§ 7. Lieut.-Commander TUFNELLasked the First Lord of the Admiralty to what extent air reconnaissances and air patrols are being made use of to protect British shipping in Chinese waters from capture by pirates?
The FIRST LORD of the ADMIRALTY (Sir Bolton Eyres Monsell)As the type of piracy prevalent in the China Seas 338 takes the form of an attack from within the ship, air patrols are of little use as a preventive measure. Aircraft are, however, employed against pirates as far as possible with the limited resources available, whenever a ship is believed to have fallen into their hands. In the two most recent cases, aircraft were employed in this manner with great success.