Evening Star Newspaper, July 14, 1929, Page 56

AVIATION BY JOSEPH S. EDGERTON. come one of the important military functions in event of another great war. During the World War numbers of air- dromes were laid out short dis- tances behind the front as bases for active flying operations. Ex- perience since the war has con- vinced Army tacticians that for evex:iy flying fleld in active use be- hind the lines there must be many reserve fields. Where, during the World War, one field was necessary, four or five at least will be required in the future. Improvement of bombard- ment aviation and the develop- ment of attack aviation since the close of the World War prohibits the establishment of anything| like a permanent military flying | field anywhere in the zone of military operations. Should there be another war it may become necessary to shift the various air squadrons from field to field every day or two to escape hostile air raids on the air- dromes. Temporary flying fields which may be occupied for a few hours or a few days and then vacated will be required. Many Fields Required. The necessity for multiple flying | flelds in an area 50 to 100 miles | wide behind the battle front was gointed out strikingly during the pring maneuvers of the Army Air Corps in Ohio this year. The Blué Army’s superiority in attack planes was keenly felt by the Reds and the commanders of the Red air forces were ordered to con- centrate every effort on the de- struction of the troublesome air- craft. Red observation and pursuit planes were detailed to trail the Blue attack planes back to their home fields or to locate their| “nests” from the air. Every time | the attack squadrons were located on the ground bombing raids, usually at night, were made. To forestall the Reds it became | necessary for the Blue attack| squadrons to move from field to| field. The squadrons, in after an afternoon raid, would return to the morning’s base. At dusk every ship would be ordered to ancther | field, sometimes miles away, for | fear their location had been re- vealed to the enemy “spotters.” Fields to Be Protected. | “It is necessary to have as many airdromes as possible, even if we | have to split up our forces into| small units,” declared Ccl. H. C.| Pratt of Mitchel Field, commander | of the Blue air forces during the maneuvers. “If the establishment of suffi- cient airdromes becomes impos- sible by reascn of the topography | of the ground or the lack of time | for clearing and putting them in | condition for flying, we must give serious attention to the protection of the airdromes from which we are operating by thorough camou- flaging and the concentration of anti-aircraft fire strenigth. Every | precaution must be taken to avoid | betraying the location of the fields | g ONSTRUCTION of flying ‘ fields probably will be- which could be prepared for mili- tary operations on short notice, is fairly well equipped for defensive aerial cperations, it was pointed out. In addition to Bolling’Field, the Army Air Corps airdrome in Ana- costia and the Naval Air Station | which adjoins it, there are in the vicinity of the National Capital the following fields, all now in active operation: Washingtcn Air- port and Hoover Field, on opposite sides of Military road near the Virginia end of Highway Bridge; Congressional Airport, on the Rockville pike at Halpine, Md., about six miles north of the Dis- trict line; College Park Flying Field, College Park, Md.; Alex- andria Airport, operated by Mount Vernon Airways, four miles south of Alexandria, Va., and George Washington Air Junction, now known as “Mile Square,” a short distance northwest of Alexandria Airport. Local “Emergency” Fields. There are other fields close to the city which could be prepared for emergency military flying pur- poses within 24 hours. Some of these areas, already partly cleared, have been suggested as sites for the proposed municipal airport. Los Angeles, Calif., prchably has more flying fields within the metropolitan limits than any city in the world. Aviation maps list | 46 airports, all in active use, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, 20 of them within the city limits. Some of the Los Angeles fields are known throughout the Nation because of historic aviation events which have occurred there. It was from the Metropolitan Air- port the Army transport plane Question Mark made its 150-hour endurance flight last January. The latest world’s record endur- ance flight of the biplane Ange- lene, piloted by L. W. Mendell and R. B. Reinhart, was made from the Culver City field in the heart of the Los Angeles metropolitan district. Mines Field was the scene of last year’s national air races, the greatest aeronautical meet yet held in this country. Los Angeles Well Equipped. Glendale Union Air Ferminal is the Los Angeles air transport terminal for passenger lines to all parts of the United States, includ- ing Transcontinental Air Trans- | pert, the Maddux Air Lines, Pick- wick and others. Glendale Field is to be greatly improved before the end of the Summer and will rank as one of the finest fields in the country. | At present it is long and narrow, | with two paved runways separated by only a very small angle and no runway across the ficld. There are power lines on three sides of |the "field and the big dirigible hangar of the Slate Dirigible Co. stands to the west of the field, forming another obstacle. In this hangar the Slate all-metal diri- gible now is nearing completion. Glendale is to be improved by burying of the power lines in underground conduits, removal of the dirigible hangar, widening of the field and laying of additional to the enemy.” When fields are cleared in| wooded sections it sometimes i5 | possible to prctect the planes by | taxiing them off the landing area | into the woods, scattering them | so widely that the explosion of an enemy bomb or shell cannot affect | more than a sinele plane. | This method was followed by the opposing air forces im Ohio and, although several times the squadrons were traced to their | landing fields and attacked by bombardment aviation, the planes | had been so distributed around | the field that the umpires ruled | few had been destroyed by this | method. | Fields Cut by Bombs. But, although the planes were | not_destroyed, the fields theoret- | jcally were badly cut up by bombs | and on one occasion, when pur- suit planes were ordered off at night to attack enemy bombers, the umpires ruled that a large number of them were destroy~d by crashing into new bomb craters in the darkness. It is the belief of Army Alr Corps tactical experts that the city which is most plentifully equipped with peace-time airports is the one best suited for aerial | defensive measures. The National Capital now has eight flying fields in clese proxim- ity to the city, and with others paved runways to provide ap- proaches from all directions. New England Airports. New England now has 150 air- ports and landing fields, according to a survey made by the com- mittee on aviation of the Boston Chamber of Commerce. The sur- vey shows there are 53 airports and landing fields in Massachu- setts, 28 in Maine, 20 in New Hampshire, 21 in Vermont, 7 in Rhode Island and 20 in Connecti- cut. While many of these fields now are merely usable fields, a num- ber of them are being expanded so they can obtain Department of Commerce airport ratings. California leads- the Nation in the number of airports, a recent survey showing 109 fields within the State borders. The West Coast is keenly alive to the possibilities of aviation and it is estimated that, aside from regular scheduled air transport operations, 30 per cent of all civil flying in the United States is carried on in Cal- ifornia. In the United States today there are approximately 1,500 flying fields in actual operation, with nearly 1,000 more in course of construction, according to figures in the hands of the aeronautics branch of the Department of Commerce. MONTREAL HOTEL PLANS DAILY MUSIC FROM AIR Charters Fairchild Cabin Mono- plane, Which Is to Carry a Six-Piece Orchestra. Music from the air daily is planned by a hotel in Montreal, Canada, ac- cording to a report received here by the Department of Commerce from Assist- ant Trade Commissioner L. A. France at Montreal. The hotei has chartered a Fairchild cabin monoplane which is to carry a six-piece orchestra, consist- ing of violinist, three saxophone play- ers, banjoist and drummer. The plane will cruise over the city for half an hour daily around noon and the selections played in the plane will be broadcast, picked up by Station CKAC, Montreal, and rebroadcast on a long wave-length. Experiments are being carried out to eliminate motor and_propeller sounds from the broadcast. Since most of the music undoubtedly will be a rather noisy brand of jazz, it is expected that careful insuletion of the cabin will be sufficient. PLANES HELP ANGLERS. Save Time Between Chicago and Rhinelander, Wis. CHICAGO (#).—City anglers, impa- tient to get down to serious fishing, speeded to Wisconsin fishing service this Summer between cmag and Rhinelander, Wis. They will gal 24 additional hours of angling by tak- ing the aerial route. Will Grant Subsidies. The Japanese government is prepar- ing to n&:‘: large subsidies to airline operators as a means of stimulating cr:fl flying and providing a military air reserve. The newspaper Asahi has been for many years instrumental in foster- fng Japanese air-mindedness and led| the movement for the subsidies. In the early days of flying the thper brought many noted aviators to-Japan. STANDARD INSTRUMENT CASES ARE AVIATION AID Substitutions May Now Be Made ‘Without Making Changes in Plane Panel. By the Associated Press. Another step in the simplification of airplane operations and maintenance is the standardization of instrument case dimensions brought about by the Naval Bureau of Aeronautics and the Bureau of Standards. With the standardized sizes instru- ments may be interchanged on instru- ment boards or the products of one manufacturer substituted for that of another without alteration of the panel. The Bureau of Standards reports the new sizes are meeting general favor both with the instrument manufac- turers and aircraft operators. - Studying Airport Promotion. . linois city officials have organized to study methods by which municipali- ties in that State may obtain funds for promotion of airport programs. ANOTHER _ THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGION, D. C. JULY 14, FOR CHUTES FOUND Cheaper- Silk Developed as Substitute for Japanese Material. By the Associated Press. An American woven silk for the man- ufacture of parachutes has been de- veloped by Navy textile experts. Since first used in aviation parachutes have been almost exclusively of Japanese ha- butal, an expensive silk. . Perfection of the new American fab- ric, tested by dozens of successful jumps from speeding planes, culminates a long search for a substitute. Its general adoption would re the United States of a supply of parachute material without dependence upon Ja- | pan. It also makes possible a saving | of more than $125 on each chute. Benefit Commercial Flyers. Commercial aviators will be benefited | by the decreased cost, which may make possible general use of parachutes where they are now used sparinglv because cf prohibitive cost. Parachute prices ranged between $300 and $400 for years until the search for an American woven fabric proved suc- cessful. Six hundred domestic woven chutes, made standazi for the Navy, 1mv; been ordered at a cost of $201 each. | The fabric, made of raw silk obtain- | able in Italy, China or Japan, is de- | ccribed as having all the physical prop- | erties of habutai. It is slightly heavier | than the Japanese silk, but close atten- |tion to manufacturing details is ex- pected to reduce the weight. Navy Tests Para-"utes. | Domestic substitutes for silk now in general use for wearing apparel have proved worthless for parachutes. They lack great tensile strength to prevent tears under severe weight conditions, are inelastic and impermeable to air. Each parachute constructed for the Navy is dropped with a 200-pound weight from an airplane traveling 100 miles an hour &t 1,000 feet. If the .chute fails to open within three sec- ‘onds or displays any unsatisfactory ten- | dencies, it is returned to the manu- facturer. All Navy parachutes are carefully in- spected and repacked every 30 days. | Every third year they sre returned to the naval aircraft factory for rigid in- | spection, overhaul and drop tests. Para- chutes more than four years old are watched carefully. AIR FERRY-SPEEDS MAIL FOR CHICAGO | Amphibian Service Started Between Lak® Shore and Municipal Field. CHICAGO, July 13 (#).—A saying of | 35 minutes in the transfer of alr mail | from the airport to the post office here | has been accomplished by amphibian | ferry service between the municipal air- port and the shore of Lake Michigan, | just off the business district. The amphiblans pick up the mail | from the land planes arriving at the | airport, 12 miles from the business dis- trict, and transport it to the lake front, five minutes from the post office. The experiment is being watched with interest and a similar service is | contemplated in New York should the Chicago test prove successful. | Air mail planes now land the air | mail at Hadley Field, N. J., or at New- | ark, 2 hours and 45 minutes, respective- ly, by truck from the New York post office. Amphibian planes could pick up the mail at either fleld and fly to the [North River, from where it could be |taken to the post office by truck in | eight minutes. |FLIGHT MEDAL DESIGN |SOUGHT IN NAVY CONTEST | Awards Will Be Given Crew of NC-4 for Crossing Atlan- tic in 1919, | The Navy Department is holding a | contest for a suitable design for a gold | medal to be presented to naval per- sonnel who made the first successful transatlantic flight in the Navy flying boat NC-4 in May, 1919. Entries for | the contest will be received by the pay- | master general of the Navy until 10 a.m. August 2. The medals will be presented to Comdr. John H. Towers, now assistant chief of the Navy Bureau of Aero- nautics, who organized and commanded the flight; Lieut. Comdr. Albert C. | Reed, commanding officer of the NC-4; Lieut. Elmer Stone, United States Coast Guard, pilot; former Lieut. Walter Hin- ton, U. S. N,, pilot; Lieut. N. C. Rodd, radio operator; former Lieut. J. D. Breese, U. S. N. R. F., engineer, and former Machinist's Mate Eugene Rhodes, engineer. Each contestant may submit as many designs as he desires. The designs will be submitted by the Navy Department to the Commission of Fine Arts, which will make the selection. Angaward of $1,000 will be made for the ‘successtul design. BORDER MAY BE ‘MOVED.’ Customs Officials Expected to Be Stationed at Airports. ‘With the designation of certain air< ports as ports of entry by the Customs Service, international air passengers may soon be examined by custom of- ficials at the airport rather than ex- periencing delay at the border. Under the new plan officials will be permanently stationed at the airports designated by the Customs Service to e Uat pove by air from beyond ng -af at pos y air from tl{:uwmtoflll limits of the United States. 22 Cities Plan Airports. Twenty-two cities in Southern Cali- fornia, working in co-operation with the Southern California Development Asso- clation, are having preliminary studies made of their cities preparatory to es- tablishing airports. NATIONALLY ADVERTISED LINE MCQUAY - NORRIS R.S. D, VYALVES ONE PIECE, ALL STEEL This is the Valve used in over 70% of the new cars produced in 1929, including the Model A Ford. When your motor is overhatled, replace the exhaust valves with R S P one piece Valves. in labor cost will offset the price of the The saving’ new valves, and you will reduce future valve troubles. 15122 1 L STREET, N. V7, PSR R akiins € s5uruer WHoLesaLers, Enc. PHONE DT "ATUR 0130 i mascemeeu s e epEcen A naval officer (above) is pulled from the wing of & American woven silk. ing the mew fabric for its tensile strength. Joint Airports Studied. Department of Commerce airport | specialists are investigating several rc-i quests made by cities to determine the‘ advisabllity of two or three cities sit- uated close together building a joint airport. Each case has presented prob- lems peculiar-to itself, so that it is im- possible for the department to advise (hle cities on the basis of any general ! rule. City Controls Air Field. ‘The Board of Park Commissioners of Minneapolis now control and operates the Wold-Chamberlin Field there. Field rules and regulations have been drawn up and adopted, contracts have been signed by the board and the sev- eral transport companies operating from the airport and a business-like admin- istration of ¢ irport inaugurated. 1920_PART 4. speeding plane to test one of the Ni new parachutes of Joshua Miller (left) and James E.Sullivan, Navy materials engineer (l::;‘; in inset), Il.! test- Seattle Airport Designated. ‘The interdepartmental committee on airports of entry has given temporary designation to the Bryn Mawr airportat Beattle, Wash. The port has both land and seaplane facilities, and is being used by the Washington-Alaska air service as the Southern terminal. Due to the fact that the planes make a stop in Canada for fuel, clearance through an afrport of entry is required. In America’s finest medium-priced | automobile . quality features that cannot be mat. AMERICAN FABRIC NAVY SPEEDS PLAN T0 PROVIDE.PILOTS Has Three Sources From Which to Draw Men for Air Training. By the Associated Press. Faced with a shortage of pilots man its growing fleet of airplanes, the |Navy s putting into effect & new | method of training by which it hopes to mfl up the development of capable avi 8. ] To keep pace with the influx of air- planes into the service under the pro- | gram designed to give it 1,000 useful | planes in five years, the department neaded 749 pilots on July 1. It was short almost a hundreed men. At the end of this fiscal year, it will need 915 fiyers, -but_expected to have only 787. As the new program of training moves ahead, however, the number of fiyers is expected to catch up with the ac- quisition of planes in 1933. Three Sources of Supply. The new plan covers the three sources of Navy pllots and went into full effect this month. Under the pro- gram, the two-year gap that has existed between the tive officer pilot at the Naval Academy and the commencement of his flying course will be closed. A preliminary training course will be given enlisted men at other stations before they are sent to Pensacola. A wider course of {instruction will be given to Naval Re- serve pilots and a broader use will be_made of these aviators. Previously, graduates of the Naval | Academy were sent on & two-year cruise ! before action was taken upon their ap- plications for transfer into the Air Service. Navy officials expect the clos- ing of this gap between graduation and the beginning of aviation training to increase the number holding to a | preference for flying. A new system of selecting prospe Because it offers a type of performance unapproached by any other car in its field—because its distinctive style is unduplicated anywhere—because in comfort, safety and convenience it can'be compared only with cars much higher in price . . . the Oakland All-American Six isknown today as America’s finest medium-priced automobile. 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