Army Wants An Air Force

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 136, 11 June 1938, Page 13 (Supplement)

Army Wants An Air Force

Chicago "Tribune" Press Service LONDON. ANEW iriter-Service feud is brewing between the British Army and the Air Force. As does the Navy, the Army wants control of its own aeroplanes. The Navy won that point last year, and the Army is about to begin a fight for it. Whatever its advantages In wartime, the separate Air Force has been a rich source of bickering and argument in peacetime. After a long and bitter fight Navy men succeeded last year in persuading Parliament they should have full control of the Fleet Air Arm. Flyers without naval training, they argued, could not give the fleet efficient co-operation. Now the Army is taking the- same line* but the Air Council is determine*] to block the fight if possible. There is no question of doing away with the Royal Air Force. The Army simply wants full control of the eeven "army co-operation" squadrons intended to work in liaison with ground forces. The Air Force, however, is jealous of losing even that amount of control. Army officers serving with the R.A.F. all are in one of those seven equadrone, once their training ie completed. They hold an Air Force rank separate from their Army rank white on flying duty, and so far none of them has been promoted above squadron-leader—the rank of major. Only two have got that far. That, say Army men, ie evidence of efforts to keep them down. The Army insists it must have at least one officer of the rank of wing-commander (lieu-tenant-colonel) or group-captain (colonel). Even before the R.A.F crave up control of the Fleet Air Arm, naval officers serving with it were promoted tc as high as wing-com mender. The Army wants all the Army cooperation squadrons under Army officers It points ».,t that events in Spain and Ojb* h»ve ehowp that the value of air-

craft hes primarily in co-operation with infantry and other ground forces except for long-distance bombing. Xo emc ait of flying training, the Army believes, will give an officer the practical knowledge of ground operations necessary for efficient co-operation. At present there are on y 52 Army officers serving with the R A.F. Two of them command two of the co-operation squadrons, birt the Army will not be satisfied until its men command at least all the equadrons specifically intended for co-operation. That would mean three separate fighting Air Forces, and Britone are beginning to wonder about the wisdom of the "third service" idea.