Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1918-05-26
ENGINEERS GIGANTIC
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properly equip and fulfill the pro-
gram.
The present publicity and untavor-
able comment on airplane work Is
costing this government millions
! daily Much valuable time is now
being wasted in comment and argu-
ments of newspaper articles on the
airplane program. the range OF COM
ment running from the nolder to
! the chief signal officer.
Big Investigation Needed.
The tremendous work Of creation
| and orEaniza ton could only be prop
| erly investigated and reported on to
the president. by committee Of big
men who have been big manufac-
turers of specialized and intricate
mechanism The statement of one
senator that airplanes OF a type such
as used the Liberty motor could be
made at a big profit for $4,000 each
Is certainly ridiculous. Under pres
ent wage scales and manufacturing
conditions. Liberty motors cannot be
built and installed at this price, even
IL they were built in hundred thou
sand lots.
TO add to the general trouble and
confusion OF the signal corps. GER
tain officials in Washington and
New York wish to establish mail
route between New York and wash
ington at this time, when trained
aviator capable of flying such a
route has cost the United States
government at. least $4,000. The
English government has made est-
mates that the average price nlle
for airplane service is SSb: These
costs, of course, must take into con-
sideration good and bad aViators'
enormous breakage and preparatory
expenses. Some officials hlsn IN
authority who are able to make
strong recommendation are sug-
gcsting and insisting on the mail
| route by airplane between New YORK
and Washington. other enthuslas
tic officials have laid out an air
plane route from New York to san
| Francisco. taking "A map and, as In
| the olden days, drawing a straight
| line between New York and san
Fra ncisco and saying this shall be
route to be traversed by our Amer
| lean aviators delivering mail, seeds
and mail-order patent chairs along
| the route. When the eastern-Wes
ern route was laid out hy these en-
thusiastiv officials, the fact that the
route covers almost the center oi
lake Erie and ran across the south
ern end OF Lake Michigan. where
the lake is rs miles wide. directly
over the city Of Chicago, which Is
| thirty miles square, made no differ
ence. 1t also traversed the greaI
western desert, where there are ne
gasoline stations, water supplies
food supplies, or any other supplies
Some officials high in authority II
government have recently made the
statement that all the machine;
should be taken across the ocean II
the air, II we did not have enough
ships, why take the trouble TO bo,
them when we could fill them VI
with gasoline and fly them over
Some other officials have insisted
that the machines be delivered from
the factory to the shipping point b!
air route. Such statements car
come only from people who have M
actual conception of the difficultie
encountered In the handling OF al
airplane, in the short life Of tn
plane, and the absolute necessity o
suitable landing fieids-practicall,
built to- order billiard tables. Build
ing and training $4,000 aviators ant
sending across the seas $4,000 ma