R.A.F. DISPLAY

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 28 November 1938, Page 7

R.A.F. DISPLAY

AT PARIS EXHIBITION NEW MACHINES DISPLAYED I British Official Wirelessl RUGBY, 26th November. To-day was the second day of the international aeronautical exhibition in Paris, and reports indicate that the crowds again displayed the greatest interest in the stand of the Royal Air Force, at which the Spitfire (which will soon be produced in a large new factory erected by Lord Nuffield) and the Hurricane are on view. In addition to the two models shown on the stand, there is an illuminated glass map on which the routes covered regularly by R.A.F. aircraft are illustrated pictorially. There are also diagrams and charts depicting the growth of the R.A.F. These show that the number of pilots and airmen has risen from 31,200 in 1935, to 73,400 in October, 1938, and by next June there will be a strength of about 100,000 men. In first-line aircraft the number has already been increased from 1015 in 1935 to a figure well in excess of 2000. Expenditure over the same period has risen from £27,500,000 to £216,000,000, and the estimated expenditure for 1939 is £200,000,000.