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Aviation History
1948
1948 - 0877.PDF
JUNE IOTH, 1948 Service Aviation FLIGHT 645 Bevin, the Foreign Secretary, at the con-clusion of the boxing competition at Wembley on September 17th. This willbe the third year of the competition, which comprises boxing, cross-countryrunning, fencing, shooting and swim- ming. Reunion '"THE Headquarters Bomber Command-*- Association of Officers will hold their .annual reunion from 4 p.m. to10 p.m. on July 17th, 194S. As in previous years the gathering will takeplace at Headquarters Bomber Com- mand, High Wycombe, Bucks. Return Visit E scheduled date for the arrivali a squadron of the Koyal Swedish Air Force in this country was June 7th.Accompanying the squadron will be Major-General Axel Georg Ljungdahlwho served as military and air attache on the Swedish Legation in London in1935-6. The General holds the British C.B.E., and is now Commander-in-Chiefof the Royal Swedish Air Force Fighter Command. SynthetiC'Training Schools '"PO save manpower and money and to -*- bring about a uniform standard of instruction, the R.A.F. Central Vision Training School at Worksop, the Central School of Aircraft Recognition at Sutton- on-Hull, and the Central Link Trainer School at Kirton-in-Lindsey are being amalgamated into a Central Synthetic Training Establishment at Kirton-in- Lindsey, Lincolnshire. All three schools were established during the war and their purpose is to train instructors; all use synthetic training devices. The Central School of Aircraft Recog- nition trains instructors for the Royal Observer Corps and the A.T.C. as well as for the R.A.F. At the Central Vision Training School, where the emphasis is I on improved vision for aircrew engaged I on night flying, the course lasts eleven i days and instructors are taught the use of the devices by which night-flying con- ditions are simulated. The purpose of the Central Link Trainer School is, as its I name implies, to train instructors in the I use of the Link trainer. Fighter Command Badge A BADGE and motto for FighterCommand, R.A.F., have been approved by the King. The formaldescription of the badge is "in front of a Portcullis, a Sword erect." Themotto is "Offence Defence." In the badge the portcullis and background arecoloured Air Force blue, and the sword and the letters are in gold. The swordis indicative of the offensive operations undertaken by the Command, and theportcullis—a framework of timber lowered to protect the gateways ofcastles and other fortified buildings in olden times—is symbolic of its defensiverole. The Secretary of State for Air re-cently referred to the R.A.F.'s jet fighters as the best in the world. "Weare confident," he said, "that we can in the future keep our superiority overall comers in the interceptor "fighter class." The Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Fighter Command is Air HASTINGS HANDLING TE TS: The Royal Tournament at Olympic, is to be opened by the King today (June lOth). Abive is a scene at Bnie Norton during a rehearsal cf the R.A.F. set-piece, the subject cf ths msdel (m2de, incidentally, by four men) being ihe Handley Pagi Hastings. Marshal Sir WilliamElliot, K.B.E. Reserve and FlyingTraining are the onl\ Home Commands ofthe R.A.F. still with- out badges and mot-toes, but this will not be the case for long.The matter is now under consideration. Battle of Britain Lace '"THREE more towns have been added-*- to the list of those already announced where the lace panel made bya Nottingham firm to commemorate the Battle of Britain and loaned by them tothe R.A.F. is to be shown to the public. The loan of a duplicate has now made itpossible to show the panel in Derby, at the Midland Drapery Co., Ltd., "fromJane 7th to 14th; in Lowestoft, at R. G. B. Chadd, Ltd., from July 19thto 31st; and in Ryde (Isle of Wight), at Hartnell's, from August 30th to Sep-tember 9th. Only presentation copies of these panels are being made and onehas been given to Mr. Churchill.' Cadetships for AirmenT HE upper age limit has now beenraised from i8£ to 20J for airmen, whether regulars or national servicemen, who apply for cadetships leading to permanent commissions in theGeneral Duties, Equipment and Secre- tarial branches of the R.A.F. and theR.A.F. Regiment. These airmen are also exempted from the Civil ServiceCommissioners' written examination, but they still must undergo a medicalexamination and R.A.F. selection tests. There are three entries to cadetships—inJanuary, April and September Navigators' Careers BECAUSE of a feeling of uncertaintyabout the commissioning and career prospects of R.A.F. navigators, an AirMinistry Order has just been issued which rules that all navigators shall havecareer prospects comparable with those open to pilots. While some navigatorsmay still be selected foi' pilot training, navigators will be choien as navigatorsfor permanent commissions in the General Duties branch in the same pro-portions as pilots, and eligible for pro- motion on the same basis as pilots.Previously, navigators granted such com- missions had to qualify as pilots. Withthe increase in range, speed and com- plexity of modern aircraft, this policywould now be too expensive in money and manpower, and it would be difficultto give these former navigators wide enough experience to make themthoroughly expert as both pilots and navigators. Aircrew navigators mayalready be promoted to higher aircrew rank under conditions comparable with those of aircrew pilots. In addition theywill be given comparable opportunities of both attaining commissioned rankand of re-engaging for long service as aircrew with a view to pension. The detailed implications of thesedecisions are now being worked out. The new policy will mean, for instance,that navigators will fill some posts, such ai flight or squadron commanders,previously reserved for pilots. Families OverseasS OME 36 per cent of all R.A.F. mar-ried men overseas have their fami- lies with them. As more marriedquarters and civilian houses are built, this percentage will increase. The ship-ping position for families going overseas is now somewhat easier and in mostcases berths can be obtained without undue delay. Benevolent Fund in ScotlandA IR VICE-MARSHAL SIR JOHN W.CORDINGLEY, Controller of the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund, visited Edin-burgh, Glasgow, and other Scottish centres during the week commencingMay 31st to study progress made by the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund (ScottishBranch) in the, first six months of its existence. Discussions were held with GroupCaptain the Earl of Selkirk, the chair- man, and other officials of the ScottishBranch. Among matters reviewed were working and machinery of the ScottishBranch in the light of results obtained ; various aspects of the Fund's work todate; and the future policy of the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund as a whole.The Air Vice-Marshal also held discus- sions with A.V-M. Sir Hazelton Nicholl,honorary county representative for Argyllshire, and former Controller otthe "R.A.F. Benevolent Fund. R.A.F. Pilots for Qliding ContestT HE R.A.F. members of the BritishGliding team which is to compete in the International Gliding Contests atSamadeu, near St. Moritz, Switzerland, from Juty 19th to 31st, have now beenselected. They are W/C. P. P. Hanks D.S.O., D.F.C., F/L. R. C. Forbes,and G/C. G. J. C. Paul, D.F.C. (re- serve) . All three officers are at pre-sent serving with the British Air Fordes of Occupation, Germany. Wing Commander Hanks is a former
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