BRITISH NAVY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVI, Issue 92, 18 March 1936, Page 10

BRITISH NAVY

SIGNIFICANCE OF SINGAPORE. SUBAIARINE WARFARE. (United Press Association —By Electric Telegraph —Copyright.) Received March 17, 1.5 p.m. LONDON, A!arch 16In the House of Commons, Admiral Sir Roger Keyes said it was impossible to operate the Fleet to the east of the Red Sea without a base at Singapore. “Singapore is the outlying base of our great Dominions in the East. Most of the money Bpcnt prior to shutting down the base by the Labour Government was provided by New Zealand, and quite a large sum by Alalay and Hong Kong, showing they realised the great need of the base,” ho declared.

Sir Dudley De Chair hoped lie was not revealing a secret in saying Britain possessed an almost fool-proof anti-submarine device operating on the system of a reflector ray, the effect of which was that no submarine could come within torpedo-firing range of a ship without danger of instant destruction. The Admiralty had also constructed an anti-aircraft ship capable of a terrific volume of fire in the defence of a harbour or other ships.