Sioux County pioneer. (Fort Yates, Sioux County, N.D.) 1914-1929, 1917-12-13
THOUSANDS LEARN
TIL: Flying GAME
Immense Camp Where Men Are
Taught Aeronautics.
Spend s4,ooo,ooo On field
Accommodation Will Be Provided for
10000 Men at Kelly Field, Near San
Antonio, Tex.-WilI &c Nothing to
Compare to 1t in Magnitude in the
World.

compare TO 1t IN Magnitude in tho
World.
Thousands of young men are being
taught The game Of flying and fighting
in the air ut Kelly Field, situated add
jacent to San Antonio, Tex. This
training ground is being rapidly
brought up to the largest aero field In
the world.
The United States government is
constructing buildings and making inn
provements TO the Kelly Field ut a
cost of more than $-l,OOO,O00. 1t is now
the largest government flying ground
IN the United States, and when the
present plans are finished it is stated
that there will be nothing to compare
with it in magnitude in the world.
Accommodations will be provided
for more than 10000 army flyers here.
These will be divided into squadrons,
each TO consist of 1871 enlisted men and
10 commissioned officers. 10 each
squadron there will be assigned IL air.
planes.
The organization is Differed by a
major, 81 captain and two commits
stoned officers each for a supply sec
ton, engineering section and IL aero
sections, making 10 in all.
The personnel also includes the fol-
lowing: -Four master signal electric
ians and one sergeant major, one first
sergeant, two clerks, one truck master
and 1G mccllanicians with the grade
of sergeant, first class. Ranked as
sergcants there are an assistant truck
master, mess sergeant, supply SER
gennt, mechanic, photographer, chauf-
feur and IL mcchanicians. There are
also 3;3 corporals, six cooks, 80 pri-
Yates, first class, and q medical depart
meut of four
In the Engineering Section.
Four of the first class and five
ranked as Scrgcants belong to- the
engineering section. Tho sections in
the squadron are the headquarters
section, supply section, engineering
section and II aero sections. The dis
headquarters, eight to supply, three to
engineering and is to the aero section
One of the Interesting camp features
of this great training camp for army
flyers is the machine shop, where the
airpl;lncs are not only repaired but
are being rapidly constructed. Many
skilled mechanics are employed in this
work. These men are not only capa-
bic OF building machines. but they are
experts in flying as we'll.
In q way the arrangement of the
aero squadron is similar to that OF
: the racing teams that q short time ago
were maintained by the leading motor
car manufacturers. Classcd in this
way the team would consist of - driv-
ers each with it's particular machine.
In the aviation section the aero squad
ron is the team" The 10 drivers and
machines are represented by IL COM
missioncd officers. Each "section" of
the aero squadron has a machine and
flyer. The mechanicinns and helpers
of the various auto race drivers have
their cosnter-parts in the mechanics
and men assigned to each section.
The machine shop OF the flying field
corresponds to the automobile factory
and there the more elaborate work
Is done.
The men of the squadrons are
housed in barracks built in orderly
military fashion. Each building is
numbered, but the building numbers
do not always tally with the squadron
number.
Examining Board Meets Regularly.
An examining beard meets regularly
and examines applicants for commits
sions and applications are numerous
Flyers also come from the ground
schools which have been opened at
many places throughout the United
States. The ground school nearest tc
San Antonio is that at Austin. Avi,
alton work has been featured as Il part
of the summer school courses at many
of the leading universities, and this
too, aids in eating men of education
and training for the aviation sections
1t is assured that one Of the attrac
tons that winter tourists will find III
San Antonio during the coming season
will be that of flying men over and
around the city. Already myriads OF
airplanes are often seen performing
the various kinds Of feats above Kelly
Field. One day recently great flock
of buZZardS was noticed to apparently
Join in the maneuyers that were being
conducted by the flying machine men.
These birds went through evolutions
that were being performed by the air.
planes and their remarkable actions
were viewed with interest by visitors,
MAMMIES HANDLE FREIGHT
4