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Aviation History
1943
1943 - 1301.PDF
HAY 20TH, 1943 FLIGHT 3*5 IN PARLIAMENT who might have a financial interest in aviation—the shippingcompanies—and while he did not think private enterprise couid run post-war civil aviation on a big enough scale, hebelieved it should be encouraged to help. On the broad principles of policy, Lord Rothennere said that a conference with the Dominions was a fundamental necessity, #and he stressed the fact that Great Britain could only take its rightful place.in aviation if the Empire was considered as a whole. International Fallacy "I would urge your Lordships to thrust aside this question which crops up from time to time, especially in the minds of Government departments, that the air transport service after the war will be an international one," he added. " Of course, it will not be an international one. It is perfectly useless trying to imagine you can run an international air service." And he went on to say that if an international air service were formed after the war, there was not the slightest doubt as to which country would conduct it and provide the aircraft—and it would not be Great Britain. The MARQUESS OF LONDONDERRY supported Lord Rother- mere, and said that he had raised the question on previous occa- ,. sions, but each time it was raised the Government's reply had been so inadequate that they felt it-their duty to gQ on pressing the Government to enunciate a definite policy. And if they did not get a statement of definite policy from the Govern- ment this time, then they would raise it yet again, because they were determined to carry the Government with them even • though it 'appeared to be lacking in energy and apathetic towards the air. This indifference towards the air question, Lord Londonderry intimated, was reflected in the daily newspapers which, in reporting speeches by leading members of the Government, • hardly ever included a reference to the subject. The report of a recent speech by the Home Secretary was an example, and he had read speeches by the Minister of Education in which he had. never found a single word of the development of air- mindedness in this country. But in America every newspaper report one read showed that all the education authorities, including the universities, were taking tremendous interest in the subject. Children were being impregnated with the know- ledge nf, the air and what it meant, and what the developments wire likely to be. Empire Aviation VISCOUNT BENNETT pointed out that B.O.A.C. was owned bythe people of this country, which meant, for this purpose, the Government. It was, therefore, the job of B.O.A.C. directorsto give effect 1o the Government's policy. Therefore the Government should declare a policy, otherwise the directorscould not carry it out His complaint was not that the directors of the corporation had not made a declaration, butthat the Government had not told the directors what their policy was. But it was idle to ask the Government to makea declaration of its international policy at present; that could not be done until hostilities had ceased and understandingswith other peoples had been reached through discussion. But there was no reason why the Government should not take adecision with respect to the Empire, and call together a con- ference with the Dominions to deal with it. They couldcreate an Empire Air Service without impinging on the terri- tory of any country in the world On the question of aircraft design, Viscount Bennett said' that while it was feasible to carry on a mail service with converted bombers, you could not invite peacetime pas-senger traffic in converted bombers; you needed properly designed aircraft for that purpose, and he thought they couldspare a designer for that job without lesseningthe war effort. He felt very strongly that unless they did something about itwe were going to lose our place and our prestige, and sink to the level of a second-rate Power. LORD SEMPILL, LORD BARNEY and LORD GIFFORD also spoke,and then LORD SHERWOOD replied for the Government. "On"the question of civil aviation generally I must tell 5'our Lord- siiips quite frankly ] have got nothing new to say to youtu day," he said, and added that they must not think that the Air Ministry was trying to keep down civil aviation. "As a'Apartment they were determined, like everyone else, that civil Nation should get the greatest support and the squarest dealpossible at the present time. On the question of B.O.A.C., Lord Sherwood said that onthe outbreak of war the corporation was required to place itself at the disposal ol the Secretary of State, who assumed responsi-bility for Ihe direction of its policy. There had been a good deal of misunderstanding on that point; it had been suggestedthat the Secretary of State had been trying to encroach 011 the functions of the B.O.A.C., but surely a man couldn't poachon his own preserves. Nevertheless, management and staff questions were left entirely with the corporation, and herecalled an occasion when Capt. Balfour was criticised because he would not take action on an individual case concerning amember of the B.O.A.C. staff; in spite of pressure he had refused to interfere in a staff question. On other points Lord Sherwood said that B.O.A.C. had beengiven the best aircraft available, and this year definite alloca- tions of first-class aircraft had been made to them, tha,t theyhad had a fair allocation of spares, and that where control was concerned they were in no different position from that of therailways and shipping companies. The question of principle over which members of the board resigned was their desire toequate all regular trunk services, in regard to which the Secre- tary ior Air could not agree with them; that was the solereason. The present board was working well in close co-opera- tion with Transport Command, but he was not in a position tomake any announcement about the appointment of the remain- ing members." If they would wait a little longer he thoughtthey would find a well-balanced board. The policy of the Government was-, as stated by the Minister of Aircraft Produc-tion, that they were not prepared to sacrifice war necessities to any advantage they might gain after the war. But con-sultations were going on with the Dominions, and later there would be consultations with the United Nations in order toformulate an agreed policy. Transport Aircraft MAJOR LYONS (Leicester E.) raised in the Commons the ques-tion of transport aircraft for the Services, and said he hoped the departmental tempo was not far too slow in the presentstruggle, and he wanted some reassurances on this very vital matter. It might be that American transports were comingthrough, but it should not be left entirely to America, who, according to an extract he iead from an American magazine,had not enough ior her own needs. Could not airframes be made in India, South Africa, and elsewhere, engines and thenecessary equipment being supplied by this country and Canada, and shipped overseas ? Could not designs of materialsbe simplified and standardised and even localised ? There were sufficient men and women, irrespective of race and colour,througBBut the Empire, ready, willing, and able to undertake the work after instruction. This was an air age, and we mustnot rely wholly on wheels. They needed a supply of rapid, big, cargo-carrying airliners, and he hoped it weuld not be acase of too few or too late. But at no time, so far as he knew, had the House been given any really reassuring informationon this question. "The mere placid, self-satisfied assurances given by theright hon. and learned gentleman's predecessor, and more or less repeated by him a few weeks ago," said Major Lyons,"do not inform the House of the strides which have been made, which ought to have been made, and which we arepiessing should be made in this new method of transport." Post-war aircraft wtre referred to by GR'OUP CAPT. WRIGHT(Birmingham, Erdington), who said we were at least five years behind the U.S. and that it was ludicrous to propose that,after the war, we were going to compete for the passenger traffic of the world with converted bombers, while our friendlylivals across the Atlantic were using the magnificent aircraft they were producing in such enormous quantities to day. Itwould be well worth employing a few people to-day in getting designs ready so that, when the war ended, we could keep ouraircraft industry in continuous production. MR. ,STOKES said that so far as he understood it, we hadnothing ready on thtfUrawing boards to meet post-war needs, and<4t was a vital matter "which was not receiving adequateconsideration. SIR STAFFORD CRiPPs.said it was not safe to give any inlor-matibn on specific types of aircraft, but he gave a general assurance that the allocaticn of tne types of aircraft wasgoverned by the fitting in of our plans with those of our Ameri- > can allies, in the light of all strategical requirements^ On post-'war designs he said we were very much shorter of highly skilled research workers and draughtsmen than our American allies,and there were none to .spare, to-day, to create a department of civil aviation design Nevertheless, they were doing whatthey could in that direction. He did not think we could take our place in post-war civil aviation,»with converted bombersand had never thought so. They would do all they could to expedite the preparation of civilian aircraft, but not at theexpense of the Fighting Forces.
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