1941-03-28 — Page 3

DONALD DUCK

BOY!

WHAT A

DRIVE!

Friday,

HONGKONG TELEGRAPH

March 28, 1941,

WHEW! WHAT AN APPROACH SHOT

18

By Walt Disney

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GRIN AND BEAR IT -

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"Daughter writes that she and her new husband are just too, too happyl-l simply must go and visit them!"

Crossword Puzzle

ACHORO

1-Contrite persons

10-Journey

10- Apero

16-Biblical word Aicoin's nicknam

18-One of Bunda Zaiea 10-Once around track 10-31adium

11-Peninauin 21-Exclamation

74 Drinking counter 23-Yell

-36--Theater-of-ancient-

an-Clear tooth

4-Agreement

20-Curgyman

33-Machins tool 34-YOT

37-Bhato part of sight JA-Conjecture for omens

brews instrumenta 43—Cultar-}|ke instru

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14-Com 1

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60-Bow Reeds again

32-vad ma

63-king Bow 14-Philippine Moslems 58-Worthless remnant B-Qword

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WCHIEN'S FATment,

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45-Wild animal 67-Zxcavato

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Count the "TELEGRAPHS

everywhere

HOW

WALT DISNEY

STRONG

IS THE NAZI LUFTWAFFE?

ports.

In an important article not counting reserves or tring- commenting on the recent American estimates

of

German aircraft strength, some of which gave figures as high as 70,000 with 36,- 000 "fighting" types, the "Sunday Times' " Air Cor- respondent writes that most of the figures are nonsensical. Analysis will Show that Germany prob- ably has an absolute total of about 40,000 machines, of which fewer than 18,- .000 are "combat" types and the number available for full operation at any given time is about 9,000.

We know there are at present three Air Fleets (Luftflotte) operating against Britain. Air Fleet II, under Kesselring operating from Belgium, Northern France and Hol- land; Air Fleet III, under Sperrle, in the West of France; and Air Fleet V,

under Stumpff, from Northern Holland and Germany Denmark and Norway.

Besides these there are Air Fleet 1 in Eastern Germany, Air Fleet IV under the Aus- trian Lochr with headquarters in Vienna; a sixth Air Fleet in Rumania, and an Indepen- dent Air Unit now in Italy.

Seven Regular Fleets

Thus there are seven re- gular Air Fleets. To these must be added the Naval Air Service, operating separately, and the Operationaf Training Division, which together con- stitute the total "first line" strength of the Luftwaffe,

Το ascertain the tota! strength of these formations we must examine more close.. ly the structure of the Ger- man Air Force.

to

Each German squadron (Staffel), fighter, bomber, or reconnaissance, had a peace- time strength of nine aero- plancs,

expanded DOW twelve, with, a further three in reserve, Threo squadrons form a Wing (Gruppe) and three Wings a Group (Gesch- wader). Two fighter Groups and one reconnaissanco Wing form one. Air Corps (Flieger Korps) representing the flight- er protection allotted to ench Division. Three bomber Groups, one fighter Group and one reconnaissance Wing go to make n Division, with a total of about 480 machines,

·

Three Divisions

of three Division and one fighter Air Corps, making a total of aboul 1,700 aero- planes, some 1,000 of which are bombers, seventy-five re- connaissance and 625 fighters. At any given time about one- quarter of these will be un- serviceable, undergoing over- haul or repair. Therefore the ∙total effective strength of un Air Fleet at any moment is about 1,300 aeroplanes.

Each Air Fleet is composed

The strength of the Naval Air Service is reliably put at 1,000 acroplanes of all types

about 500 operational at any moment. The Operational Training Division adds a fur- ther 400 immediately service- able types, and the special Transport Organisation is re- puted to have some 2,000 transport aeroplanes for parn- chute troops and so forth.

Special Units

carrying

The Luftwaffe also has special transport unile at- tached to each squadron for ground personnel. For instance, each fighter group of 140 machines has thirty-transports-attached.

Thus, as far as can be es- timated without reference to official sources, the total strength of the Luftwaffe may be set out as below:

(A equals strength plus first line Reserve immediately available and Transports. B equals operational strength at any moment.)

Six Air Fleets: A, 16,500. B, 7,800.

Independent Air Unit: A, 2,750. B, 1,300.

*Naval Air Service: A, 1,000, B, 500,

Operational Training: A, 650. B, 400.

Transport Organisation: A, 3,500. B, 2,000.

Total: A, 24,400. B. 12,000.

Behind all this will lie a re- serve pool and unfinished machines of approximately 50 per cent., as well as some 5,000 trainers, and communication aircraft. This brings the ab- solute grand total of all planes to about 40,000.

No estimate is complete without mention of produc-. tion and losSCH.

R.A.F. Victories

that the Records show Royal Air Force has scored nearly 6,000 confirmed vic- tories over Gorman aeroplanes in all engagements since the war began. Experience sug- gests that a reasonable c8- timate is that for every machine lost in combat two are put out of service by ac- cidents and unrecorded vic tories. This does not include training losses, usually estl- mated at 15 per cent, per month.

Thus we reckon that the total losses of the Luftwaffe since the war began, counting

the Polish, Norwegian, Dutch, Belgium, French, and British campaigns, is not far short of 24,000 machines. Compared with this, the R.A.F. has lost just under 1,800 aeroplanes in action, so that on the same basis the total British losses would be about 5,500 aero- planes and now the Royal Air Force has more machines than ever before.

German Production

When the war began, Ger- man production of first-line types was about 1,000 a month. It is now estimated at about 1,600 a month (total about 2,300 of all types). An average of 1,400 first-line machines a month would not be far wrong. Thus to re- place losses of 24,000, the enemy has built about the same number or slightly less, and the Luttwaffe cannot be considered to have expanded during the war. That is an im- portant point and may explain puzzling features in the opera- tions of the past months.

To return to American figures, an obvious explana- tion of the figure of thirty- one divisions quoted is a mis- take in appreciating the com- position of Air Fleets. Taking _the_independent_air_unit_as_a. separate fleet we have seven air fleets made up of twenty- one divisions and ten air corps.

These have a total strength with immediato. Re- serves, but without. Trans- port, of 15,800 aircraft which is reasonably, close to the 18,000 quoted.

Operational Strength

But only three of them, with a total strength of about 6,800 aeroplanes and opera- tional-strength of 3,000, ure at present facing Britain. A point of particular significance is that, we find no records. of the Germans having put more than 2,500 aeroplanes into the air on any one day, even dur- ing weeks of maximum effort. Aerodromes they now oc- cupy in France are primitive. The capacity is limited by the number of aeroplanes which can be handled by ground crews over any period.

Such limitations present themselves whenever a big campaign is undertaken." Coming Attack

The strength of the coming attack is thus fairly clear. If Germany were free of all other commitments and could concentrate her total opera- tional units, she might be able to attack with about 9,000 aeroplanes, 4,500 of which would be bombers. This total, irrespective of losses in action, would soon be reduced for operational forces to about 6,000,

In fact, Germany dare not take the risk of withdrawing the units from Poland, Italy, and the Balkans, even if she could hope to operate them from the available air fields. She will be lucky if she can assemble a total of 6,000 aeroplanes for the opening of the assault on Britain.

Support the B.W.O.F. BENEFIT PERFORMANCE

Under the distinguished patronage of

H.E. the Governor,

The BAND of 1st BATTN. MIDDLESEX REGT. (D.C.O.)

By kind permission of

Lt. Col. H. W. M. Stewart, O.B.E., M.C., & Officers

WILL PRESENT

the following programme of Music, under the conductorship of Mr. W. E. Kifford, A.R.C.M., Bandmaster.

1. Patrol 2. Selection

Britain's First Line Community Land

3. Finalc ...... Grand Military Tattoo

In conjunction with the screening of

Williams ..Stoddon „Rogan

"WORLD IN FLAMES

AT THE

QUEEN'S THEATRE TUESDAY, APRIL 1st, 1941 at 9.30 p.m.

TICKETS NOW ON SALE AT THE THEATRE

پر

THE PENINSULA HOTEL

will present a

BAND CONCERT

on

SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 1941.

at 9.00 p.m.

IN THE LOUNGE

by the

Combined Orchestras of the Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels

IN AID OF THE

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MONSTER RAFFLE

in aid of the Bomber Fund

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