§ 38. Lieut.-Colonel Sir Thomas Mooreasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Civil Aviation if he will specify by name the railway companies which operated air lines before the war in England and Wales.
§ The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (Mr. Perkins)The airline operations of the four mainline Railway Companies in the United Kingdom were conducted by a number of airline companies. These airline companies were:
§ Great Western and Southern Airlines Ltd.,
§ Guernsey Airways Ltd.,
§ Isle of Man Air Services Ltd.,
§ Jersey Airways Ltd.,
§ Railway Air Services Ltd.,
§ Scottish Airways Ltd.,
§ West Coast Air Services Ltd.
§ These companies had a total route mileage of approximately 5,700 miles. Of these companies, Scottish Airways operated exclusively in Scotland. Railway Air Services operated between England and Scotland, and Scotland and Northern Ireland. Isle of Man Air Services included a service between the Isle of Man and Glasgow. The other services operated in England and Wales and between England and North Ireland, Eire, Channel Islands, Scilly Islands and Isle of Man.
§ Sir T. MooreWhile thanking my hon. Friend for his very comprehensive reply, may I say that it is not a reply to my Question? May I re-direct my hon. Friend's attention to the specific words of my Question? I asked what were the names of the railway companies operating air lines before the war. He has given me a very long, interesting and, as I say, comprehensive study of the whole question before the war, but not an answer to my Question.
§ Mr. PerkinsI am sure my hon. and gallant Friend will raise this matter on the Estimates later to-night.
§ Sir T. MooreI have every intention of doing so.