§ 15. Mr. EYRES-MONSELLasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether the trials of the experimental airship 2270 "Willows" have proved satisfactory; and, if so, whether the Admiralty intend to proceed with the building of airships of practical value?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLThe trials of the small Willows airship have proved quite satisfactory for the limited purposes for which it is intended.
§ Mr. EYRES-MONSELLWould the right hon. Gentleman answer the second part of the question?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLI said that I did not desire to make any statement on the air programme at the present time, as I stated last week in reply to a question.
§ Mr. JOYNSON HICKSMay I ask why we cannot have the naval air programme when we have the Army air programme?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLThe future Army programme for the next year will, I presume, be announced when the future Army Estimates are put forward; and so will our future programme, so far as it can, be properly discussed.
§ Mr. MEYSEY-THOMPSONIs there any present naval air programme?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLIt is very remarkable the amount of progress that has been made in naval aeroplanes during the present year.
§ Sir C. KINLOCH-COOKEIs it not the fact that the right hon. Gentleman stated in this House that he had been in consultation with the right hon. Gentleman the Minister for War and had settled the programme with him?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLNo.
§ Sir C. KINLOCH-COOKEIt was stated.
§ Mr. CHURCHILLWe are now coming on to the programme of another year. Very considerable developments in naval aviation have taken place during the course of the present year.
§ Sir C. KINLOCH-COOKErose—
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe hon. Member can put down any further questions.
§ 16. Mr. EYRES-MONSELLasked whether the Committee on Aircraft have come to any conclusion in respect of the relative merits of rigid and non-rigid airships; and how many rigid airships are built, building, or projected for Great. Britain?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLThe deliberations of the Air Committee and their recommendations are confidential. The question of rigid airships is receiving attention.
§ 20. Mr. FELLasked if the Admiralty have decided to erect a garage for dirigible airships and aeroplanes on the East Coast, or somewhere in East Anglia where it will be available for aircraft accompanying ships in the North Sea?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLAll these matters are being studied, and I am not in a position to make any statement upon them at present.
§ 21. Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked whether the Navy only possesses one air ship; and whether this machine will only lift two persons, and cannot exceed thirty miles per hour in a calm?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLThe speed of the small naval airship, which is used for instructional purposes and is the only one we have at present, is just over thirty mile3 per hour.
§ Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSAre any others building for the Navy?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLI do not desire to make a statement on the subject at the present time. I will make a statement on the subject when the Estimates are presented.
§ 22. Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked whether any of our naval aviators have ever flown a machine which is capable of a speed of seventy miles per hour with a helping wind?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLYes, Sir.
§ 23. Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether the public interest will permit him to state the fact that we have no naval aeroplane capable of exceeding the speed of the newest Zeppelin by twenty miles an hour?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLWe have in the naval wing several machines that can exceed the speed of the latest Zeppelin.
§ 24. Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether, be sides one new naval Zeppelin, one new military Zeppelin, two passenger Zeppelins, and the SchÜtte-Lanz experimental dirigible, Germany has several other effective, if slightly slower, Zeppelin air ships belonging to the Army within 300 to 400 miles of the British coast?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLI am now informed that there are two other Zeppelins belonging to the Army, in addition to those mentioned in the question. Of these Z.I. was completed in 1905 and reconstructed in 1911, but I am informed that, so far as is known at the Admiralty, she has not been flying recently. The other, Z.III, according to the German Press, was taken over by the military authorities at the end of July last.