AVIATION

Grey River Argus, 22 March 1928, Page 5

AVIATION

FLEET OF AIRSHIPS For Atlantic Service WASHINGTON, March 21. Plans for the London to New York dirigible service are being formed under the leadership of Alex. Dow. Chairman of the Board of ihe Detroit Edison Conipanv. It is proposed .to operate a fleet of six dirigibles by the Company, which will be jointly ow r ned by British and American intcrests.

Ocean Flying

GOVERNMENT SUPERVISION URGED. LONDON, March 20. During the Air Estimates debate in the Commons, Captain Guest said there was apparently no civil aviation policy in Britain. Germany’s civil ’planes last year covered four million miles, the French thirty two hundred thousand. and British eight hundred thousand. IM r V oodcock said the money needed to subsidise air liners would be negligUp in view of thp value that could be achieved. Sea planes and steamships should play parts in one performancc. There ought to be an Imperial Croydon in Egypt, seaplane base at Southampton. Rear Admiral Sueter said there ough\ to be some official control over people wanting to fly the Atlantic. The Air Minister should insist ou theii having proper medical certificates, and knowledge of navigation. The machine ought to be overhauled before the flight. Lt.-Col. Moore-Brabazon said: “We had a bad week of aviation last week. I cannot remember a worse, but I hope we arc not going to lay down a stern rule as to what people ought and ought not to do.” The people had a right to risk their lives as they liked. It would be a retrograde step to surround them with difficulties to stop initiative, whatever mad enterprise they might indulge in. It Avould he like stopping Drake going round the world, before thp seas were charted. We had had a serious setback in the attempt at .the seaplane speed record, but it was really extraordinary that out of all the hundreds of miles flown at great speed, Kinkead’s was the first fatality marking out attempts at a record. He hoped we would regain the record which was most important to the prestige ol our industry, and the engineers. Sir Samuel Hoare, replying, said the trouble with civil aviation was the shortage ol money. From the viewpoints of reliability, economy and administration, England was definitely ahead in civil aviation. The Committoe of Imperial Defence had urged a minimum force should bo fifry-two squadrons. It ■was at present between thirty and forty. There would be no peace until it reached the minimum. Hp did not want to disparage bravery ami initiative in Atlantic attempts, but he considered rather that thev should not be attempted until there was a machine better qualified for .the effort. He foresaw the greatest difficulty in the State attempting to present individual flights. How could he or any department .tell when a pilot was actually about to cross. Many such flights had been undertaken without his knowledge. Ho did not wish to dogmatise, but his present view was H>ut it was unwise to take any responsibility the kind P