TO-MORROW'S INVASION.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 37, 13 February 1929, Page 8

TO-MORROW'S INVASION.

SPECTACULAR ATTACK

PLANNED.

BY LAND, WATER AND AIR. DEADLY WORK AT DAWN , . What with rifle-fire, bombardment by naval £'ins, bombs from the air, machine gunfire, backed by several hundred savajre young territorials it is more than likely that the skeleton army of engineers left ashore to represent Auckland's defending forces, will be annihilated. Or possibly if will '"retreat according to plan."' dour old phrase of the "'war days." However it goes, the battle of "Woofit" should be full of excitement, and the stair must bo congratulated on its carefully worked out plans. Whore it got the idea for the name from, it would be hard to say, but the army seems to delijiht iu etranjre nomenclature —something like the late Clement Wrajige, who used to j;i\e. his coining storms such delightfully unexpected names that one fi>r»ot to bother whether they really did occur or not. This queer naming is actually used in real war, and apparently "W" is a favourite letter, for one seems to remember three posts held by the N.Z.M.K. in the Jordan Valley known by the names of Wax, Wart and Wain— the idea beinjr of course to mislead the enemy who would be well-acquainted with local place names.

Briefly, the plan of campaign for the great attack on Auckland supposes a hostile force has made a landing at the Oreat Barrier, whence it sends an army backed by warships to Orewa Beach, where a landing will be effected, in spite of the barbed wire (of the wireless kind) and the hail of machine gunfire from th-. , adjacent elifl's. What is to happen then is known only to the staff, but if the territorials don't enjoy the outing they have only themselves to blame.

This will be the first time that territorials will have the co-operation of naval and air froces. The Air Force v\i!l l>o represented by a Bristol fighter tlown by Major Isitt. head of that branch, and he will also have in the machine the Minister of Defence (the Hon. T. M. Wilford), who happens to be very keenlv iuterestetl in Hying.

Attackers and attacked are now in camp at Narrow Neck. The attacker*. known oilicially « s the lied Army, will embark on the warships this evening, and tho whole of the squadron, including the Wakakura. will go down the gull and take up a posit inn oil" Grown Beach. The actual site of the landing j s a ]- llt '. ( . bay, with a lieantifnl sandy beuch at the end of Orewa Beach, in'the corner formed by the junction of Whanguparaoa Peninsula, and the mainland, The. troops wilt be landed in boat* just before dawn, which is round about four o'clock, and the battle will be ] os t an ,i won within an hour and a-half.

After the fight the troops will reenitnirk on thy warships and return to camp during the afternoon.