The intensity of the struggle for the mastery of the
air on the Western front is revealed in the figures given in Wednesday's Times showing that 717 aeroplanes were brought down during the month of April. In July last year, when the Allied offensive on the Somme began, 165 British, French, and German machines were brought down ; in September, when the losses reached the highest mark, the total rose to 322, which was more than doubled last month. The figures, compiled from the daily communiques issued by British, French, and German Headquarters, are made up as follows : German machines 369, British 147, French and Belgian 201— or the rather large assumption that the German claims • are trust- worthy. Of the 369 German aeroplanes brought down, 269 fell to the British (263 being accounted for by airmen and 6 by anti- aircraft gunners), 98 to the French, and 2 to the Belgians. Accord- ing to the official classification, 43 out of the 263 crashed or were destroyed, 55 were brought down, 73 were driven down damaged, and 84 driven down out of control. Of the 98 accounted for by the French, 68 are said to have been destroyed. Turning to the German claims, it appears that out of 348 Allied machines reported to have been accounted for, 270 are placed to the credit of pilots. Only twice in the month did the German Headquarters admit losses, and on those two days 46 German machines were driven down as compared with 8 reported missing by the Germans. Formidable as the losses have been, the results are eminently encouraging.
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