THE NAVY.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19622, 18 May 1929, Page 7

THE NAVY.

ESTIMATES REDUCED. BUT STRENGTH MAINTAINED. (ra OM OUR own CORBESJPOKDENT.) LONDON, April 6. The publication of the Navy jbstiraates completes the disclosure of the ordinary expenditure to be met in the Budget next month. The total is about £740,500,000, to which has to be added the cost of the self-supporting services, making a Budget aggregate of, roughly £821,500,000. The net total of Navy Estimates for 1929 is £55,865,000, a reduction of £1,435,000 below the estimates for 1928. "This considerable reduction has been made," declares Mr W. O. Bridaeman,-' First Lord of the Admiralty, in his explanatory statement, "although no diminution in strengths of the Fleet and the Fleet Air Arm has taken place. On the contrary, modern developments have shown the necessity for two additional flights for the latter." Economies in naval personnel have reduced the numbers borne during the current year by over 1000 below the figure for 1928, mentioned last year. On April Ist % next the strength of the Royal Naw will be 99,800, but that total is expected to fall by another 1000 during 1929, making a reduction of 3000 in all from the numbers borne on April Ist, 1928. Furthermore, "in view of the urgent necessity for economy, certain changes have been effected in the peace organisation and staffing of the Naval Staff Divisions at the Admiralty." Construction Programme. Under the 1925 programme the amount proposed to be voted for new construction this year is £8,621,626, or £1 008,231 less than in 1928. "The main reason for this smaller provision," says the First Lord, "is, of course, the cancellation of the three cruisers, from the programmes of 1927 and 1928, as the result of which only seven cruisers building will be at the stage requiring large payments in 1929, as against ten in the previous year, and twelve in 1927." Provision is made for commencing the construction of the following new ships: 3 cruisers, 1 flotilla leader, 8 destroyers, 6 submarines, 1 net-layer, and target-towing vessel, 6 sloops. Two cruisers, two submarines, the netlayer, and two sloops will be built in K.M. Dockyards. The aircraft carrier, which should have been commenced this year, will not be proceeded with until more experience has been obtained with Courageous and Glorious. The two cruisers of the 1928 programme, which will be of the 10,000-ton type, are being ordered from Portsmouth and Devonport dockyards respectivelv. They have not yet been laid down. The provision for the Fleet Air Arm is increased by £220,000, principally in order to meet the cost of a further instalment of aircraft (two flights) for Glorious. The vessel will complete her reconstruction' as an aircraft carrier and be commissioned during 1929, , but "under the modest programme which we are following" she will not have her full equipment of aircraft until 1930. J

Singapore Base. A small increase is shown in the vote for work on the Singapore naval base. "This work," says Mr Bridgeman, has in the past made only a small demand JL Vrttps in consequence of the MneMM contributions of New Zealand. Federated Malay States, and Hongirlff But in 1929 the expenditure wUI exceed the naval share of the eonf? c JL Rf ;ii in course of payment by over £200,000. Now that the preliminary work of clearing the site has been *ZXted and the main engineering has been placed, the cost to naw votes must largely increase during ft- next few years, unless, ofcourse, additional contributions from the Empire should be forthcoming. "The advancement of the new construetion programme and of the Singapore naval base, and the gradual expan-

sion of the Fleet Air Arm, have been since 1925 the main developments which ' we have kept in view. In the meantime our policy has been to effect economies wherever possible in the maintenance charges of the Navy in order to offset the expenditure on these three main objects. In doing so we have, aB I pointed out in my statement last year, been greatly assisted by the absence of any disturbing feature in the general naval position, and have, therefore, felt justified in deferring or spreading over a long period the fulfilment of many important naval requirements. The Navy Estimates for 1929 have been framed in strict conformity with the policy." One hundred and twenty-one Naval and Royal Marine officers have been trained as aircraft pilots, and twelve more are under training. Officers employed as observers number seventyfour.