The Empire Air Training Scheme: Identity, Empire and Memory

program to modernize its air components. Those achievements, and the threat theyrepresented, went largely unnoticed in the West, and the Allies would later pay dearlyfor their neglect. 33Formation of the Empire Air Training SchemeAs indicated, historians now agree that English aviation was underdeveloped inthe interwar years so when war broke out in August 1939 Britain was seriously underprepared. 34 Initially ignoring the advance of aviation technology Britain had failed tomatch German rearmament in the air. 35 Urgent action was needed to redress Britain’sapparent alarming vulnerability to German airpower. 36 The solution to the problem ofproviding men and machines and coordinating a large technical organisation wasfound in the creation of the Empire Air Training Scheme. 37 The solution was alsobased on the 1930s belief in reciprocal Empire cooperation between both theAustralian and British authorities. It was at this point the tradition of Empire unitedwith the development and management of technology, both combining in thesuccessful establishment of EATS. The blending of technology and Empire surfaced inseveral ways. The long-term reliance of Australia on Britain to guide her foreignpolicy and provide for her defence evoked the comment ‘that Australia’s desire tostand as one with the English speaking world, to accept the leadership and live underthe protection of Anglo Saxon patrons…has been the most obvious and commonly33 Jon Guttman, ‘Strategic Bombing Comes of Age’ World War II, 1998, 12, 7,34.34 David Edgerton 18.35 M.Kirby, R.Capey, ‘The Air defence of Great Britain 1920-1940’ The Journal of OperationalResearch Society, 27, 1997, 555.36 Alan Stephens, The Royal Australian Air Force, 60.37 The main signatories to the agreement were Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Thebroad agreement was to provide trained aircrews to serve with the Royal Air Force (RAF). The planwas vast in concept and organisation to provide trained aircrew ground staff and aeroplanes that couldmatch the German advances. Fifty elementary flying schools would be established in Australia, Canadaand New Zealand, and then air crew would receive advanced training in Canada, (some in Rhodesia)and proceed to Britain for service with the RAF. A conference was held at Ottawa, Canada in October1939, to discuss the proposal. After several weeks of bargaining, an agreement was signed on 17December 1939.The Australian Government agreed initially to provide 28,000 men to EATS over threeyears. This represented 36 per cent of the total of aircrews to be trained under the scheme in thatperiod.32