"IN FULL SWING"

Thames Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 19623, 3 February 1936, Page 2

"IN FULL SWING"

REARMING WHILE DISCUSSING PEACE. POWERS' NAVIES TO-DAY. Naval rearmament by most of the foreign Powers is in full swing, according to facte presented in the 1935 edition of "Jane's Fighting Ships," says the Daily Telegraph naval expert, Mr. Hector C. Bywater. Scores of new ships have been laid down abroad and many others are projected. There is, therefore, some justification for the editorial prediction that 1936-37 is likely to he a "boom year" for man-of-war construction. In the British section an interesting disclosure relates to the new aircraftcarrier Ark Royal, laid down in September. She proves to be a ship of 22,600 tons, and is thus the largest vessel in the world to be built expressly for the carriage of aircraft, though larger ships have been adapted to that purpose. All details are given of the immense United States shipbuilding programme now in hand. It comprises 12 cruisers of 10,000 tons, three big aircraft-carriers, 54 flotilla leaders and destroyers, 12 submarines and nine heavy sloops. All these ships are now building or authorised. The Japanese navy is shown as being up to full treaty strength. Its latest ships arc six 8500-ton cruisers, mounting the abnormal armament of 15 6.lin and eight sin guns. In the French section are illustrated for the first time the new 7600-ton cruisers and the huge flotilla leaders of the Fantasque class, one of which is credited with a speed of 4§£ knots—over 52 m.p.h. The French submarine flotilla, by far the largest in the world, now includes 91 boats.

Italy also is shown to be coneentratIng on submarines, of which she already has 83 built and building, including 12 begun this year. Further, she is building cruisers with a speed of 36 \ knots and a number of super-destroyers. Italy's entire modern navy now burns oil exclusively, and several of the older ships are changing from coal to oil. Many pages in the book are devoted to the new German navy, and several new ships whose existence was not generally known are illustrated. Two years ago the total personnel was 15,000, but it has since risen to 32,956. Vessels under construction include two 26,000-ton battleships, armed with nine 11 in guns; two 10,000-ton cruisers with Bin guns, 16 super-destroyers and many submarines, including eight of ocean-going size. In anti-aircraft defence the British Navy is shown to be lagging behind all other first-class fleets. Foreign men-of-war carry from twice to three times as many anti-aircraft guns as our ships. Battleships of the United States navy now mount light A.A. guns on masthead platforms, a reversion to the armed fighting tops of the last century.

Since the above review was written it has been revealed at the British munitions inquiry that the Royal Navy has now the world's most amazing antiaircraft gun, which fires shells at the rate of several hundred, a minute.