Evening Star Newspaper, September 30, 1925, Page 4

- 4 » BUNGLING A ATEURS CAUSED AIR| FAILURES OF NAVY, MITCHELL SAYS Declares Loss of Life on Shenandoah Was Directly Due to Failure to Provide Parachutes—Holds PN-9 Doomed to Disaster. (Continued from Fir had been called upon to explain his vestimony and Col. Mitchell replied: “Oh, yes, T myself have been rapped on the head five times, and I know many other officers who have been approached.” Delves Into Records. The colonel then delved into cor- respondence and congressional com- mittee records, from which he drew the conclusion that the Navy De- partment was holding back the progress of aviation. He cited testi- mony of Secretary Weeks, who fa- vored the creation of an 2ir commit tee in Congress, and comments of secretary Wilbur that such an or- nization would have a tendency to ake aviation away from the Nav: “to which I am opposed.” He thei reviewed the work of the Lassiter board, an organization appointed to draw up an aviation buflding program, from its inception to the preseat day, and, after declaring nothing las been done to cs out its recommenda- waps. he s: TThat is throwing the ball around. stop that we will never ahead.” Charges Law Ev The Navy, by h tions, including Q have been Untll they get further ving 14 shore sta- antico, for aircraft, ‘evading the law,” Col Mitchell de- clared. An amendment to the Army appropriation bill of several years ago, he said, limits the number of naval air bases to six. Anti-aircraf ington and g the battleship Wash- s attacks from the three controve: al subjects last Win- ter before cor onal committees, were brought into the liZht once more hy Col. Mitchell. He told the board that testimony was given before these mmittees to show that “the Wash- pleted battleship of < en bombed by couldn’t sink That is not in keeping with the facts in any way, shape or form. Charges were exploded in the water simulating torpedc and mines."” “Was the impression given that the <hip was strong enough to resist air- plane bombs?” asked Chairman Mor- row. Charges False Impression. “Yes,” replied Col. Mitchell, adding that the impression “‘was given that the ship was immune from air at- Aircraft, he added, can sink i Congress ap- for the Army Air Service to conduct airplane bombing tests against i nd Shipping Board vessels u ct all this talk about hitting moving vessels.” As drawn up, he explained, the leg- islation wou'd give the War Depart- ment authority to request any first- class vessels for this purpose, and the Navy asked that the word “obsolete’ be inserted. This was done, he sald, and when the Air Service asked for the war ve from the Navy “the replied that no could be trans- rred for this purpose because there ere none.” Unable to Furnish Ships. The Assists cretary, T. Doug- Ias Robins s letter fo the chief of the Afr ce, Col. Mitchell said, also regretted he could not furnish two oil-burning destrovers, because none was obsolete or could be declared %0 in the near future. Col. Mitchell then read Robinson's reply, which “I am unable to compl: request.’ Throwing table, Col. from Mr. concluded: with your down the letter on the Mitchell commented: would be necessary to put the Dis- trict of Columbia ‘*out of commis- sion.” He said the number of planes was determined on 60 square miles in the District. *“As a matter of fact,” he declared, “there are only five square miles of close population and 20 planes could put the District out of business.” Scores Propaganda Agenci The reason Col. Mitcnell and his fol- lowers have not been able to get their nto the open and to obtain gnition for it, was laid by the wit- 55 to the existence of ‘“‘propaganda agencies in the two services in Wash- ington.” He said he had submitted many reports to the general staft and ‘‘no report ever put in myself ever received géneral consideration by the whole body of the general staff. They were pigeonholed, and put aside. That stuff can’t be done nowadays.” On the conclusion of what he deserib- ed as his ‘destructive table,” the eighth to be presented to the board since he began yesterday, Col. Mitchell took up the ninth and last statement which was a review of the air forces in forelgn countries. The board was informed during a brief recess that Comdr. John Rodgers of the Hawaiian fiight project, was in the city and arrangements were made for him to testify tomorrow. Lieut. Leigh Wade, pilot of the Boston world cruiser, also was summoned by the board and arrived in the committee room this morning direct from New London, Conn Col. Mitchell, accompanted by Mrs, Mitchell and his two aides, Capt. Robert Oldys and Lieut. David Lingle, arrived in the committee room at 10:20 oclock, 10 minutes before the session opened, and were greeted with loud applause by the spectators, who taxed the room to capacity. Navy Restricted to Sea. Col. Mitchell concluded the presen- tation of his case at 12:30 o'clock, and aside from questioning from Repre- sentative Vinson on what provisions of the law were violated by sending the Shenandoah to the midcontinent, there was_no examination. _Repre- sentative Vinson was told by Col. itchell that the section which the Navy violated restricts Navy air ac- tivities to the sea. “Then, by sending it over land a law was violated?” asked Mr. Vinson. “No, I sald sending it over a moun- tain,” replied Col. Mitchell. “To send the ship over the coast or over land to join a fleet is a different matter.” “Don’t you think you are putting a far-fetched interpretation on the law?" On Propaganda Mission. “I do not. The Shenandoah was sent on a propaganda mission. The law was evaded, not exactly disobey- ed.” In reply to a question from Repre- sentative Vinson as to whether the Shenandoah was improperly manned, Col. Mitchell said: “I said nothing about the personnel of the Shenandoah. I spoke only of the question of the application of the law in sending the Shenandoah on a non-naval mission into the interior of the country and of the absence of parachutes.” “The orders of the trip were from non-flying officers.” Gives Prepared Data. Resuming the stand at the after- noon session of the board yesterda: Col. Mitchell waded into a mass of pre- pared data dealing with every con- ceivable phase of aviation. With the exception of a five-minute recess for a breathing -spell, he read continuously until 5:45 o'clock, when adjournment was taken until today. Most of the information given the board was taken verbatim from his recent book ““That's the kind of stuff we are get- alo ting right Instead of allowing the Alr Serv- ice’s bombardment group to train for coast defense work, Col. Mitchell sald, the War Department took the only group in commission and made it tow targets all Summer for anti-aircraft guns to practice on. “They had to fly at night and in extreme danger,” he declared. “There is no excuse for it whatever. It is the most absurd thing I ever heard of. The Coast Ar- tillery claims that anti-aircraft pro- jectiles when bursting in the air shoot downward. As a matter of fact, they shoot straight up and to either side. We proved that at Aberdeen since.” Claims Flyers Disgusted. “Because the bombardment group training was stopped all Summer for his target work the flyers are dis- sted with their work and the com- ander of the group has gone to Maine to shoot moose and try and get himself together.” ol. Mitchell told the board the im- on was given the House air- committee last Winter that planes carrving gas bombs pr craft 2.000 “Winged Defense.” The air crusader created the unmis- takable impression that there wasn't a subject under the general heading of aeronautics that he was not thor- oughly familiar with in practice or theory. His general statements were backed with illustrations to carry his point. Defense Against Aircraft. The second of the nine tables he brought to the committee room dealt with “Defense Against Aircraft.” He recited experiences in the war with antl-aircraft fire, stating that only one- tenth of 1 per cent of the American airplanes were shot down from guns on the ground. “Any system of de- fense against aircraft from the ground alone is fallacious,” he declared, “and money put Into it, if not spent along carefully considered lines, is merely thrown away. Ground armies, un- familiar with the action of airpower, are constantly setting up the claim that anti-alrcraft artillery is capable of warding off air attack. This is ab- solutely not in keeping with the facts, and a doctrine of this kind is a dan- gerous thing to be propagated, because Represents an Location: | three miles from ington. Because Arlington county now has good roads, modern graded and high schools, electric lights and telephone service and Aurora Hills has its | own water and sew- erage system, cement sidewalks and paved streets, property val- ues are well estab- lished. | Why a Home In Aurora Hills Investment of VALUE Aurora Hills is located in Arlington county, the White House. the nearest subdivision to downtown Wash- 1t is THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. (., WEDNESDAY, Commander John Rodgers and other members of the PN-9 hrilling West Coast-to-Hawall fi Standing: Admiral Eberie, chief of Naval Operat] report on the t it inclines people to think that they have security from this source, whereas they have not. It is, of course, more difficult to protect a war- ship at sea with antl-aircraft artillery than it is to protect localities on land ;te('xuxse the vessel is a movable plat- orm. Holds Theory Is False. “The only defense against alrcraft,” he continued, “is by hitting the enemy first, just as far away from home as possible. The idea of defending the country against air attack by machine guns or antl-alreraft cannon from the ground. is absolutely incapable of be- ing carried out.” Superiority of aircraft and subma- rines over the battleship in sea opera- tions again was stressed by Col. Mitch- ell. “The battleship is so expensive and difficult to maintain and so vul- nerable to aircraft and submarines that it will be eliminated eventually. Sea power, as expressed in battle: ships, is almost a thing of the past Battleship fleets can no longer con: trol the sea lanes of communication. This attribute has passed to aircraft and undersea boats.” In case of war at the present day, he explained, submariens would be the greatest controlling element on the water of the sea lanes of com-| munication, while aircraft above the water would control communication within their radius of operations. The theory of battleship sea power, he declared, “is becoming obsolescent and should be discarded at an early date.” Enable New Economies. “The rapidly increasing efficien the airplane and the submarine, continued, “gives us the opportunity to move toward a new limitation of armaments. Both of these implements of national defense are essentially de- fensive in their nature as distinguish- ed from offensive military arrange- ments designed for aggression across and beyond the seas. They will cause new economies in national expendi- tures. For example, more than 1,000 airplanes can be bulit and maintained for the outlay required for a single battleship. “As a preliminary step in develop- ing the whole theory of the limitation of armaments, it 1s believed at this time that it is practical to do away entirely with the surface battleship, the airplane carrier, certain naval bases and dock yards and many use- less and expensive organizations of ground coast defenses. To bring this about, frank discussion, a truthful ex- and Lieut. Lawrence W. lishment of a permanent international committee charged with considering the views of any nation on the ques. tion of limitation of armaments. Should any plans be thought practical of enforcement by this body they could be submitted, after discussion, to the countries interested in the Umitation for their mutual benefit. This need carry no obligation to follow the recommendations or the findings of an organization of this kind. Its people the exact value, usclessness or ineffectiveness of existing arrange- ments for national defense, their finan. clal cost and their relative effect in international disputes. The people would then be in a position to judge about defensive provisions for them- selves.” Must See Years Ahead. Constant development and experi mentation in aircraft must go on to keep up with the nations most rapidly colonel said. “We must project our vision at least seven vears ahead of time to see what is necessary. { plained. | "It sufficient aircraft are not on hand at the beginning of a war, su- | premacy in the air can never be ob- | talned, because the whole country will be subject to air attack, and the means | of manufacturing airplanes or provid |ing a trained personnel will be either completely stopped or inexperienced | men will have to take to the air with | inferior equipment to offer battle to an | experienced enemy with entirely up-to. date equipment supplied with the best equipment made | by the Europeans in the last war we Amerlca had failed entirely to develop any alr power worthy of the name. It must not be thought because the United States has capabilities of manu- facturing aircraft more quickly and in greater numbers and more cheaply than other countries that we should wait until another contest has started to build aircraft. This is a most de- cldedly mistaken policy and should not be entered into. Without our own means of supplying ourselves with modern aircraft, both in quality and in quantity, we cannot, as a Nation, take any independent action among the always will be subject to their control, as we were in the last war.” A skeletonized statement of how a ht. Left to right, sitting: Lieut. object should be to expound to the| gaining in the science of flying, the | he ex- | If we had not been | would have stood no chance, because | great powers of the world, because we | single air force should be handled was o Curt| SEPTEMBER 30, 1923. HAWAIIAN FLYERS RELATE GRIM EXPERIENCES TO CHIEF No. 1 crew ph utof’n&p hed with Secretary oi the Navy Wilbur today, when they made their zlron Connell, Comdr. Rodgers, Secretary Wilbur and Lieut. Allen P. Snody. I!here should be sufficlent reserves both of personnel and equipment “On a war basis, for the airplane carriers Saratoga and Lexington an estimate of 150 planes, 75 each, can be made. Added to this, 50 planes might be carried by all other craft, or a total | of 200 planes for the Navy. With a {60 per cent reserve, the whole would amount to 300 planes. The > should be made to show specifl what can be carried to sea on s | craft as a basis for their organization. “All afrships should be handled by the Air Force, carrying Army or Navy observers when necessary. The whole airship question must be completely overhauled and not rushed into quicl ly @&gain without exact reasons for their use and development and then using and developing them for what is provided. Air Force Schools. “All basic flying training and aerial combat instruction for naval aero- nautical personnel should be conduct- led at air force schools. When they {fight in the air they should fight un- der air force regulations. Their fin- ishing training on the alrplane car- |rlers and other ships of the Navy | should be carrfed out by the Navy and {in any manner the Navy desires. In | other words, it is distinetly up to the Navy itself to develop its aviation for | work on the high seas. The Congress | would judze what kind and how |atrplanes, battleships or other vessel are required for the Navy in the gen- eral national defense scheme. Maximum for Navy. | “The amount of meronautical per- | sonnel necessary for these purposes would be about 10 officers in naval headquarters at Washington, about 230 flylng officers and about 200 ob- servers and about 10 non-navigating personnel for every airplane, or 2,000 men. There should be a reserve not on duty of about 50 per cent for the pilots and 50 per cent for the ground {men. This, it would seem, is the | maximum that our Navy will need | under any ordinary conditions for | work at sea, accordl; to the present | svetem. War casualties in naval avia | tion will not be high, because they will I not be engaged in constant combats | with the enemy in an air war. They will only be {n combat when hostile fleets come together, which, in fact, may be never, and if they do ‘come to- | gether and the airplane carriers are sunk there is no further use for them only no business of theirs, but is direct- ly contrary to the spirit of the present law of the United States, which specifies ‘All aircraft not attached to fleets, but operating from land bases, should be handled by the Arm words to that effect.” This, under the program sue . could be changed to the Alr Force instead of the Army, except for the Afir Service which forms a part of the Army. Needs of Army. “The Army needs a certain Air Service for what might be termed its domestic economy—that is, for recon- noitering the ground in front of it, for regulating and adjusting the fire of its missile throwing weapons, such as cannon, howitzers, mortars and other firearms, and for maintaining liaison or keeping communication between its parts when all other means have failed. “Let the Army determine just how many of these units they need and where they need them, then take the money for them out of their own ap- propriation, get their airplanes and equipment 'and use them. It will amount to about seven squadrons in the United States, one in Hawail,-one September 30 Fall Suits in Panama and one in the Philippines. Based on sbout 20 airplanes to the squadron, this will make 200 airplanes; 50 per cent reserve would make 100 airplanes additional. There should be about 230 pilots and 230 observers for |the Army 'and 10 ground men to the airplane, making a_total of about 2,000 men. In time of peace all Army air units in the United States should _be at 50 per cent strength, abroad at 100 per cent. “This contemplates that four complete modern Infantry divi- | sions and one cavalry division in the | United States. These divisions should | be distributed that two of them | would be available in the area Chica- | g0, Bangor, Me., Chesapeake Bay, one |in the middle States; one on the Pa cific Coast, one on the Mexican fron- tler and one Cavalry division on the Mexican frontier. “The harbor defense artillery could use one squadron on the Atlantic and one on the Pacific. They could provide themselves ith whatever balloons they needed and operate them “The cadre or frame on which the Alr Force in the United States should be built should contemplate the use in a great war of a total of about 2,400 airplanes, two-thirds of which should be pursuit and about one-third bom- bardment, in which some attack avia- tion is included. There should be 100 | per cent reserves provided for. “This organization is necessary on account of what may be brought agalnst us in the future. This con- templates that one brigade of 600 ships wil cover the tern part of the United States; one brigade of 600 ships will cover the Western part of the United States, and one air divi- | sion of 1,200 ships will be stationed so that it can be shifted either way or | bhoth and even to our insular | and outlying possessions instantly in case of necessity. | “Supplementing this, tnere should | be 17 hights of 6 airplanes each cov- | ering our Atlantic and Pacific coasts. This gives a patrol and surveillance | | element for every 200 miles. I wish that it be distinctly held in mind that the stationing 4nd distribution of air units in case of war or even in peace | does not involve the tremendous con: truction work that is necessary for d forces or water forces. Flelds for operation can be prepared for oc- cupancy within a few hours. Alr- planes themselves in the future will be constructed so that they need lit- | tle or no shelter under service con- ditions. _The comparatively small number of men that handle them be 1ly housed and taken care of in fin efficient manner. With a prop- | | er Bystem, unencumbered by useless red” tape, the whole thing can be put into operation with great rapidity. “Assuming that $2,500 per man be | | taken as the cost of the Alr Force per | vear, which is based on the estimate for the Lassiter Army profect, now known as project No. 4 (incidentally the War Department project is f 4,000 officers and 25,000 enlisted men), the total cost of the Military Air Serv ice would be about $63,500,000. Add to there be s0 1319-1321 F Street STORE NEWS Hours: 8 A.M. to 6 P.M. this $500,000 for the maintenance of the office of the Department of Air, in- cluding the Undersecretary of Afr, and the Assistant Secretary of Air. It would glve us about $64,600,000. “The Army estimate for Project No 4 s about $7§,000,000, I recommend that the Curry hill with modifications to meet the recommendaticns con taiged above be used as the basis for legislation for a Department of the Afr. “Of the above, the Alr Force itselr in time of peace, .exclusive of the Army and Navy, would be compossd of 1,000 service planes, 2,200 officers and 20,500 men. These planes would be ready to take the offensive and fight and are not mere auxillaries o some other force or paper descrip tions of what planes might be. No numbers have been put down for {training planes, as the proportionate number of one plane for 20 men fs covered in the general estimate.” Now, let us take a look at wha: our entire Natlonal defense scheme would be in case we put the genera plan I have suggested into operation First, we would have a Secretar of National Defense, charged wi co-ordinating the Army, Navy and Alr Force. The Army, charged with the defense of land areas. The Navy, charged with the defense of sea areas The Air Force, having Jjurisdiction over air areas. (The Army and Navy would have with them, as a per manent part of their own organiza tion, the air services necessary for their own domestic use.) HELD AFTER DEATH PROBE Andrew Alexander, jr., colored, 22 years of age, of 3273 Prospect avenue was held for the action of the grand jury by a coroner's jury today at inquest into the death of James F. Willlams, colored, 36 years old, who was injured in a fight on September 21 and died yesterday from lockjav. that set in from the alleged injuries. Policeman W. T. G. Mills of the seventh precinct arrested Alexander last night as the other participant in the fight which resulted ultimately in the death of Wllllams. Police charge that Williams was struck by a blunt instrument during the fight and that care was not taken by him of the wound until too late to prevent lockjaw from setting in. 7 PAID ON SAVINGS DEPOSITS MORRIS PLAN BANK Under Supervision U. S. Treasury 1408 H ST. N. W, position of facts and the widest pub- licity are needed. Our last conference for a limitation of armaments was greatly facilitated by the absolute proof that aircraft could destroy sur- face seacraft and battleships. Since the last conference in 1921 air power has made such strides that its effect is still more appreciated, and further limitations are now practicable. ““We may look forward to the estab- given the board in the last table read vesterday evening, as follows: “The Air Service in the Navy can stay just the way it is. Its aero- nautical personnel, except those who | desire to transfer to the Air Force, can stay where they are. Their num bers, however, should be entirely reg- ulated by the number of airplanes that the Navy actually carries to sea and operates. In addition to this, {untfl other airplane carriers are ob. tained. In time of peace all naval | alr units should be at 50 per cent strength. | “This system gives the Navy no | fleld for objection whatever, as they | would have as part of their own or- ganization all aircraft that go to sea in ships: on the other hand, it would stop the Navy from trying to create a land air service, which CHARGE ACCOUNTS INVITED SATISFACTORY TERMS ARRANGED Exhibit and Sale Toaster ....ccocveuuennnn.. — ALL THIS WEEK of Manning-Bowman Electrical Table Service Appliances Percolstor..rooer.... $14.50 Miss Wilson, direct representa. tive of Manning & Bowman Co. of Meriden, Conn., in charge of demonstrations. R. 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