CAB38-23 — Page 84

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The Dangers to be guarded against.

14. The naval and military dangers which it is desired to guard against are :—

(1.) Espionage.

(2.) The dropping of bombs on points of strategical importance as a first act

of war when hostilities are imminent.

15. The espionage which it is desired to guard against is of two kinds, namely, espionage of works of defence in time of peace, which can be overlooked and photo- graphed from above, though from nowhere else, and espionage immediately before the outbreak of war, or even after war has begun, to ascertain such matters as the disposition of our fleets, the work going on in dockyards, visible stocks of coal, the embarkation of troops, &c. Aircraft, whether coming from abroad or starting from British territory, are peculiarly suited for conducting both kinds of espionage.

16. The risk of explosives being dropped on points of strategical importance is one which is only to be apprehended either immediately before or during war. as the navigation of aircraft continues uncontrolled there is a risk that damage might So long be inflicted as a first act of war by dropping explosives from aircraft on such vulnerable points as lyddite filling laboratories, power stations, men-of-war, magazines, dockyards, &c.

17. Whereas the ease with which espionage can be conducted from the air is attested by every member of the Royal Flying Corps, the danger from dropping explosives is one which, unfortunately, cannot accurately be measured by experiment in this country. Airships, with their great lifting capacity, radius of action, and power of hovering, are likely to be far more effective than aeroplanes for this purpose, and we at present possess no large type of airship from which experiments can be made.

The Statutory Powers required.

18. The time is approaching when a large measure for the control of aircraft, such as the draft Aerial Navigation Bill, 1910, dealing with other aspects of the question besides those of National Defence, will have to be enacted. The draft Bill of 1910 would, if passed into law, not only provide for the immediate requirements of the Admiralty, War Office, and Home Office, but would, as explained in para- graph 5, be of great value in the event of a reopening of the question of the regulation of international flights, which cannot long be delayed. Committee recommend that a comprehensive Bill of this character should be The Sub- introduced as soon as possible. They understand, however, that there is no immediate prospect of passing any Bill based on the 1910 Bill, which consisted of twenty-eight clauses and included some contentious matter, and would therefore take up a good deal of time in Parliament.

19. The Sub-Committee, however, regard the immediate needs of the Admiralty and War Office as so urgent as to necessitate the passing of a provisional measure without prejudice to the enactment of more comprehensive legislation in the near future. The nature of these immediate powers required to provide against the dangers described in paragraphs 14 to 17 will now be indicated.

20. In order to guard against espionage of works of defence, &c., under normal peace conditions, powers are required to prohibit flight over such places and over areas surrounding them so works from near at hand.

as to prevent effective observation of the Penalties for the infraction of the prohibition are also required. In cases in which espionage is established under the provisions of "The Official Secrets Act, 1911," severe penalties can already be exacted.

21. Although the obtaining of the above powers will, in the opinion of the Sub-Committee, be quite sufficient to deter intentional flights over prohibited areas by aircraft starting from British territory and returning thereto, they may not prove sufficient deterrent to aircraft coming from or proceeding abroad. The latter might,

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