Oxford eagle., 1918-02-07
THE TRAINING
OF AN AIR MAN
The Steps Leading TO the Conquest of
The Air, a Commission in the Air
Service. and Place in the Bat
tie Skies of France
(O6cial Series.)

ever evolved. 1t has ever need
to be scientific because it provides a
general knowledge of the worlds new
est sciences; it has every certainty Of
being fascinating becaCse If goes far
into the mysteries Of flight, of wire
less, of codes, of reconnaissance. II
is stimulated all the way thTought,
moreover, By that iyrestible urge
of national service and by the know
ledge that every bit of added skill
gained will return with interest ID
one 81 those forthcoming crisis in the
the skies of France.
The course is divided into three dis
tinct steps,-Ghe ground schools, the
flying schools in this country, and the
final advanced flying schools abroad
This has been necessary because It
provides an admirable means OF
measuring the men and rapidly and
logically sitting out the unfit; and
also because it allows the greatest
mobilization Of resourees,-the big
Universities in this country for the
preliminary technical work, the new
flying fields here with America 5
good training planes, and the won
derful schools abroad With their SUD
ply of fighting planes and seasoned
plots an dtheir atmosphere Of battle.
Under this system Americans are
assured of a composite course based
upon the best of everything gained
in three years of warfare abroad, and
are not held back by the original
lack of facilities here
Immediately cadet is called into
active service he is directed to a
Ground School" al one of the eli ut
large Engineering Universities which
have placed their resources AT the
service of the Government Here
the student Aviator Is under military
discipline, but with ali the comforts,
the facilities and the atmosphere Of
college life
The purpose Of this work Is two
fold: First and most important Z
provides q fundamental kbOs=leaye
Of the principles Of al sciences Of
aviation, which gives = rock-botto1n
foundation 70 q CADETS training
Second i quickly uneOVers those who.
both Tor the good Of the serloe End
Of themselves, should not 20 f--ther
The cadets learn how to take AT
engine. = machine gun, or = plane
apart and put il together again They
become 80 familiar with the mechz
nisms they will soon be using a. 70
have an instructive mastery Of theTa.
No one Of them VIII be allowed 20 20
up into the air until he understands
every phase Of the machine under
meath him he will then nave All
The confidence that an expert hose
man has in his favorite mount
Wireless and the Morse code are
also mastered so that the men can
talk 10 their guns from the air as
they would through a telephone.
Then they are set at "spOtting"
looking down upon an exact rep-oduc-
tion Of part of the front and wire
leSsing back the location of flashes
made to represent bursting shells.
Aerial photography, reconnaissance.
air tactics and the like are also
studied, and military drill. calisthe-
MICS. and army regulations mastered.
By the end Of eight weeks the cadet
Is thoroughly grounded in aviation
and assured, as far as it is humarly
possible TO give assurance. that he
IS prepared to 20 off the ground.
Then come the flying schools. II
u not possible for military reasons 10
describe them in detail. Ii can be
said, however. that the size Of these
schools would be startling to the IN
initiated, who would see in them a
lie Of which he mad barely dr. AIMED
a life that ushers in the new day Of
air-tEavel for man. And he would
also see groups of cadets. flying.
studying, working. oblivious of time
and Of hours, fascinated By the ro-
nance of their subjects, earnest 10
prove equal to every test in the real
ization that the great test Of all lies
just over the hill Of tomorrow.
Picture the thrill Of the first flight
with the instructor; then the feeling
of power hat gradually begins 10 come
as the control of the machine is more
and more taken over; the exaspera-
ton and then the joy as the an diff
heult work Of landing is conquered.
finally the exultation Of the first soar
ing aloft, alone. Bit by bit the air
man stretches out his wings rvino
little further, little longer I;ttla
higher each day, until he feels him
self master Of the air. Then WITH
So-mile erOss-cOuntry flight and a 10