Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-09-07
Third Field for
Military Effort.


military aviation in America. In 1t
they see a third field for military eff
fort, in addition to great commercial
values.
At the inception of this govern
ment there was one organization
charged with national defense-the
War Department. which directed the
fleets as well as the land forces IN
1898 Congress created the SECOND ao-
ministrative bureau. as the Navy De-
partment. "Who can tell today INTO
what national aviation may not be
developed if it be made a separate
means of national defense! argue
some officers and laymen who nave
given thought to the iaea tnat me a.,
service should be made Independent
of both Army and Navy. even as they
are independent of each other, al
though constituting joint natlonal
defense.
war from slow. unarmed ana ump,Ii
tected scouts to the swift pursuit
plane, the observation and bombing
planes was not foreseen: that II was
the result of an intensive evolution.
The heavily armed combat planes tha
poured machine gun fire on INES Oh
infantry and hostile macnlne sun
nests in the hard fighting or Septem-
her and October, 1918, were out steps
to even more powerful planes OF Of
Tense. They see in the magnlned Yep
pelins and more powerful R-54s, a.
ready capable of carrying heaVs guns
in rigid airships that can naVleaas
the air over the seas and pear loiis
~ h;gb explosives or great TASKS OF
nojson gases, a means of destroy IN -
cities, fortifications. armies ana meets
They hold that such power. IN us ue
yelopment and in military operat'ol.
-s<,k~ two q
If it's own. They hold. too, that WIN
ont commercial development OF eva
fion. in event of another emergency
there will not be material or Iac.o-
ries to produce planes or olr ~ ioie
any more than there were sunicietit
facilities for building ,hn cow
government yards or Tor the cor
struction of field guns in govern.
ment arsenals, when war broke loose
| in 1917.
Tho nation has seen the enormous
exnense that followed the attempt 10
! improvise an avl-
Service for Results alton industry In
Wa Jaw war time. and
in Emergency. there is little in
dication that without imposing an eA-
nense beyond bearing the Army can
maintain shops on a scale that Will
give an air service at short notlce.
1t was that way in the case OF army
arsenaIs The Army, against the au
vice of the chief Of ordnance. was con-
fned TO the output of the government
n1ants and when the emergency
arose no commercial interest was IN
existence that could turn out ordnance
| in war quantities. In the month Oh
July Just past, the entire alrplane IN ,
dustry Of the United states turned
government support the industry VIII
languish. During the same pes:oo
British manufacturers hnlshed more
than two thousand and the french
over eight hundred.
The Army, by it's patrol OF the sreae
forests, detecting fires at the rate OF
twelve a day. has saved IN iuihoel
greater values than the cost OF Army
and Navy aviation for the year Inc
post Office is employing alrplanes III
it's service. The use OF argon as an IN
fiatant in the place OF DANGEROUS ny
naratiyely safe, and the R-3fs Foy-
age is but the parallel of the steam :
shin Susquehannahs across the Az
lantic. ..;u
The Army and Navy do not in their
plans contemplate, except IN an W.
commercial side of aviation, but I'M
less a government agency looks a1ter
this infant industry it will follow the
pre-war fate of shipbuilding and oye-
making, and go to some more enter
prising country. England, France and
italy have created air ministries ana
already have begun a campaign 1or
the commercial business of the air
right in the United States of America,
to say nothing of the South American
countries.
The expense Of third service would
be great, but no heavier than the
same service under the dual control
Of Army and Navy.
i \ \ 4
In framing a military policy for
the United States many difficulties at
the outset pre-
Framing the sent themselves
in the way of
Military Policy. reaching a clear
view of the situation, as the several
Acknowledgements. the Army and the
President-in reaching a result view
the subject from different angles.
The situation is aggravated by lack
of definiteness concerning the future
al