NEW DUTIES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23817, 19 November 1940, Page 7

NEW DUTIES

ARMY CO-OPERATION AIR FORCE COMMAND DEVELOPMENT IN TACTICSBy Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright . LONDON. Nov. 17 The importance of co-operation between air and land forces is one of the lessons learned in the present war, and an announcement by the Air Ministry and War Office, which states that these Service Departments have to "consider how best to secure the most effective basis of co-operation between the Army and the Royal Air Force," is an important contribution to present-day tactics. i The announcement continues: "The principal feature of the new arranger ments is the decision to set up a command of the Royal Air Force to be called the Army Co-operation Command, which will comprise all squadrons allotted to Army formations in the United Kingdom, together with associated training nits. : "The primary function.of this command will he to organise co-operation between the t}yo services. Tlie-opera-

tional employment of the squadron will rest as hitherto with the' commands of the Army formations to which they are allotted. , "The Army Co-operation Command will he under an air officer command-ing-in-chief, and a senior Army officer is being appointed as head of the air staffs. The air staffs of the command and subordinate formations will consist of Army and Royal Air Force officers in roughly equal proportions. The formation of this command is tho outcome of a system of co-operation which has been steadily built up between the two services over a long period, and the new organisation is designed to accord with the'lessons of recent operational experience. £1 "The Army Co-operation Command with a joint staff will work in' constant association with - the. Araiy and Air Force Commands concerned. It will be a rigid development of Army co-opera-tion.

The chief of the Army Co-operation Command is Air Marshal Sir Arthur Barratt. "Air Marshal Barratt is the perfect choice," commented the British Broadcasting Company's air observer, Mr. Oliver Stewart. "No one understands Army problems and Army needs better than he." , . At the request of the Minister of Aircraft Production, Lord Beaverbrook, the officer commanding the Fighter Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, is to go to the United States on special service. He will be succeeded as chief of the Fighter Command by the deputy chief of. the Air Staff, -Air Marshal W. S. Douglas. CHANNEL SHELLING HEAVY ARTILLERY DUELEXPLOSIONS ROCK COAST (Received November 18, 9.10 p.m.) LONDON;-Nov.' 17 German • long-range guns heavily bombarded the Dover area on Sunday night. Meanwhile the Royal Air Force attacked invasion ports. The coast between Calais and Boulogne was ; frequently illuminated by flashes.> British guns replied to the Germans across the Straits of Dover after a large-scale Royal Air Force attack on invasion ports. Hundreds watching the thunderous exchange saw vivid 'orange flashes from the guns on both sides of the straits. The explosions of shells rocked the Channel towns. The shelling lasted for three hours. AFRICAN CAMPAIGN FURTHER AIR ACTIVITY. ■ \ . ..» (Received November 18. 7.30 p.m.) LONDON. Nov. IT A Royal Air Force communique issued at Cairo states: "One of our aeroplanes was shot down near Sidi Barrani during a' fight with three Italian aircraft, one of which was destroyed. "We successfully Benghazi, where, shipping was damaged. "Much damage was caused in an attack on a fuel depot near Gura. The Royal Air Force bombed the main quay of the destroyer base at Massawa.'' ' '* ... ':V