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Aviation History
1944
1944 - 0320.PDF
164 FLIGHT FEBRUARY 17™, 1944 not to kill civilians. That civilians have lost their lives in the course of these operations is regrettable ; but such things must also happen when artillery shells a village in the Apennines. They happened also in innumerable towns and villages in the first world war. '' Things like that you know must be In everj,' famous victory." Germany's Munition Supplies T HE Russian capture of Nikopol has struck a heavy blow against the German war potential. From that region, it is estimated, came a good half oi the manganese which the Germans need for the produc tion of steel. If one looks at a map of the lines in Russia one can see at a glance how the enemy held on to Nikopol as long as he possibly could, although the advance of the Russian armies to the north and the south left that city in a perilous position. Probably Hitler thought that it was worth while risking the loss of the divisions guarding the city in order to extract from it the last possible trainload of the precious metal. It is inevitable that the German production of steel will suffer in consequence of this loss, and will prob ably take the form of using lower-grade steel for civilian uses, including the repair of the cities bombed by the R.A.F. The bombing Offensive increases the German need for steel just at a?moment when the Russian vic tory has seriously cut/down the supply. Another piece of ^,-idence about German shortages has come to hand atjfhe same time. The Polish officer who has re^ejitly-_ir4de his way to England and has made^^-^valuable rjpcmt to Mr. Eden, has said that German officers talking ftpenly in Warsaw restaurants 'nave complai^mjhat ineir eastern operations were suffering mor^and mojfc from shortage of oil and even of shells. ilHJ: p|qj>6bility is that these were junior CONTENTS The Outlook War in the Air - Halifax Development Jet versus Airscrews - Here and There - Flight Testing - Aircraft in Flying Attitudes Flak ..---- Friendship Established Correspondence - - Service Aviation - '- 163 165 168 171 173 175 176, a and b 177 182 183 185 officers, and, if so, too much importance should not be given to their opinions. Taking the statement at its face value, it may mean that the German supplies are at last running seriously short, or that communications have been so interrupted that the supplies do not always reach the firing line. Germany as a .whole is not believed to be seriously short of oil, and for some time past neither Bomber Com mand nor the Americans have expended much effort on attacking oil installations. Shells are another mattes? and if parts of the German eastern front have been short of them, we should incline to believe that transport difficulties have so far been mainly to blame. The rail roads arid rolling stock available to the Germans must now be in considerable disrepair, and the persistent hammering of engines and repair shops in Northern France by the R.A.F. must have done a good deal to make the position worse. The bombing of Essen may also have reduced the output—it would be strange if it had not had that effect_ and now the Germans must be trying to pile up a reserve of shells to meet the coming Allied invasion. HANDLE"? PAGE'S LATEST : The Bristol Hercules - engined Halifax III above the clouds. More photographs and some comments appear on pages 168-170.
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