Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-10-11
AMERICAN AERIAL navy
STRIKES HUNS IN FORCE.
More Than $50 Machines Delivc,
Attack on German Camps
Near Serdun.
ONLY ONE OF OURS LOST IN RAID
Largest Expedition of Kind Ever
staged Foreshadows Time When
Berlin Will Know How 1t Feels
to Dodge American Explosives.
rRy Associated pr..sI

., WsASHlNGTON. Oct ODER 1o.--Word of
~; LIZ HrSt great American air raid against
s see GERMAN inr,i camps north OF Eerdun
on,Sials to- day, although no official re-
PIT Pot, mad, been received to furnish de-
i is,,s Q! inc exploit. So far AZ could be
800 machines IN this one enterprise
MARKS It as the greatest air offensive
Se' undertaken on the western front
could be discovered here tonight show
ing either allied or German bombing
rags N on anything like similar scale:
NO official comment could be obtained
nIenalng the receipt or formal advices.
There is every reason TO suppose. how
eyer. that considerable portion OF
the bombing planes used were De tIavi-
land day hombcrs. built in the United
states and equipped with Liberty mo-
tors. Shipments of these machines TO
france rIone, have now reached considerable
proportions, and recent performance
reports from France have been en-
coura ging.
The language of the account of the
can military censor is taken here to
Indicate that the operation was joint
enterprise. with French and possibly
the Americans The reference to fifty
triplanes as included in this great air
rect found no explanation here. II
they arc French built machines. and no
details Of the equipment obtained
abroad BY General PershinG have been
released for publication.
SHALL AMOUNT OF
EXPLOSIVES REPORTED
The fact that only thirty-two tons
OF bombs were dropped by such force
struck some air service officers as sur
prising. The ordinary bomb capacity
Short rp pnI Wo"d be s9 ten
times that weight of explosives. it was
said.
Descriptive of the raid press dis
American forces northwest OF Nerdun
said
AN American bombing expedition,
yesterday dropped thirty-two tons Of
explosives on German cantonmcnts in
the area between Wavri!le and Dam
yillers. about twelve miles north OF
Nerdun.
The American bombing exploit
marks one OF the high spots In the
air fleet operations Of the war. In the
expedition were more than 200 bomb
ing airplanes. 100 pursuit machines and
fifty triplanes.
THE bombing craft were given SPLEEN
tie which took place during the ope-
ration. Twelve enemy machines were
destroyed. Only one entente plane
I'm addition, American airpiancs yes
terday destroyed or brought down five
German machines and one balloon:
They also took. great number of
photographs and dropped newspapers
to the American troops"
The most Eignificant feature Of the
first great American raid. outside of
its possible place In the great strategi c
game that is being played on the west :
ern front. Is the fact that it indicate :
that the United states now has taken Its
full place beside the allies in the air
as we'll as on land and sea. The bomb
ing squadrons which made up this air
fleet probably represent ths first de-
ance in the independent air forces
which. arc being. built UP by the en-
tente powers. The British and French
governments now officially describe
their bombing operations as the work
of this independent air force.
TREMENDOUS AIR NAVY
MAKES HUNLAND UNSAFE
What is meant is that the navy OF
OF Germany shall be safe from the rain
or bombs. 1t is thing apart from,