Latest War Plane Can Carry 50 Men

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 14, 18 January 1937, Page 3

Latest War Plane Can Carry 50 Men

BRITAIN’S MASS-PRODUCED SECRET Britain’s first mass-produced warplane, a giant Handley Page bomber, capable of carrying 50 fully-armed soldiers, was christened at Radlett Aerodrome (Herts) recently. She was named Harrow. So heavily camouflaged is she that when lined up against a background of trees she is practically invisible from a few hundred yards away. This was the first time the Air Ministry had allowed journalists to see a completed aeroplane on their semisecret list or the factory where it was made. The Harrow is by no means a pretty-looking-craft. She has a snub nose and a tubby tail, while in the centro of the roof is a turret. But these three features hide machine-guns. Her speed is being kept secret, but she is stated to have exceeded the expectations of her designer. Italy’s latest long-distance bombing ’plane, said to be the most powerful in the world, is described in the official organ of the Air Ministry in Rome. “The ’plane can easily reach any European capital, bomb it and reach its base without accident,” declares the article. Once its cargo of bombs is unloaded, it is. stated, the machine can reach the fantastic height of 36,000 feet, which puts it out of the range of the most powerful anti-aircraft guns in existence. A single-engine aeroplane, claimed to be capable of flying non-stop from Tokio to New York (over 6,500 miles), is nearing completion at Tokio.