LARGEST TRIALS 

 Megaton Weapons

This weapons test series which began yesterday is the largest and most important ever staged by Britain. Some of the weapons exploded will be in the megaton range.

They will include some that are among the  most powerful to have been tested by any nation. The development of weapons of this sort by British scientists with strictly limited resources has been done in an amazingly short time.

They have taken little over two years compared with the seven years' work before the Americans tested their first device. This has made it possible to redraft completely British. defence policy and make substantial Service economies.

The extent to which this tendency can be extended will depend in great measure on the outcome of the I current series of tests. The concentration of ships, aircraft and tech- nical services assembled for the test. is the greatest of the sort that. Britain has ever staged.