AIR TRAINING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23968, 19 May 1941, Page 7

AIR TRAINING

NEW EMPIRE SCHEME

AMERICAN SCHOOLS

THOUSANDS OF PILOTS

ENTRY AS CIVILIANS (Rml. r,.3.~> p.m.) WASHINGTON, May 17 The United States War Department lias approved a plan by which the United States Army Air Corps schools will train thousands of British pilots. The plan includes: (1) Immediate use of primary and basic training facilities at private civilian flying schools now training American pilots. (2) The British will enter into a contract with six schools, and will build new facilities for them, the United States Army supplying the aircraft and equipment, while the British pay the instructors and personnel. (■'!) Advanced training will bo given at Maxwell, Moffett and Randolph Fields, but will not include combat training. After 22 weeks of training in America the men will have more instruction in Britain before going into action. Officials emphasised that British fliers, who are expected from all parts of the Empire, will enter the schools as civilians and not as members of the Royal Air Force, in order to comply with the United States laws. FUGITIVE GENERAL EGYPT SEEKS ARREST FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF (Rood. 10.30 p.m.) CAIRO, May 18 The Egyptian Government has offered £IOOO for information leading to the arrest of General Aziz el Mas.ri, former Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Army, He is believed to be hiding after making a forced landing when attempting to leave Egypt by aeroplane. The fugitive general was placed on a pension last August, being replaced as Chief of Staff by Lew a Ibrahim Atullah Pasha, aide-de-camp to the Xing of Egypt. The Government has appointed Provincial Governor Bayoumi Nazzar Bey as new military governor for the Suez Canal zone. The appointment coincides with a general tightening of restrictions on movements in certain parts of the zone. BOMBERS RAID CRETE AIR FORGE TAKES TOLL STAUNCH DEFENCE RESOLVE LONDON, May 16 Italian bombers raided Crete, five being brought down. There was no damage and no casualties occurred. It is now established that on May 13 and 14 eight German aircraft were destroyed over Crete bv British fighters; A message from Nicosia reports that a small force of Italian bombers raided Cyprus and dropped bombs on various places. Th 3 damage was slight and only three people were injured. Hellenism is grimly determined to carry on the fight on the side of Britain to the last man, said M. Nicoloudis, a Greek Cabinet Minister in Crete. He said that any seaborne invasion of Crete was doomed to failure. The air menace was being fought, and the morale of the population was high. The Greek Fleet, he added, was cooperating with the British Navy, and Greek pilots would soon be participating with the R.A.F. Important forces which fought their way out of Greece were now somewhere in the Middle East, anxious to make the Axis pay for its treacherous aggression. Greece's gold reserves were safe. ARMY APPOINTMENTS CHANGES IN BRITAIN (Reed. ,".5 p.m.) LONDON, May Ifi The King has approved n number of important Army appointments, says a British official wireless message. General Sir Robert Haining, Vice-Chief of the Imperial General Staff, has been selected for a special appointment. Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pownall, General-OfFicer-Commanding Northern Ireland, is to be Vice-Chief of the Imperial General Staff. Other appointments include Lieu-tenant-General H. E. Franklyn, to be Genera l-Ofhcer-Comm a nding Northern Ireland; Lieutenant-General H. C. B. Wemyss, Adjutant-General to the forces, selected for special appointment; Lieutenant-General Sir Ronald Adam, General-Oflicer-Commanding in Chief, Northern Command, to he Adjutant-General to the forces; Lieu-tenant-General T. R. Eastwood, Director of the Home Guard, to be Gencral-Oflicer-Commanding in Chief, Northern Command; Brigadier Viscount Bridgeman, Deputy-Director of the Home Guard, to be Director-General of the Home Guard with the rank of MajorGeneral. MIDDLE EAST AIR LOSSES LONDON, Mny 10 During the week ended at dusk on May U>. 2') enemy aircraft were destroyed in tln> Mediterranean theatre of war, and many others were damaged on the ground, says a British oflieial wireless message. Eleven British aircraft did not. return from all the Mediterranean and African operations.