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Aviation History
1943
1943 - 0429.PDF
FEBRUARY I8TH, 1943 FLIGHT 171 War Gliders The New Tactics of "Vertical Envelopment" : Trainers and Troop Carriers : Some American and British Types in Production By N. D. RYDER BRITAIN invented the tank in the 1914-18 war. Ger-many introduced the glider as a piece of practicalmilitary equipment during the present upheaval, while Russia may be said to have '' invented'' the troopr carrying glider and air-trailer transport. .Quite early in the present war one heard rumours of giant gliders being built by the Germans; they were to be used to invade this country, it was said. Many discredited the practical usefulness of the glider in warfare, but the Germans showed it could be taken seriously when they successfully employed this means to invade Crete. Admittedly it proved an expensive business both in men and machines, but this was by way of being the first time A German DFS 230glider, to carry ten men, shot up on anairfield near Daba dur- ing the Allied advanceacross the Western Desert. the new tactics of what the Americans call '' vertical envel- opment '' had ever been tried out on the grand "scale (although gliders had been used in Norway and the Low Countries), and doubtless the Germans made many mis- calculations and mistakes before they managed to swamp the defenders of Crete by sheer weight of numbers. When the Allies carry the war right to the enemy's own doorstep and their airborne troops give practical effect to the Tigorous training now going on in this country and in America, it can safely be assumed that gliders will be employed in the light of much valuable knowledge gained in the meantime. There is no secret about the general plan of an aerial SLEEK TRAINER. The eight-seater Hotspur, produced by General Aircraft, which is now the standard trainer in the Glider PilotsRegiment. Note the raised cockpit cover, giving good view, and the twin-wheel undercarriage which can be jettisoned after take-off.
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