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Thats because in canada when "sheep" is mentioned, you guys think "food". In NZ sheep can be so much more.......
So now the Aussies are making fun with Zealanders, because the later have the sheep? As if the Bulgarians making fun of Greeks for being on Balkans? Good lord
The Gregor FDB-1 was a Canadian biplane fighter, designed in 1938 by Michael Gregor and manufactured by Canadian Car and Foundry.
Don't worry, they enjoy taking the piss out of Aussies too.
.Parsifal, I'm curious as to why it's Britain's fault that Australia did not build engines sooner because of the embargo, as you put it. I find it a bit of a cop out that Australians blame the British for their lack of technical progress, after all, the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation was formed in 1936 and the first Wirraway flew in March 1939, so how did an embargo by the British from the beginning of the war stifle Australia's growth? That had already begun by then. Starting with the NA-16 powered by the P&W R-1340 was a pretty good first step for a fledgling Australian aviation industry. I'm aware there was pressure to 'Buy British', but Wackett got around it - as is plainly evident - before the war started
I find it quite incredible that Aussies claim they were deserted by Britain and to this day continue to blame Britain for what Aussies consider its failure to protect them in the war.
The blaming of the British for Australia's lack of technical development is extraordinarily self centred and narrow minded, driven by a not so cordial relationship between Britain's and Australia's Prime Ministers
.Lets look at the facts. Firstly and foremost, from September 1939 Great Britain was at war. The lack of supply of industry to Australia can easily - and should be under the circumstances, despite promises to the contrary - be forgiven, because as we know, the perception from mid 1940 in Britain and elsewhere was that Germany was going to invade and the war was going to be lost. A bit much for Australia to expect the creation of an industry from scratch by Britain under the circumstances
To add to this, Britain was supplying Australia with aircraft and the development of an aviation industry throught 1939, 1940 and 1941 and had been in favour of such an undertaking since a few years before the war. The decision to buy the Beaufort for the RAAF took place in August 1938, after which an order for 180 Beauforts in July 1939 that were to be divided equally between the RAF and RAAF. The reason for the length of time between commitment and the first Beaufort flying in Australia (August 1941)might be construed as a lack of effort by Britain, but is better explained by the fact that Australia was undertaking production of a modern combat aircraft out of nothing. A vast undertaking.
Lets also add to that by stating that by the outbreak of war Britain had begun supplying the first of over 1,000 Avro Ansons to Australia; the bulk of these between 1940 and 1943 to bolster the Empire Air Training Scheme.
To add to this, we can also include mass production of the Tiger Moth by DHA after the outbreak of war in support of the EATS; the proposition that DHA could have built anything more sophisticated than the D.H.84 Dragon at that time is ludicrous,
The other type under consideration at the time for manufacture in Australia was the Beaufighter, interest in the type by the RAAF came about in June 1939 when 18 were ordered. Obviously production did not happen for a few years, but the Beaufighter was very much under consideration to suplement and replace the Beaufort in Australia.
In fact, Britain supplied Beaufighters to Australia in October 1942 before it had sent any to the RAF in the Far East. This was, of course before the first Aussie Beau had been built.
Perhaps the British might have been keen to place an embargo on Australia out of spite for ordering Lockheed Hudsons in November 1938, which the British were opposed to and for Wackett putting an American type into production, but clearly, this was not the case.
.Your claims about the Med and the Fall of Singapore are also not well considered. The Mediterranean was vital to Britain's interests and it was of utmost importance to eject the Germans and Italians from North Africa, without control of the Med would have been a whole lot harder
As for Singapore, in hindsight there's nothing that Britain could have done to bring about a different outcome. A handful of aircraft built in Australia was not going to make a lick of difference.
.By mid 1941 Britain was on the backfoot on almost every front of the war. Her cities were being bombed, not least disrupting industry, merchant shipping, Britain's lifeline to the outside world was being severely mauled by the German U-boats, the British army was retreating in North Africa and was rebuilding after Dunkirk, the RAF was committed building for an enormous strategic bombing campaign and rebuilding after the Battle of Britain and the Royal Navy suffered high losses in the Med and the Atlantic. Then Japan invades Singapore to top off a pretty lousy year all round
Exactly how Australia expected Britain to come to the rescue is a bit of a mystery, but what I don't understand is why Australia did not turn to the United States sooner.
Although aircraft had been ordered, why was so much expectation put on Britain when clearly the USA was in a better position to re arm Australia?
New Zealand Prime Minister Peter Fraser chose to align his country militarily to the USA prior to Japan's entry into the war, necessary because New Zealand was probably more vulnerable to invasion than Australia. Although the Japanese could have invaded Aussie in the north, let's face it, they would have died of thirst and starvation before they got anywhere near Brisbane.
Parsifal, don't take this rebuttal personally; I find your posts in general informative and interesting, even if I don't always agree with them. I have always considered this attitude by Australia as suspect and unrealistic.