1937-11-13 — Page 11

THE CHINA MAIL, NOVEMBER

1937

are 11

DEFENDING THE N.E.I. Unusual Character Of Dutch Defences

EMPHASIS LAID ON MOBILITY

COM-

sold

The

Holland maintains, in addition to flotilla of two boats was lost in the her minelaying destroyers, four war, one in New Guinea waters, minelayers, pure e and simple, the and the other in Turkish. The largest of which, the Rigel, can second, acquired after the war, carry 160 mines. Several of the was soon placed out of are equipped with a seaplane for mission, the third was

Royal scouting purposes,

Navy. naval opinion has been pressed that submarines are not to service along Australia's Fong coastline, and in her wide oceans yet Australia's sea frontier

East Indies squadron are addition there are prob

to carry more than 20 all

News of Holland's plans for giving greater No ships in Dutch ho power to her navy in the East Indies directs atten-carry aircraft, but the tion to the unusual character of the forces she has built up for the defence of this vast archipelago, which extends more than 3000 miles from east to about 40 Dornier Wal (German) is in the north, and in just such- flyingboats, and a larger number narrow seas as those in which the west.

of Fokker seaplanes, made in Hol-Dutch maintain their powerful sub- land Although Holland possesses marine flotilla, and the Royal Navy To British possessions in the Far East, and Aus-the famous Fokker aircraft fac itself has stationed the consider- tralia in particular, the Dutch East Indies navy tory, which builds most varieties able submarine force that belongs

of civil and military planes, she is to the China station. must always have a special interest, because if at-buying additional bombers from tack is to be feared, it must almost certainly come to each from the same direction.

Risks Of A Channel Tunnel

the Glenn L. Martin factory in the

United States.

USE OF AIRCRAFT There are other interesting cons trasts between the composition of An interesting deduction to be the Australian squadron on the drawn is that, instead of concen- one hand, and of the British and The NEL and Australia, how rating on floatplanes and flying Dutch Far Eastern squadrons, on ever, have designed their navies

boats as she has done in the past, the other Outstanding is the re- according to a very different

Holland plans to construct aero-latively greater interest taken by veloped from the British Navy, Java, Borneo, and the more settled craft, in minelayers, and (in the and has always had more or less

of the outlying islands but even case of Holland) in equipping even the character of an outlying squain little known Dutch New Guinea, small craft with their own seaplanes dron of that navy a cruiser AUSTRALIAN CONTRAST for reconnaissance. In the Dutch force with a minimum of atten-

Of the 34,000 tons of naval squadron ships comparable with

model The Australian Navy de- dromes for landplanes not only in Britain and, Holland in marine air-

dant vessels. Holland, 02 the shipping that Australia has in the sloops Swan and Yarra, carry other hand, with no powerful commission, 27,000 tons is contri- their own plane. (So do the French Sir Alexander Gibb, the eminent metropolitan fleet to look to for buted by the cruisers. On the other shops Rigault de Genouilly and engineer, in a presidential address support and for a variety of spe hand, Holland's three cruisers, ag-Admiral Charner, which are well- to the Institute of Transport in cialist services, and with a Jimited London referred to the practical purse, has built up a mosquito-gating 19,000 tons, represent known in Sydney).

limits set by present scientific fleet into which she has tried to knowledge to such projects as the put the greatest possible striking power and mobility at the least Channel Tunnel

possible cost.

THREE CRUISERS

He said that a tunnel under the English Channel or the Irish

Cruisers there are in the Dutch Channel, while perfectly feasible, Fast Indies squadron. There are entailed one great risk. It was al- three of them, the De Ruyter, Java ways possible that a set of condi- and Sumatra, which are all about tions might at any moment be ex-6.500 tons and approximately equa perienced which, with their present in power to the Australian cruiser knowledge, they would find wholly Sydney. It is clear, however, that insoluble.

They knew of no means by which the pressure could be withstood, were some large fault under great head of water to be met with, so as at the same time to permit work to be carried on.

Holland has relied rather on her torpedo-carrying craft and bomb carrying aircraft to deter an ag- gressor from venturing into. the. narrow seaways of her island em- pire.

- Her destroyer flotilia compris eight vessels, each carrying. fou The cost of tunnelling meant 4.7in. guns, a seaplane, if need be that, apart from certain excep- and 24 mines, which is formidable tional circumstances, bridging was equipment for ships of only 200 in many ways the more economical more tons than the V class des- He believed there was no question troyers of the Australian flotilla.

Ang but that with the development of To-lead this flotilla is the Tromp,

SEADROMES NOT NEEDED

wire cable construction, susper-13.350 tons, and the most power- sion, bridges could be extended to fully armed ship of its class in the spans of 18,000 feet and more. world. Four more destroyers are

to be added. POWERFUL SUBMARINE FORCE

Holland's submarine force in the Speaking of the efforts to over-Indies is the most powerful outside come the difficulties of navigation the navies or the greater naval in fog, Sir Alexander said that for Powers Britain, the United all larger vessels and for all pas States, Japan, Italy, France, Ger- senger aeroplanes, doubtless with-many, and Russia Eifteen sub- in quite a short time navigation by marines, half of them built in the night and in fog would be but last few years, are în service, and of

·little less sure and speedy than in three are to be red 1

clear daylight.

speeds at which aeroplanes regularly operate would at istant time equal or exceed the speed records of the present The distance over wh they would operate would

vastly extended.

these made a record- voyage for a submarine by way of the Atlantic and Indi

from the building yards in Holland - to Java.

It is significant of the direction from which Holland fears attack that by far the greater number of her torpedo craft, as well as all her modern cruisers, are in or tended for the East Indies. of the ser

That was why he doubted whe

ng in the nature of or mother ver be neces RELIANCE ON MINELAYERS

acific or To close the TRZTOWĄ

through MalayAr

naval only one-third of her total in these 1 In the past, Australian seas. Of naval aircraft, Holland policy seems often to have been has several squadrons in the East laid down by administrators whose west, Indies; Australia-maintains one eyes were turned east or squadron of marine aircraft. No: 5 rather than north Recent develop- (feet co-operation) Squadron, with ments particularly the fortifica- headquarters at Richmond. Two of tion of Darwin and the announce- the Australian cruisers carry an ment-

at the presentation of aircraft, Holland, with a smaller the last

ates, of the in- cruiser force, has 20 seaborne

uld three stra]

fined) and to planes

anti-sub- rest that this

Vesse

to

attention

On three occasions a small sub- marine force has been added to the

work, Australian navy. The first tiny policy is to be modified.

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