The sun., 1918-08-18

come the antique junk of to-day. Without
anticipating Mr.. Hughes's report, here
practically is what happened:
The manufacturers were going ahead
full steam up, according to blueprints
and specifications 1t may be said right
here that there are about 1000 blueprints
and specifications to an airplane. Presto!
A big German machine is brought down
behind the allied lines. 1t is seized before
it can be destroyed by the pilot Some
new wrinkle is found in the mounting of
gun, in cam or shaft or engine.
Is the new point superior TO our
speci6cations' Wouldn't, in fact, this
new wrinkle as to fuel or wings or engine
or gun practically send our machine to
the scrap heap if we went out against the
enemy without protection against these
new inventions7
News of the new wrinkle is flashed to
the Aiplane Board. Two thousand draw
ings and specifications for American ma
chimes are junked. A wire goes out to the
manufacturers changing specifications,
and perhaps sending to the scrap heap
100000 crank shafts, 10000 cam shafts,
cylinder heads, bearings and small parts
uncounted.
One Machine Needs 1000 Items.
The manufacturers stop with yell Of
rage, swear and hurry to Washington.
New specifications! A new start; and the
process repeated all over again!
In 1917 we really went through with
airplanes what the munition and ord
nance manufacturers experienced in 1915
pretty nearly daily changes and heart
sickening delays. But the ordnance manu-
faeturers finally got their gauges and
standards and got into their war stride,
and the airplane manufacturers are
doing so now. 1t may be added that the
airplane manufacturers themselves think
there would have been less changing and
junking and scrapping and wasteful
spending if airplane men had been on the
Aircraft Production Board.
As to the Liberty motor, the Hughes re-
port will deal with that. 1t was badly
press ACCENTED. 1t was played up in the
press for part for which it was unsuited,
and then it took bitter experience to bring
the Government round to the point of ac
knowledging its pets Deficiencies. II is
good machine for its own speciality, but it
is not machine for universal use
Again, big airmen think the blunders
would not have been made if practical air
men had had the handling of air produc-
ton, men like Curtiss or Houston or
Wright or Martin, even though some of
these great specialists are at daggers
drawn technically They know their job,
and they know what can and cannot be
done with plane, and they could at least
have avoided the errors of beginners.
On the Aircraft Production Board as
first constituted was not one single practi-
cal airman The Aircraft Production
Board members we're enthusiasts, but en-
thusiasm, like Bryan's oratorical army,
doesn't win this war, or the Germans
would have won out long ago. But this,
too, is past history, and rounds back to
the plane manufacturers demand for an
air ministry.
Pooling of Patents a Good Step.
The cross-licensing pool of all patents,
which threatened confusion to airplane
production at the beginning of the war, is
not likely to play a very large part in
either official report. When the war be-
gan one of the big airplane companies had
possession of about 30 per cent. of all
patents. The other big company had 30
per cent, and the little Independents had
about 10 per cent. of the patents.
When it became obvious that airplane
production on a huge scale must be stimu-
lated it also became obvious that it was
going to be hard on the beginners to pay
heavy royalties on patents to rival COM
panies, and the Government suggested
that all patents be pooled in one hat, with
ROYALTIES going out to each patent owner