NOVAL EXERCISES

Taranaki Daily News, 12 June 1930, Page 6

NOVAL EXERCISES

CO-OPERATION OF AIRCRAFT. AEROPLANE TO TOW TARGET. For the first time in New Zealand an aeroplane will tow an aerial target for anti-aircraft gun practice and for observation work for full-calibre shooting durhio- tho gunnery exercises of H.M.S. Dunedin In tho Hauraki Gulf on June 17 and. 18, weather permitting. One of the Government Fairey 111 F jnachineA from the, Hobsonvill-e. aerodrome will tow the target at a height of about -8000 ft.. and. observations of the

shooting will be taken both from the i warehip and from the aeroplane. After ; the shooting is finished the results will - he compared and an accurate estimate < of the quality of the shooting will thus 1 be obtained. . The target consists of a canvas air- i chute similar in appearance to the “air- I socks - ’ used at landing grounds to show < pilots which way the wind is blowing. ■ Made of canvas, the target is 26ft. long, 4ft, wide at the towing end and 2ft. 6iu. j wide, at £he trailing end. It will be i towed 7000 ft. behind the aeroplane and < the gunners will endeavour’ to hit the 1 target. j The target will be folded And placed < in the cockpit of the machine, which is s fitted with a main winch carrying- u 1

spool of wire 7000 ft. long and an auxiliary winch carrying 600 ft. Tho target will bo lowered through' the floor of tho cockpit and the 600 ft. of wire released, the end of this spool being then joined to the main wire, which will then bd unwound by. means of a windmill attached to the winch. The device Is so controlled that the target may bo adjusted while the machine is in flight. When’the shooting is finished the machine will return to the aerodrome and tho main length of wire will bo drawn in, leaving tho target towing at the end of the 600 ft. section, When the machine is directly ever the aerodrome the wire will be cut by the observer in the 1 cockpit and the target allowed to ffoat' ,! cloiir bo that it ‘will land ■ ' Oli) ; - I- -i rr. :AU-,. r ■ ~

ob the aerodrome, where it will be cured. This scheme is adopted to avoid any poesibility of the wire or the target becoming entangled in the controls? while the machine is landing.