Shanghai, May 1.
Fifty Soviet-made planes and one [Curtiss-#fawk pursuit plane of the IChinese air force were shot down in.
raid on Hankow by "more than $0" Japanese naval aircraft, a Jnaval spokesman here condrmed yesterday morning.
Of the Soviet-manufactured _ma-45 were said to have been of 15 type and five of the newer faster 1-16 pattern, Two Japanese machines, the spokesman said, failed to return to their "About 30" Japanese pursuit planes Jand "about 20" bombers participated the raid, which was described by the spokesman as "the biggest alr battle of the current hostilities."
In addition to destroying most of the 8 Chinese planes which _met them in combat, the naval raiders were said by the spokesman to have sot the Hanyang Arsenal on fire in three different spots.
Some of the bombs were said to have landed in the vicinity of the The air battle, which lasted for] Jabout half an hour, was accompanied by Intensive anti-aircraft fire, Other naval aeroplanes, meanwhile, bombed the Paiyun aerodrome, in /Kwangtung, damaging hangars and the runway, On Thursday, the naval spokesman said, raids were carried out on freight Jear concentration in Hsuchow; troops massed at Pi-hsien, north of the HLunghal Railway; "Chinese positions jat Taolochen, on the coast of Shantung: and on aerodromes at Lungyen, }Melhsien and Tunghwa, in Kwangtung and Fukien, Also bombed were the buildings lof the Military Academy and torpedo-boat sheds at Whampoa.
In addition to the crews of the two lanes which failed to return to their ses, the naval spokesman said last night, "four or five" other airmen Tso Red Cross for Central China and the British Rellet Fund, was scheduled to open today to handle epidemic cases in the Wuhan area, comprising [Hankow, Wuchang and Hanyang.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.