IF AIR ATTACK SHOULD COME

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVIII, Issue 21554, 17 January 1940, Page 7

IF AIR ATTACK SHOULD COME

Britain Confident Of Defences

Enemy Bombers Can Take Lead

British Official Wireless

RUGBY, January 15.

That Royal Air Force fighters could bring an enemy air offensive on Britain to a standstill in a comparatively short space of time by losses which would be inflicted on the raiding bombers is the opinion held by authoritative circles in London.

Although a tribute is paid to the efficiency of the self-sealing petrol tanks carried by the Heinkel bombers, which increases the difficulty of shooting them down in their spasmodic appearance over the British shores, it is pointed out that neither British aeroplane design nor armament is standing still and that British fighters will shortly be able to shatter these tanks which at present, though riddled with bullets, do not leak sufficiently to prevent them reaching home again.

The skill and courage of night flying German pilots is fully recognised, and it is appreciated by the men of the Fighter Command that neither British industries nor the civil population will be safe until a full offensive breaks out and the percentage of losses which the enemy will suffer affects the morale oi the German pilots. British towns have so far been spared devastation by air raids, against which the precautions of civilian defence were taken, but the preparations made in the first days of the war have not been relaxed. The civilian defence organisation stands ridy. A total of 1,250,000 volunteer workers are at their posts and training goes on. War Has Not Yet Started A spokesman at the Air Ministry stated: “The war has not yet started and for this reason little more is known of the respective merits of the opposing forces than before the outbreak of the war. The results of the preliminary skirmishes in some respects are impressive. Our bombers sustained losses, but for every one casualty two or three enemy fighters were shot down. Not a single fighter was lost by Britain and the number of bullet strikes were surprisingly small. “On the contrary it was found that the German bombers take a surprising amount of lead and that it rather more difficult to bring them down than was expected. “Britain is still confident that she could bring to a standstill a large scale air offensive in a comparatively short time, but not without some casualties in the industrial output and civil population. “The German machines, in -ame respects, are inferior, owing to the false impression given in the Spanish war, from which it was concluded that a bomber’s greatest safeguard was its speed, and as a result of th 4 s the original Heinkels and Dorniers are practically defenceless. Germany is now doing her utmost to overcome the deficiercy and the German raiders on Britain are flying at great heights, it it understood that bombers attacking from 30,000 feet on a clear day achieve 50 per cent accuracy. “The greatest surprise of the w~r has been the effectiveness of the German aeroplanes’ self-sealing tanks and the prospect of raiders being forced down without petrol after th' tanks have been punctured is now almost non-existent.”