VICE-CHIEFS APPOINTED

Southland Times, Issue 24109, 24 April 1940, Page 6

VICE-CHIEFS APPOINTED

Relieving Pressure On Leaders NEW MEMBERS OF AIR COUNCIL (United Press Assn— Telegraph Copyright) (Received April 23, 7.30 p.m.) LONDON, April 22. Vice-Chiefs have been appointed for three fighting services—on the Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral T. S. V. Phillips; on the Imperial General Staff, General Sir John Dill, at present commanding the First Army Corps in France; on the Air Staff, Air Marshall R. E. C. Peirse. It is officially stated that the appointments of Vice-Chiefs are the result ot increasing war pressure upon the time and energy of the Chiefs of Stafis. The effect of air warfare necessitates a 24hour shift for all three services. Assuming that the strain may be prolonged the Government considered it essential to relieve it as far as possible. The holders of the new posts will be members of the Board of the Admiralty, the Army Council and the Air Council respectively. They will also be available for consultation by subordinate staffs when the Chiefs of Staffs themselves are attending meetings or are otherwise engaged. They wl ‘l be available to attend the meetings ot the War Cabinet at which the Chiefs ot Staffs are unable to be present. They will thus be a link between the War Cabinet and the Chiefs of Staffs. The arrangements are not intended to interfere with the positions of the Chiefs of Staffs as the principal advisers to the political heads of. the services. AIR SUPPLY BOARD In a British Official Wireless message the Air Ministry announces: "Concurrently with the arrangements announced today for relieving pressure on Chiefs of Staffs, the Minister of Air (Sir Samuel Hoare) invited Sir Charles Craven to join the Air Council as civil member for development and production. In his new appointment, which will be wholetime, Sir Charles will be associated with Air Marshal Sir Wilfred Freeman, air member for development and production. Sir Charles will also be chairman of the Air Supply Board which will replace existing air council committee on plySir Charles on taking up his appointment has disassociated himself from the boards of Vickers Ltd., Vickers Armstrongs Ltd., and all associated companies and ceases to take any part in the conduct of their affairs.” Mr E. J. H. Lemon, whose services were lent to the Air Ministry by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway is resuming his office with the railway, his work at the Air Ministry being completed. He, however, will serve on the Air Supply Board, which will be responsible under the Air Council for the production of aeronautical equipment and supplies and will be composed of Sir Charles Craven (chairman), Lord Riversdale, Air Marshal Sir Wilfred Freeman, Air Marshal Sir Christopher Counteny, Sir Harold Howitt, Mr Lemon, Sir Charles Bruce Gardney and Mr Lindsay Scott.

NEW BATTLESHIPS FOR ALLIES FRENCH BUILDERS’ GOOD PERFORMANCE (British Official Wireless) RUGBY, April 22., The announcement that of France’s four new battleships, two, the Richelieu and the Jean Bart, will soon be ready for service, and the construction of two sister ships, the Clemenceau and the Gascogne, is well advanced, has been received with much satisfaction in London. “This is a remarkable performance in view of the fact that these 35,000-ton battleships are by far the biggest ever built in France,” says The Daily Telegraph. The Clemenceau was laid down in January 1939, and the Gascogne, though no official date has been given, is believed to have been begun within the last few weeks. With a speed of more than 30 knots and a main armament of eight 15-inch guns, these four ships compare well with their fotn- Italian contemporaries. The five British battleships of the King George V class, now completed, are equally fast, but have an armament of 10 14-inch guns.

SEVERAL INCIDENTS IN BALKANS NAZIS SIGN PROTOCOL IN BUCHAREST (Received April 23, 9.30 p.m.) LONDON, April 23. The Times says German attention is directed on the Balkans in the identical manner it was on Scandinavia before the invasion. The Belgrade correspondent of The Times says that cases of rifles and ammunition were found in the German pavilion at the Belgrade Fair. The Germans have been seeking to buy large quantities of topboots. 'Three car-loads of Germans were arrested for following King Peter. Seventy thousand troops and 350 warplanes are concentrated in the Klangenfurt area. German propaganda about Slovakia declares that Croatia’s struggle for freedom is within sight of achievement. The Bucharest correspondent of The Times says that the German trade expert, Dr Clodius, is going to Italy after signing a protocol whereby the exchange rate is unchanged for Rumanian exports of oil and wheat. The quantities are also unchanged. Germany will increase the prices here for exports varying from 30 to 100 per cent. The chief of the foreign trade department, M. Christu, has gone to Italy with an important trade mission.

AERIAL BLOCKADE NECESSARY

NAZIS GETTING MATERIALS BY AIR LINES PARIS, April 23. The French Minister of Blockade (M. Jean Monnet), in an interview, said that an aerial blockade of Germany was necessary because Germany was importing goods and currency by regular air lines. The Customs dues at the Lisbon airport reached £5680 daily. The Germans were even importing tons of carpet tacks from which they were extracting copper.

“The Allies are buying all Yugoslav copper and all Turkish chrome,” he said. “Germany is suffering a 90 per cent, deficiency in her fat supplies and even before the war against Norway, the Ruhr factories were closed three days a week because of the lack of iron.” , ._