Evening star., 1941-12-03
Tells of Air Defense
OF Canada and Alaska
Writer Explains Cooperation
Of Dominion for Protection
Of North Part Of Hemisphere
BIZ B. T. Richardson.

BIZ B. T. Richardson.
One of North Americas key skyWays
in the event of war in the Pacific is in
operation. 1t consists of a chain of air
bases leading northward to Alaska
inside the protective rampant of the
Rocky Mountains. 1t is a bee-lne route
! from North America to the Far East,
lodging the fogs and storms of the
Pacific shore, capable of ferrying fighters
as well as bombers in large numbers
straight over the rim of the Western
hemisphere into a potential trouble
center.
The Alaska skyway is an historic
achievement, for it marks one of the
main inter-continental traffic lanes of
the future. But it is more than that.
! 1t is part of the development for the
first time in history of co-ordinated
| plan of North American defense in which
air and naval bases and army stations
are being laid out in a pattern that leads
from the heart of this continents pro-
ductive capacity to distant tips of land
where powerful striking forces may
have to be reinforced quickly.
For the first time in history it now is
! possible to maintain an aerial patrol
! along the vast wilderness of Canadas
eastern and western shores into the
distant Arctic. emitting only the far
north itself that faces only the North
Pole. A fresh look at a map or globe is
| worth taking to see the lines of this
| continents new aerial defenses.
Where North America faces Europe
across the stepping stone of Iceland,
| Canada and the United States are SPEND
| ing millions of dollars on new bases.
New Canadian operationsl bases are
| located in Nova Scotia at Yarmouth.
Snelburne, Dartmouth and Sydney, as
well as ancient Halifax; in Newfound-
| land at Botwood, Gander Lake and Tor
pay; IN Labrador at Northwest River
| and certain unannounced places. and
| beyond that United States stations are
! manned in Greenland and Iceland.
| There is no blank spot in this two
! way line OF offenSe and defense on
| Canadas account. This is the pathway
! OF Canadian and American aerial de-
tense across the North Atlantic, and from
bases IN operation aerial patrols OF Ca
madam and American planes range at
/ IeaSt haIf way across the ocean.
| Neither IS there any blank spot on the
| Canadian sections of west coast defense
| lines where the situation is different
| Siberian Russia is within so miles of
North american territory and in this
area the people of this continent live at
! closer range TO another hemisphere.
/ canadian air operational bases are To-
/ cateo at Patricia Bay, Ucluelet and
1ohno on Vancouver Island, at VAN
couVer on the mainland and further
| north at Bella Bella and Prince Runert
and at AIliford Bay on Queen Charlotte
Isianos. Beyond that lie United States
oases IN Alaska, including some located
on the spreading island chain of Aleutia
| opposite Asia.
| The new Canadian skyWay to Alaska
! neeos TO be judged in the light of
| geography and climate. Without air.
/ planes Alaska would be an OUTPOST ac-
/ cesslble only by sea, where weather is a
| desperate handicap The obvious safe
| supply route lies inside the mountain
chaln. Building a highway for land
| traffic has been dream for years. 1t is
| closer 10 fulfllment today than ever
before. The Alaska International High
way Commission. headed by Representa-
! tive Magnuson Democrat, Washinpton)
! last May reported to Secretary of State
! CordeN Hull that a 1,6O0-mile highway
would cost s25 900 900 and advocated that
! it be built.
A few weeks ago the Canadian British
Columbia Yukon-Alaska Highway Com
mission reported to Prime Minister Ma
kenzie King and recommended virtually
the same project. The fact that most of
the engineering data already is available
was not generally known until Mr.. King
released the commissions exhaustive
tWo-volume report.
But land highway to Alaska will take
two years to build. perhaps a little less
with luck and hard work Last summer
the Canadian government. following q
| recommendation of the Permanent Joint
Defense Board, put up the money and
built string of s1,0000OO air bases lead
ing from the end of the last runways of
existing Canadian and American trans
| continental air lines to the big United
States Army base at Fairbanks.
This line is open for business. however
the Far East situation turns out. All the
bases are not finished but the civil
aviation branch of the Department of
transport, which handled the lob. has
got the line into operation six months
after the bases were ordered. They are
$50 to 300 miles apart, much closer than
bombing planes need. Plainly thev are
bullt to move great squadrons of fighter
planes up to possible Pacific fighting
front. Each base can be used for OPERA
tlons or for transferring aircraft either
way, as the need dictates The line runs
from Edmonton to Grande Prairie. to
Fort st. John to Fort Nelson. Watson
Lake on across the Yukon. A connecting
route brings in Seattle and Vancouver.
on line to Williams Lake, to Prince
George, to Fort ST. John.
These are names of places in the will
derness. But they are names that NAV
mean a great deal to North American
| defense. The new Canadian air chain
inside the mountains of the Pacific Coast
| is new defense lifeline. 1t may be in
tomorrows headlines
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