USES OF RADIO

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24203, 19 February 1942, Page 8

USES OF RADIO

CIVIL AND MILITARY INVALUABLE IN EMERGENCY LESSON OF SINGAPORE The complete absence of mobile field wireless stations enabled the Japanese to disrupt the beleaguered garrison's communications on Singapore, reports the war correspondent ol the Australian Broadcasting Commission, "\ards ol telephone wire strung between the trees could be destroyed by a single bomb and the satety ol whole battalions endangered, ' he stated in a message lrom lJata\ la.

The thrice-learned lesson of* the vital necessity for the development of radio transmission in the lield has not been

lost upon the military authorities in Australia and N'W Zealand, it is learned, and plans in the l)oniinion for tin.' production and ellective use ol modern signalling equipment are not by any means in the embryonic stage. In the opinion of those associated with the radio industry, the productive and technical capacity here should he sufficient to supply any national needs likely to arise. Personnel Available

Not only is radio expected to play a valuable part in any future field operations, but in the more immediate possibility of attacks by raiders, either by air or by sea, the same apparatus can be called into use by fire brigades, police, ambulance stations, electric power and water plants. It. as has been claimed. New Zealand is now able to build these "tranccivers ' in satisfactory tonus and sufficient numbers, there is still the question of manning them, either tor inilitarv or civil use. in the shortest possible time. The highly-trained technicians of the Telegraph Department, radio servicemen, and broadcasting stations would be the cadre ot the communications companies, but it appears that the amateur station operators. who at one period numbered 900, could be call or! upon to l'OSlllllG tlicil' ties tinder the aegis of the Government. Even if the larger section ol these owners has lost interest since the ban on amateur stations, a good proportion who have kept up-to-date with developments of wireless should bring a capable and enthusiastic reinforcement to the ranks. Thus, it would appear that the Dominion is in a good position, both as regards men and material, to provide itself with adequate modern communications for all contingencies. No Limits to Use in Field

The extent to which a field torce can be equipped with wireless is limitless. Kvery staff car. every truck, tank and company headquarters theoretically could be mutually 011 the air, but such a lavish layout would not be necessary, nor indeed desirable, as too many men would be attending to signals instead of concentrating on their weapons. Kncmv interference with our emergency radio is regardi'd as improbable bv experts, as it would equally disruptive of his own signals. It is significant that in Franco neither side attempted to interfere with the opposing side's wifeless. Transmitters used here would have various outputs and only sufficient power necessary to reach t"he receiver would be transmitted. A new type of transmission has been developed recently in the I nited States, and conceivably in Germany al«o. called frequency modulation, with which it is impossible to interfere by ordinary methods.