The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1917-09-08
AERIAL TQRPEOOES
ARE CONTROLLED BY
MARCONI SYSTEM
Deadly Aid of New Engine of
War to Count in
Future Battles.
Copyright, 1917, by the International
News Bureau.l

atiVely new science of aviation will
bring the making of wars to an end
by reason of the very. terrible conse-
quences which will fall upon those ma
tions which, in the future have the te-
merity to declare war upon each other.
To think that within a few hours Of
the declaration of war a dread, whir-
ring noise will be heard approaching
the big towns and military centres of
the combatants, foretelling wholesale
murder and destruction by aerial tor
pedoes, will surely act as a deterrent
against fighting in years to come.
A New Menace
The aerial torpedo is by no means
an insignificant item. Recently the
steamship Gena-a craft of just on
three thousand tonS-was sunk by a
small aerial torpedo launched from
German seaplane: 1t has also been re-
ported that aerial torpedoes were used
in the recent Folkestone raids, but this
has not been verified.
OF course, the sinking of the Gena
was in itself no great achievement,
but the incident proves that the enemy
is graphing with the problem of this
new engine of war, and that my re-
marks are more than the mere phan-
tom words of a dreamer Of dreams.
ventors, engineers and other people
qualified to speak on such matters,
and my remarks are, therefore, based
on authoritative information.
Naturally, wireless must play a
very important part in the control of
the aerial torpedo. I. have already
seen miniature airships controlled by
Marconi's great invention. and there
is no reason why torpedoes should
not be directed through the air by
similar means.
The torpedo which travels through
water is SO designed that it shall
pass smoothly through the fluid. Aero
planes are designed in this way, too.
rapidly through fluid of any kind
(and air is fluid) Is specially con-
structed so that an easy passage is
assured. And SO the aerial torpedo
very much resembles in general out
line the ordinary sea-torpedo.
Winged Torpedoes
The reader may have noticed the
design of racing motor-cars, fish sub
marines. certain birds, and other
things that travel through their re-
spective elements at a fair or rapid
speed. All these are based on what
Is technically known as the stream
line principle-an attempt to reduce
resistance as much as possible.
A large attack would most probably
be made as follows:
Perhaps fifty or more aeroplanes
would approach predetermined town
which the enemy wished to extermin-
ate. They would not fly right over
the town but would release their tor
pedoes when about twenty or more
mil " ho
on to their destination; and carrying,
as; OF course they would, a large
amount Of high explosives, there
would be very little town left after
the event.
Controlled by Wireless
A combined attack could be made
on several towns and the result would
be a very uncomfortable one for the
Inhabitants. I choose fifty as a pro-
visional number; but I should not hes
itate to mention five hundred or even
more, as times goes on. This, how
ever, is not the limit of the torpedo's
activities as theoretically worked out
by several inventors of today.
The torpedo par excellence is one
which will not be launched from air
craft at all. 1t will, in fact, be a tiny
aircraft in itself, with rudder. eleya-
ting planes; ETC.; but naturally there
will be nobody on board.
It will be too small; and, besides.
what would happen to the pilot when
it exploded if it carried or could car
ry one? Torpedoes such as these will
be sent up from established centres.
and it is in this connection that wire
less will come in so usefully. The tiny
craft, laden with some powerful -ex-
plosive, will be made to rise, proceed
horizontally. and to descend all by
means of wireless instruments.
There need. be hardly any limit to
it's radius of action; so, if there were
an aerial torpedo centre-let us say,
in London torpedo could be wire
lessed' to Berlin to perform it's dead
ly work. It would be perfectly use
less for civilians to complain against
such terrible bombardments unless, of
course, the laws of warfare are al
tered by the Hague Convention; and
even then there would be chances that
some ambitious and foolish country
would ignore those laws, as Germany
has done today.
Important Experiments
Even at the present time practically
every town is defended" and it is
the duty, of all civilians to leave the
areas liable to bombardment if they
want to- avoid trouble. Most of the
civil population evacuate those towns
which are bombarded by the enemy's
artillery. Those who remain do so at
their own peril, The same principle
applies to towns subject to air bonn
bardment. It is very unfortunate that
civilians should have to retreat; but
after all, it is war, and war such as
the world has never before witnessed.
Another very important task which
could be undertaken by aerial torpe-
does is the photogl aphing of enemy
positions, camps, forts, etc. The craft
would be sent over the position, and
the photographs secured by wireless.
There would be a great saving of men
in consequence, as many skilled pilots
now have to be employed for the same
duty. No modern scientist will VEN
ture to deny the feasibility of these
practices. The authorities in every
country are experimenting every day
with such themes, and laboring hard
to perfect them.
The End of War
But, asks somebody, how are> you
going to prevent the wireless instalia-
tons of an enemy from interfering
with your torpedoes? Well, inventors
have thought of that already and they
have made their calculations. It will
be possible for an aerial torpedo To he