She was not led to take this step, after spending many thousands of pounds upon dirigibles, without mature consideration. Among her advisers in matters of aviation, Germany possessed many particularly-staunch and even obstinate supporters of the airship. These refused at first to admit the enormous strides which the aeroplane was making. But soon it was impossible to turn a blind eye towards them; and so came a reversal of German policy. The facts of the case could not, indeed, be controverted. While the aeroplane leaped to the front during 1910, the airship made practically no forward strides at all. In comparison with the aeroplane, it was ruinously costly. It required large crews of men to handle it. It needed huge garages dotted about the country at all strategic points. It was slow-flying, as compared with the aeroplane. It offered a far easier target to artillery fire from below. The advantages which were claimed for it, over the aeroplane, were that it could remain in the air longer, and that observations could be carried out from it in a more leisurely fashion than from the heavier-than-air machine. But the German War Office is notoriously shrewd in all matters appertaining to modern warfare. When it was seen that a mistaken policy was being pursued in spending large sums upon unwieldy dirigibles, a new plan was quickly evolved—and that was to overtake France in the creation of a fleet of war aeroplanes. It was in November, 1910, that the German military authorities began to purchase machines. They then placed orders for five or six aeroplanes, mostly biplanes. This was quickly followed, a month later, by an order for nearly twenty Etrich monoplanes—strongly-built, extremely-efficient machines, constructed in Austria. Military experts in Germany had, by this time, arrived at an approximate estimate of what should be the salient features of an aeroplane for war purposes. They stated that machines should be of as simple a construction as possible, and very strong. They declared high speed to be an essential, and they demanded, also, that machines should be able to carry appreciable weights. It was characteristic of Germany that she should make steady progress, once a decision had been arrived at to develop the aeroplane. Thus, in February, 1911, it became known that seven military airmen had, in one week, obtained their certificates of proficiency at the Johannisthal and Bork aerodromes. Three of these pilots were using Wright biplanes. It was just about this time, too, that Germany placed an order in France for several Farman biplanes.