TRENCHARD

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 159, 25 March 1918, Page 9

TRENCHARD

THE GKEAT OHIEITAIN OF THE BIUTISH Alii STAI'F. (By "One Who Knows Him.") Major-General Sir UiigU 'i'renchard, lust ouief of Britain's iirst Au , litatf, will be forty-live years old in F'cbruaiy. Hβ is a Dorsetshiru man, wiiose family has lived iu the "Thoma> Hardy country" for. many generations. Tronciiard hojwd to enter the Navy, but failed in spelling, although he is a brilliant mathematician. Ho joined the Army through, the Militia. Physically rho Air Chief's outstanding charaoteristics are 6ft. liu. in lieight, broad shoulders, :i head which is smallish in propoition, a wealth of jet black hair, grey eyes that look straight at you out of a face which is rounded olr' with lirmly set jaws, and a manner that combines energy and enthusiasm without savouring ot "hustle." "Undoutedly tho most romarkable ■man the war has produced," is the description applied to Goneral Trenchard by all who know liim. It would bo going too far to say that he is tho creator of. the British air arm as it oxists to-day. Uut it is literally truo that Trenelmrd is the man who has endowed the service with the spirit of the olfensive.

Ho was tho first soldier in any army now-in the iieltl to recognise the oil'oneivo'- power of the aeroplane :uid develop it to its present t'ormulablo state. Until tho babble of tho Sommo neither tho British, French, nor German Stalf had ■ attempted to utilise tho flying machine as a weapon of attack on any noteworthy scale. The complete mastery of the air which .'Haig's forces enjoyed throughout the ftonime fighting was exclusively Trenclinrrt's achievement. There is documentary evidence that the Germans learned more from- tho British air tactics on the Sonime than they ever know before, and subsequently adopted them en bloc.

One of t.ho first soldiers in tho British Army to take up Hying, th'o outbreak of war in 1914 found Trenaharil in command of the Central Flying School at Aldershot. The British air "service" in those callosv days consisted of four squadrons of machines. All of 'them went*, forth- with tbo ''Coiitemptiblos," Meaving Tronchard disarmed. Ho was in that condition when he was ordered to send machine* to Egypt ajid \) defend the East Coast in addition! 'JVencliard's "organisation" now consisted of tin office without even a* typist, but he mado ready to obey orders. l'i\ three weeks he had done what was required.

Some day, perhaps, the story will be tojd of how Trenchard, whoso outstanding traits are long-range vision and ligntniiig-lilie power of decision, wanted then ,vid there, before the war was more than a month old, to take over a great British motor works for the rxolusivo use of the Air Service. Ho was baulked in that desire, else tho story of the air war, glorious as it has been, might have, been vastly different.

At the end of 1914 Treiicha.nl wont io France, as a wing commander, awl, while actively directing its operations at the front, proceeded to evolve the fighting organisation which was t:. reach its y.enith on the Romnie, and of which terentunlly he. became tlw chief.

Thenchard is one of the strong but not "silent" men. His hobby is getting, things done. Having set out to accomplish a. task, he never rests until he (hen if. Hie military ideal is that it is nn army's business to tight. W'p. may rest- assured . that.' tin's. .South African veteran and Emoire-buiMer (for there are five years of'effective administrative- achievement to Trenohird's credit in West Africa and Nigeria) will not rest content till he has Hejtrnv.,] the enemy's air forces. —"Daily Mai'."