Evening star., 1938-10-16
BRITISH ARE COOL
TO REICH AIR PACT
Aviation Policy Is Based on
Statement in 1886,
London Says.
Ey the Associated Press.

LONDON, Oct. 15.-Britain pushed
forward on the road to greater arma-
ments and defenses today, coldly in
different to suggestions of an aviation
limitation pact with Germany.
War Minister Leslie Hore- Belisha,
who announced hope of doubling in
the next year the nearly $4,000 men
operating anti-aircraft guns and sup
Elementary equipment, with the neces-
sary guns now in mass production
was spurred by B. H. Liddell Harris
slashing criticism Of London's anti
aircraft defenses.
100 Guns Guarded London.
Liddall Hart. military expert and
writer, declared to the Emergency
Youth Peace Conference that barely
100 guns were available for London s
defense against air raids during the
crisis over CZechoslovakia.
Comparing London's defenses with
those of Paris, he said the latter was
ringed with TOO guns and that, move
over, London's defenses were "impro-
vised with various weapons much more
dangerous to civilian life and property
than to attacking aircraft"
Under the circumstances. he said,
the surrender of Czechoslovakia at
Munich was justified.
Meanwhile, the reaction in authori-
tative quarters to what was termed
"feelers through press and otherwise"
suggesting that Britain accept an air
pact with Germany making the Nazis
supreme in the skies was unfavorable
These quarters said Britain's avia-
ton policy is still based on the state
ment in 1886 of the former prime
minister, Earl Baldwin. that Britain's
air frontier is ''on the Rhine"
Her air fleet must be equal to that
of any power within striking dis
tance"-in other words, it must be
equal to Germany's-was the opinion
in these quarters.
Berlin advices said that when
Chancellor Adolf Hitler is ready
to discuss an air pact with other
nations it was well understood in
foreign embassies he would demand
an air force sufficiently large to
match the combined air fleets of
England, France and Soviet Rus
sia.)
CThe foreign office there denied,
however, that an air pact with
Britain was now under considera-
tion.)
Ready to Discuss Pacts.
British official circles reiterated that
while they were always ready to dis
cuss air pacts and aerial disarmament,
they would rule out at once a limita-
ton Of aerial ornaments. even on the
basis Of existing strength.
Such basis would legalize Ger
many's supremacy for as long as such
an agreement was in force.
How far Prime Minister Neville
Chamberlain and Hitler exchanged
viewpoints on an air pact in the dis
cussions at Munich has not been dis
closed. There has been nothing to
indicate that they went beyond q
casual discussion of the problem.
To suggestions that Hitler might get
his way in the air by threatening to
denounce the Anglo German naval
agreement, authoritative sources init
mated that such strategy would fail.
These sources indicated they did not
fear the outcome Of naval race with
Germany.
French Weakness Cited.
PARIS. Oct. Is (P.-The French
press launched a campaign today de-
signed to show weakness in Frances
air defense.
The press drive came as Britain's
air chief, Marshal Sir Cyril Newall
and his staff departed for London
from a six-day inspection Of the ma
tions air force and aviation factories
The independent newspaper Paris
Soir said that in the midst Of the
Czechoslovak crisis France had "only
a few dozen modern bombers and
even fewer modern fighting planes" to
match Germany's powerful air fleet.
The rightist weekly Aux Ecoutes ad-
vised the government to order 1000
fighting planes from the United States
to augment purchases already made in
that country.
Aux Ecoutes also called for mobiliza-
ton of workers in French aviation
factories to speed up production at
home.
The Senate Aviation Committee
threatened on October 6 to resign in
a body unless production of plane mo-
tors was accelerated.