OVIET AIR FORCE

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 127, 30 May 1940, Page 18

OVIET AIR FORCE

MEN AND MATERIAL

FINISH WAR LESSONS. TECHNIQUE AND WORK IMPRESSIVE. Sunn' f.i'f- ,'ihout tin' trvhni(|ii<' ami f(Ti'i'ti"f Soviet t><• inlilni; 'pianos in tli" 1! 11 >-• >-F'lllll i-li war ;irc irivrn Im-I'l' liy ;i c-irrospoiHli'iit who cnvoroil Hi" war l r'■ in 1110 !n".'iiiiilnsr ami was 1' r ln.■ 11 rI v 1111 rl ■• i- (irr ar tlio major fronts aii'l lirlilnil tin- linos. i ii\ ■/,\m i-;s ai.nr;iix;k.• II X K IK.if.M. Al-1 iI 111. 'Mm l-'inii- i-aiil Mia! t In- Kii-oian Air I'« h•■< ■ ;i - i ■ 1V■ i■ti \i ■. W'liat L'avp 111 i•w <■<< ]<•>i i it- r-i n-ii-'t li . It- iinliniiti'il ri'»frvi'- iif ' i»! :i ii" - ati<l men. 1 lie. moil 11n'it!«-<•!\• •-. mi I'II ly;" 1 - "f "|i' :,,ic> ~ • 11 wa* a i i .hi I.ilia ..1 i Im'-c a;i I cll■ •i' 11' in -i.mi:' |'! i i i'ii 1.1 ■ that I lie liuni~]i uai ii \i -. 111 -.1! as llii' -trrii'jtli of In* IJ. 11 aii I lie Hi -I -I 11 ■11 uI ! i war- "| • l.i n«• -. At lir.-:. nt' tlir Ji'i H) :i i n i;i r'f the l.'i'd com • maii'li'is alluwi'l t ln-iii -«•! \"o— for 111 iciii tii >11 in 1* i 111 a till, iilmiit HIUO wpvr. -cfi.iiil Inn- ma f i'i i 11. Minn' t liirrl-liiii' anil the i i'lii iiiu I•• r were I lie Worst of it.s lir-t line I'liiii'v. In tin' lirst air ,i!(.'ii l<~ t'n' 1...—..1 So\ ie.t 'plane* were fairly liijjli. 1 mit " lini tln* Air l'orei:

■ -omniandci - -aw that Finland's air (lil'ciii uitc better than they expected. 1 ln'.y threw in lii'iM.-line machine* Ninrr ,'ni'i more. Hie los-iv; grew !c-.-nnd tli.- ell'eet i venei-s of the .11 t;nl. higher. \nd these first-lino 'planes—what w<>. .-.i\v ill' them at close revealedi many details about aircraft manufacture in I!its.sia. The closest ' came to ' lie 'piano*, other than be.ing dive bombed on by No\iet. 'plane*, was in seeing those that had crashed or were shot (low 11. The til st day of the war T saw a 'plane shot down on the edge of Helsinki. This 'plane was u bi-motored machine of the American Martin type of Ugh' bomber. Il was made in Russia under u I 'nit ed States license. It was well constructed: all metal, a low-wing type \\ith glass nose tip. It eat l ied a crew of thiL'e —pilot bomber, observer and rear machine-gunner. The bomb load was 1(500 pounds; the machine had a flight radius of from «S00() to 12,000 miles, and its flying- time in action was from six to eight hours. The top speed was 250 miles per hour. Bomber Attack Methods.

This 'plane was typical of mo«t bombers used in Finland from after the first fortnight to the end of the war. They compared favourably with British bombem of similar manufacture, and were used for the same tasks. In general these bombers were, best for operation in Finland, and usually were operated in squads or w ings, sometimes in groups of three, five or seven. The usual technique of operation was for thirty to be accompanied by three to ten fighters to a certain point in Finland, where they split into twos and three® to do the bombing and then return to their bases as best they could. One point of "splitting up" for these bombers was over the American Legation at Grankulla, sixteen miles from Helsinki, near the coast. Early every morning, in waves of thirty or forty, and accompanied by fighters, the Soviet bombers come over, got "their alignment to various places. Lahti, Abo, Tamisarri, etc.. by observing the roads and rails, then split up to do their job, only to return at night over the same places.

An ardent watcher of these 'planes every day was Major Frank Payne. TT.S.A. Military Attache, -who would leave his room in Grankulla. rush to the top of a ski jump and observe the 'planes as they passed over. Sometimes I watched with Major Payne. In general tho bombing job of these 'planes was effective. Because of the wildness of the country and tho scattered smallness of the scattered supply and road centres their navigation had to be good even in davtime. In this general bombing technique Incendiary bombs were used mostly— powdered nluminium and iron oxide generating 4000 degrees Fahrenheit—of which I saw many, but never felt scared of since they were small, about half an arm's length, although terribly destructive to the wooden buildings, of which the communities of Finland were built. Outclassed All Opposition. The Russian technique was nsually to fly over late in the afternoon, drop incendiary bombs, then come back to a city in flames and finish the job in the night when ' anti-aircraft guns or machine guns were useless against them. Many .new types of bombs, parachute?, etc.. came out of jthe Finnish war. The most famous of ail vra-s what the Finns called -Molotoff's breadbasket, which was n. cylindrical container carrying 100 or more incendiary bombs, which scattered ns the cylinder fell to earth over a larger area than they would have covered if sowed straight from the bomber. t The Russian fighters and patrol planya were not seen much behind 'lie lines, but I saw many at the front lines nnd they generally proved to be J -10 type small bee-shaped little "zippers with a top speed of about .100 miles an hour, and were armed with two gnus. Made of fabric and plywood tln»y were l.ght and were extremely easy to manoeuvre They outclassed anything sent into the air against them. Fitted with skis these planes operated from frozen lake bases just behind the Sovi.-t lines. They were used in general f<rstrafing troops and keeping o ff the Finns' bombing attack on Russian towns. They were successful, becau-.e they had an extensive radius and a flying time of from four to five hours, which is exceptional for a fighter. Most of the fighters and bombers had a noticeably good range of sight for the pilot, and few blind spots for gunners, which are the severest problems of aircraft manufacture to-day. Other 'planes used for reconnaissance and photographing were of the heavy, all-metal type, low-wing monoplanes similar to some American Seversky reconnaissance 'planes, and might have been such. They ore capable of acting as fighting 'planes, l»ut were not so manoeuvrable as the little I—l 6 'planes.

The men who have made the Red air force what it is are as important as the 'planes. Their ability to fly is unquestionable, and their training is of a high standard, particularly in the pcienco of flight and the use of science in bombing and other tasks. Also all the men were cleverly trained both as lighting pilots and bombing pilots, which gave tlieni an extra knowledge of what they wore up against when they met lighters or bomber*, depending on what 'phmc they were in. Also the observer* and gunnel's hud to be able to l'.V planes, ho that c\erv mini in the air was a piloU

Tin- i.iuk of all men in.the air force ;.« the *111110 and interchangeable, although the real skipjier of the 'plane was the Iran piloting it. There were extras in their training, such as continuous use of oxygen for high flying, and as a rule the bombers tlew at any altitude of 12,000 feet or more.

The crew of the 'planes were well clothed, as revealed at an exhibition by the Finns of captured Russian pilots' equipment. Fur-lined suits, with elec-trically-heated glove* and boots, the same as used in the British high-flying fleet.

Of the things not used by the Red air force, their four-engine bombers were the most prominent; not one was ever seen over Finland. Also any of their latest fighters. Neither were women pilots ever used. Only 011 rare—very rare —occasions were their parachute patrols tried out.—X.A.X.A.