FRENCH, AERIAL ARM.

Otago Witness, Issue 3214, 20 October 1915, Page 17

FRENCH, AERIAL ARM.

PARIS, October 12. A party of Anglo-American journalists inspected the French fleet of 200 new armoured cannon-carrying aeroplanes. They witnessed these manoeuvring high in the air and firing Sin rapid-fire guns. Some of the planes have a stretch of 130 ft across. A monster battle-plane, consisting of three superimposed planes, on an average speed cf 71 miles an hour with a crew of 12 and with two 3in cannon, flew as steadily as an ordinary biplane. The crew in actual fighting consists of an officer and four men. The cruiser aeroplanes are small biplanes of high power, capable of rising almost vertically. They have a speed of 90 miles an hour, and their evolutions are thrilling. The battle-planes maintained a

steady fire while circling and plunging. The fleet is almost ready to carry out an attack on the enemy from the rear. The improvement in French aviation is astounding. One factory is turning out five aeroplanes daily, and others nearly equal this. RUSSIAN SUCCESS AT DVINSK. ALSO OTHER POINTS. PETROGRAD, October 12. A commuti'que states ; Our aeroplanes dropped bombs on several villages south-west of Friedrichstadt. Furious and successful fighting has oc-. curred at many points at Dvinsk. We put the Germans at Garbutoaka to flight and expelled them from their trenches near Lautzessei, south-west of Dvinsk. Pursuing them, we occupied the line from the southern end of Lake Medmuskge to Lautzessei. Our artillery murderously assailed the enemy advancing near the Kovel railway towards Styr. An obstinate battle below Kolki ended in our occupying the third line of trenches. LONDON, October 12 (5.5 a.m.) Furious fighting on the Dvinsk front against the German offensive is reported from Petrograd. The enemy were forced to flee from Grabaanovka, and south-west of Dvinsk the enemy trenches were captured. The Germans were pursued to the south-eastern end of Lake Wedminn and Lanyzes Ghey. Russian cavalry occupied Bustje. An enemy offensive was repulsed on the Niemen. On the evening of the 10th we captured the third line of enemy trenches at Kolski. SUBMARINES. COPENHAGEN, October 11. The British submarine El9’s exploit in sinking the Lulea has caused a panic amongst German shipping in the Baltic. The Lulea was laden with 3000 tons of copper and other metals. COPENHAGEN, October 12. A submarine, believed to be British, sank a German collier off Aaland, and also shelled the ore steamer Germania, which was beached. The crews were saved. GENERAL NEWS. COPENHAGEN, October 12. It is reported that there is a serious cholera epidemic at Kiel. PARIS, October 12. Admiral Fournet, commanding at the Dardanelles, has been appointed com-mander-in-chief of the French navy, vice Admiral Lapeyrere, resigned from illhealth MELBOURNE, October 12. A new force is being raised for service in German New Guinea, consisting of 300 men between the ages of 30 and 50. Senator Pearce announces that tenders for the manufacture of 18-pounder shells have been accepted by the Defence Department, the New South Wales Government, the Queensland railways, nine Victorian firms, the Newport Railway Workshops (Victoria), the South Australian Government, the War Munitions Corm pany of Westralia, and two other West Australian firms. The earliest date of delivery will be November 1.