U.S. PLANES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 87, 14 April 1941, Page 6

U.S. PLANES.

PLAN TO FLY THEM.

SHORT-RANGE CRAFT.

SUGGESTED ARCTIC ROUTE.

(By JOSEPH S. EDGERTON.)

WASHINGTON, Februarv 28

Facing the threat of Adolf Hitler's submarine campaign against British shipping required to carry American pursuit and dive-bombing aeroplanes across the Atlantic, British and American authorities are understood to be considering the possibility of flying short-range aircraft to England, with fueling stops in Greenland and Iceland, Or by way of South America and Africa to the war zone.

Long-range bombardment aeroplanes are being flown to England by way of Newfoundland, and patrol-bombardment flying 'boats arc going under their own power, some of them by way of Bermuda. Meteorological and survey expeditions have been in Greenland and Iceland -since the beginning of the war and Britfch air base facilities already have been located in Iceland. The route woulr make possible the flying of shortrange aircraft to England with no water jump of more than 900 miles. This is the route followed by Colonel and Mrs. Charles A. Lindbergh during their transAtlantic survey trip for Pan-American Airway*, and it has been used by other pilots. So. however, all flights involving stops in Greenland and Iceland have been made so far by flying boats or seaplanes, in the absence of landing facilities for landplanes in Greenland and, until recentlv, in Iceland.

Landing Grounds in Greenland? Construction of landing facilities for landplanes in Greenland probably would prove difficult and costly, but it might be accomplished. Dr. William H. Hobbs, of the University of Michigan, recently reported to the American Association for the Advancement of Science that studies of meteorological conditions along the subarctic route to Europe indicate it should be possible most of the time to find favourable winds for the cast'oound flight. But this, would involve detailed information concerning Greenland's centrifugal wind storms, which are supposed by scientists to be the key to northern hemisphere weather.

Planet flying the. route charted by recent expeditions would leave North America in Labrador. They would land in Southern Greenland, now claimed by German-held Denmark, and British-occu-pied Iceland. Dr. Hobbs reporter! that there are four possible Greenland bases for land planes and two for seaplanes. The land plane bases are at Arsukfjord and Jamieson Land, on the north shore, of Scoresbv Sound, and two on the southwest coast. The Germans already have explored flying conditions in the Seoresby Sound region, where they had a meteorological station prior to the. war. The seaplane bases would be in the vicinity of Cape Farewell, one at Julianehaab, the other at. Sangmissok.

Hatards From Germans. Development of bases iri Greenland and Iceland, hovvevcr, mi.uht result in immediate spread of the war into those areas, since it is considered almost certain the Gremans would attempt to break up such a vital- supply line to England. Already German planes have machine-gunned a British flying lield in Icelfund. The plan also would necessitate the seizure, of Greenland by either Britain or the United States. This would become necessary at once in the event of any German attempt to establish a foothold there, since the. proposed Greenland bases are only 1200 miles from United States soil.

The flying of short-range Americanbuilt warplanes by way of South America and Africa faces :< number of difficulties. It would necessitate, a cooperation on the part of Latin-American nations which would virtually put them into the war, it has been argued. The planes would «ti 11 have *o be transported across the. Atlantic since the 1700-mile pap between Xatal, Brazil and Dakar, West Africa, still is too great for pursuits and dive-bombers to make nonstop.—"Auckland Star'' ar.d X.A.X.A.