RAIDING LONDON

Grey River Argus, 24 November 1917, Page 3

RAIDING LONDON

PROBLEMS FOR GERMAN"

AIRMEN.

After having seen the Zeppelin menace beaten, Londoners are loth to accept the official view that there is ho effectual defence against night raids by German aeroplanes except that of bombinq 1 the aerodromes iv Belgium from which the raiders start. The official view .seems to b<" that aerial warfare has brought London within the war zone, and that it is. as impossible to prevent enemy attacks on London as to. prevent the enemy attacking British trenches at the front. The aerial raids will c^aso only when the Germans have been decisively beaten and admit: their defeat-. The Germans abandoned the Zeppelin raids on Kh^land because they had become too costly. Tho loss of a couple of Zeppelins in every raid brought home to Germans the fact that British airman had, mastered the airships. Tho Zeppelins came along "at night, and preferably on clear mumiloss nights. When they attempted to make their way inland to the big provincial cities in Eugland they usually lost their way. because they had no landmarks by which to steer, and were unable to allow- for "side-drift" caused by tinwind. The Thames provided thorn with a patli to Londq7i because a sheet of water is clearly : visible from the air ut night. For this reason the artificial lake in St. James' Park, adjoining Buckingham Palace, lias been emptied. Otherwise the water iv tlie lake might guide the Gorman aviators to the. palace as a target for their bombs.

THE KING OF SEARCHLIGHTS

Encirelinjr London at various distances, up to 20 miles from Hie t-ity, are hundreds of searchlights, placed so as to intersect one another, and so cover the whole area of the ; sky around 'London.. When the Zeppelins entered this area they were soon passed on from one group of searchlights [to another. The anti-aircraft guns 1 within range opened '" lire, and tlio aeroplanes from the aerodromes in the j vicinity went up to fight the Zepp.e- . ilins. .When a British airmail was able to get above a- ZeppeHu the fate of the latter was sealed. In aerial fighting the upper berth gives an immense advantage, for much the same reason that in a dog- light the animal on top has an advantage. The airman in tlioupper berth can watch the movements ox his foe underneath and get in far more effective blows. A few explosive bullets from an aeroplane's machinegun was sufficient to ignite the inflammable gas of the Zeppelin and seiid ifc, to the ground in flames. •

The next development of enemy air raids on London and East Coast towns was the employment of the aeroplane. The first' German aeroplane raids were carried out in daytime, and though daylight raids are less immune from effective attack than night raids, they are not likey tv be abandoned entirely in favour of night raids. When a squadron of about 20 aeroplane raiders come in daytime, they fly in formation. All the machines in the sqund[roii fly at the same height, with the jsanie distance between each other. Tho formation is diamond-shaped, with a single machine, in front, in the rear, and 0.11 each wings.- This formation protection all methods of aerial attack except from above, as the guns in the machines in the formation, cover all other quarters from which attack may come. By means of a squadron attack from above it is possible to break np the formation.

In the case of night raids the enemy, machines do not fly ij) formation, and they choose clear moonlight nights in. preference to the clear moonless nights' favoured by Zcpoelius. Ttte .lat,fer^ owing to their bulk, would be plainly visible on a moonlight night to the British airmen in search of them. But the aeroplanes, being much smaller, are not easily visibln; and on moonlight nights the searchlights cannot, pick up tho raiding aeroplanes because the 'machines are relatively, 'small, and because the- beams of a searchlight are less vivid in the nioonligTit. than on a, dark night. It would be' difficult for the enemy to keep formation at night, aud they do . nor ! attempt, it,, as the need of defence is liot's'o groat -us .when- -they 1 ; arb yisibic to the British airmen who .-.go;- up in pur-quit of them. ' ,;

1 The chief difficulty, of ; '.the' iiaylighC j aeroplane raiders is not in getting tv 'English towns without serious molestii l - .fi-pn,:but 'iii getting back. ... Before tlio'v Venn. return to their.- aerodromes in Belgium, British squadrons from Dover are in the air awaiting them. But at nijfhf there; is little difficulty in getting back. It is impossible for the British; airman to see far ahead at night and the noise of his own machine drowns -the noise of any enemy machines thatrfmay be in the "vidnitv. And when a -British aviator" sees another aeroplane the Britisher has »o discern whether it .is. a., friend or too l»Hfo'r«. opening- fin-; ' ' •' '