88
2
In a
latter from 804,600 to 904,000, it is satisfactory to note that the internal air services did well, flying more than 3 million miles and carrying 147,500 passengers and 1,200 tons of freight. country of such small area as Britain, and having its entire sur- face covered by a network of first-class motor roads and excellent
railways,
the demand for internal air routes was not expected to
be large, but it is obvious that the nation is becoming more and
more air-minded. In this connexion it should be mentioned that,
in spite of the great expansion in flying, there were fewer accid- ents at home to civil aircraft in 1939 than in any year since 1933.
Civil Air Guard.
An interesting feature in British civil aviation was the inauguration last September of the Civil Air Guard, a scheme
receive, whereby men and women/for a small fee, at civil flying clubs in- struction in flying up to the standard required for obtaining a class "A" pilot's licence, on the condition that they undertake to perform national service in emergency. This scheme met with so enthusiastic a reception that no fewer than 30,260 applications
for enrolment had been received before the end of the year, 6,433 being from women. Of these applicants 5,672 were accepted, in- cluding 633 women. There are at present 74 light aeroplane clubs
in Britain with a total flying membership of 9,100. clubs 63 are operating Civil Air Guard units and receive grants
from the Government.
Of these
Decisions of far-reaching importance to the development of British civil aviation were taken during the year, when the Government decided to introduce into Parliament a British Overseas Airways Bill, providing for the merging into one corporation, under some degree of Government control, of the two great air transport ·
This step was companies, Imperial Airways and British Airways.
taken in order to "secure the fullest development consistent with
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