whether an inquiry is being held into the matters which a comparison of the two photo graphs published reveal? Captain Balfour: Particulars of the dates on which reconnaisssance flights are carried out and of their objectives would certainly be of value to the enemy. Similarly the enemy would like to know the considerations that govern our bombing of particular places on particu lar occasions. In these circumstances. Enemy Raids Sir R. Glyn asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he will consider the revision of the present regulations in regard to the publication in the Press of localities attacked by enemy aircraft in this country in view of the anxiety ~*\ caused to those who are away from home ™ on work of national importance and who are left in doubt as to the particular place in the area which is mentioned in the papers and frequently listen-in to the German broadcast in order to gain some information. Sir A. Sinclair : The possibility of giving a more precise indication of the locality in which bombs have been dropped has been considered on numerous occasions and the official communiques contain as much information as can safely be published without helping the enemy. The German broadcasts are not, of course, a reliable source of information 011 this or any other subject. Aircrew Candidates Major Profumo asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he is aware that there are numbers of men who have volunteered to join the Royal Air Force as air crews and, having been accepted on those terms, are drafted to ground jobs, in some instances for periods amounting to over 12 months, before there are opportunities for them to train as air crews; and, in view of the dis- content caused by these conditions ,"^ whether he is prepared to curtail the intake of volunteers for air crews to a number that can be immediately absorbed? Captain Balfour: Air-crew candidates, other than wireless operator-air gunners, undergo a short period of essential ground training before commencing their training in the air. Wireless operator- air gunners, to which category of air crew my hon. and gallant Friend is pre sumably referring, require a long period of ground training in wireless duties before they are fit for air-crew training. Moreover, in order to ensure that ade quate numbers are readily available to meet fluctuating operational require ments, wireless operator-air gunners who have completed their ground training are employed as ground wireless opera- , tors until required for training in the air. The period thus spent upon ground duties, which in some cases has been unavoidably prolonged, is rapidly becom ing shorter generally.
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