§ 12. Mr. W. GREENWOODasked the Secretary of Stale for Air the amount of money we are spending to extend commercial aviation in this country, and the comparison such expenditure bears to that in Germany and Russia?
The SECRETARY of STATE for AIR (Captain Guest)The estimated expenditure on civil aviation during the current financial year on the basis of the organisation forecasted when presenting the Estimates in £325,000. In addition, however, services on behalf of civil aviation are rendered by the Department of Supply and Research, the Controllcrate of Communications, and the Meteorological Office. The German Government is giving direct assistance to the air transport 1394 industry by the payment of a subsidy of 10 marks per kilometre flown for distances under 300 kilometres, and 11 marks for distances above 300 kilometres. In addition, in 1921, a sum of 10,000,000 marks was devoted to the relief of aircraft constructional companies. The amounts set aside as subsidies for air transport in 1920, 1921 and 1922 are reported to be as follow:
The Russian Government is understood to have entrusted recently the development of air lines in Russia and between Russia and Germany to a German concern, the Aero-Union Aktien Gesellschaft, with which it has co-operated in the financing of a Russian-German air transport company.
- 1920, 12,000,000 marks.
- 1921, 11,000,000 marks (and 1,000,000 marks for meteorology).
- 1922, 40,000,000 marks.
§ Sir H. BRITTAINCan the right hon. Gentleman give us any idea of the number of commercial aeroplanes operating in England as a result of that expenditure, as compared with England?
Captain GUESTIf my hon. Friend will put a question down, I will give him all the information I can.
Mr. L'ESTRANGE MALONEIs there not a great deal of money being spent by the Admiralty which might more profitably be spent on civil aviation?