PILOTS FOR WAR

Evening Post, Volume CXXIX, Issue 65, 16 March 1940, Page 15

PILOTS FOR WAR

EMPIRE PLAN

A VAST PROGRAMME

PACTS AND FIGURES

The real magnitude of the Empire air training scheme now under way in Canada is shown by the impressive facts and figures quoted by Dr. W. A. Riddell, High Commissioner for Canada in New Zealand, at the State luncheon given in his honour yesterday. The undertaking, he said, would soon result in a rapid increase in the" number of training schools in and achieve a speedily increasing output of highly-trained pilots, observers, and gunners.- In short, it aimed to achieve by cooperative effort .air forces whose coordinated strength would, be overwhelming. . ; , ...;.,:

Dr. Riddell said that the scheme provided for a continuance of training in the United Kingdom, for an enlargement of the training programmes of Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, and for a joint training programme in Canada. Great progress had; al-, ready been made in the attainment of the different objectives.

"Rapid and extensive increases, as1 you are; aware, hay .made'in the ■ air training programmes- of each of the three Dominions,'? Dr.; Riddell continued, ■ "The, join| training pro- i gramme in Canada is also well under way and will be 'opened according to schedule. ■ ' ' : THOUSANDS OF PILOTS. "This programme, provides for the training of many thousands of pilots j in Canada; each year. About . three-1 fifths are air observers, and there, are slightly more air.,gunners', than, pilots. The •■.'facilities. ■ in:- ' . Canada,. ..will be used in.- varying' /degrees by .all lour countries, to the agreement. i; lt is ex-1 pected that.: most of the air recruits in the United .. Kingdom; will, be trained at Home. Under the agreement it is expected that about .onefifth of the pupils to receive advanced training in Canada will come from New Zealand and Australia. Some pupils will be - .received from the United Kingdom, -Newfoundland, and elsewhere. The great .majority of the pupils, however, will-be from ..Canada. "The air training ■•. programme in j Canada contemplates a., ground course to prepare recruits for flying and for Air Force life in general. This will be given in three large schools. At! the end of four weeks' initial "training, a selection will be made of those to be pilots, observers, and gunners,'' and they will then go to the appropriate schools.' ' /."■'■■'■ ;';: '. " '. ';..;,/.:. \ '^ELEMENTARY TRAI^INGi:^ | "Pilots will go to one of the? elementary schools, where they, will learn to get the feel of a plane and fly the machines. After some Jeight weeks they will graduate to the fly-, ing school. It is at this stage that it is understood that New Zealand and Australian pilots, who will have received their initial, and elementary training in their own countries, will go to Canada to. continue their training. In the service flying schools, of which there will be sixteeji in Canada, pilots will spend about fourteen weeks learning intermediate and advanced flying, including night and instrument flying. They will receive instruction in bombing and fighting as well. "The air; observers,.including, those from abroad,- will spend about twelve weeks at the •. ten air observers' schools, where pupils will be taught navigation, < reconnaissance, and photography. They go" on from air observers' schools to the ten bombing and gunnery schools and for a six weeks' course in the theory and practice of bombing. Finally, in* order to learn more advanced navigation, observers will spend about four weeks in one of the two air navigation schools. ■■■;,. \; , '~'!'■ '<The air gunners,, who also SejrVe- as wireless operators, after* tKear initial j training in Canada or abroad, will take a sixteen weeks' course in the four wireless training schools. In them, air gunners will be taught not only the essential principles of radio j work, but also of operating practices' in the air. They will then proceed to the bombing and schools for four weeks to iearn.that.phase of ; the work before proceeding overseas,, , '" .' GROUND 'STAFFING. V.. ; ' ; - '~' "Schools are also being., set up for the training of instructors and, administrative staffs, and before the training programme is brought to full capacity, ground crews and maintenance staffs will be required in large j numbers to man the various schools and establishments. Repair and equipment depots, headquarters and camps, recruiting centres'-and -record officesl will be established. In addition, to thY fifty-eight schools for the' jtraihing of pilots, observers, and air gunners and schools needed at the outset for training instructors and administrative staffs, several much larger schools

will be established to train the personnel for ground crews arid maintenance staffs.' The total number of schools required in Canada for the joint training programme will be sixty-seven.

"Nearly 40,000 officers and men will be required to man all thJ various schools, depots, and other parts of the organisation when it is in full operation. This will include about 2700 officers and about 6000 civilians. The remaining 30,000 will be members of the Air Force other than officers. These numbers do not include the pupils undergoing training, who will also be numbered in thousands. Many of the airmen required for training the pupils will be mechanics and other skilled artisans who constitute ground crews and maintenance staffs.

"The existing facilities of the Royal Canadian Air Force will be, used to the full, as-well as the facilities which have been - made available by our trans-Canada Air Lines. However, to put the extensive programme into operation, a great deal >of. construction and' production is. already under way. Throughout the country about a score of; existing Air Force fields are .being enlarged, and some sixty odd new ah fields constructed. Contracts have been let for the enormous varieties of equipment both in Canada and elsewhere. There is no doubt that the< industries of Canada can. be relied upon to. meet effectively the greater part of the demands of this programme for large supplies of i equipment-ahd : stores- of various kinds which will be required to furnish the schools and the repair depots. . '■■; "",. SUPPLY OF AIRCRAFT. "Great quantities' of aircraft and) their parts will be ' required. The United Kingdom, as her part of the cost of the undertaking, has agreed to supply, and is supplying, most of the aircraft, including engines and spares. Apart from the aircraft supplied by the United Kingdom, the light airctaft for elementary training and a portion of the other aircraft will be made in Canada. This wiir be included with the other costs of the joint training | programme, which are to be divided j between Canada, New Zealand, and j Australia in proportion to the use made, j of the various facilities by the pupils of the three countries. This means that, excluding the cost of the' aircraft provided by ; the United Kingdom, Canada will bear the cost of the initial • - and: elementary training in Canada about, four-fifthsoorf r the remaining -costs of the .programme. "The" duration of the. agreement .is until March 31, 1943. In other words, the agreement has still three years to run, although this period may be ex-, tended or terminated by mutual agreement. ■•]•■■•.. ' '■ •.■', :'■' 1 HUGE EXPENDITURE. "While any ; estimate of the costs made at present is subject: to a margin of error* the total ccjst' for the en* tire, programme <in Canada for the period agreed upon will approximate 600,000,000 dollars. Canada's: share will be around 350,000,000 dollars, or slightly less than 100,000,000 New Zealand pounds. ' t ■■'■■^

to the beginning of September of this year, the expenditure on the joint training programme will amount to. about 90,000,000 . dollars; Of this 90,000,000, Canada's share will be abdut 48,000,000 dollars. This amount for Canada will be in addition to the .315,000,000 dollars w,hich, the Minister of Finance estim&ted would, be the cost of the military programme undertaken before the air training plan was proposed. Canada in this first year of the war therefore will be-spending on her military effort alone about a million dollars, or more than £275,000, a day.

"The general supervision of the joint air training programme is under a supervisory board, upon which all the parties 'to the agreement will be represented. This board will be under the chairmanship of the Canadian Minister of National Defence, and will include, among others, representatives of the Governments of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia, as well as the Chief' of the Canadian Air Staff. -'Contact with the, Government will be maintained by the board through its chairman) and with the Royal Canadian Air Force through the Chief of Air Staff.

"The representatives on' the board of the Governments of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia have already been chosen. Sir William Glasgow, the newly-appointed High Commissioner for Australia in Canada, will be the Australian representative, and the Canadian Government was pleased to learn of the appointment of Group-Captain Isitt as the representative of the New Zealand Government on the board. All four Governments will co-operate in the provision of staff and teaching personnel, and this co-operative arrangement should go far to ensure the successful working of the' joint air programme."