The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1920-01-08
ATLANTIC FLEET
STARTS away FOR
WINTER CRUISE
Admiral Henry B. Wilson
Is In Command of
The Fleet.
THAN USURL
This is Because the Nav,
Does Not Have Enough
Men.
ny Associated Pressl

fBy Associated Pressl
OLD POINT COMFORT, Va, Jan. s.
1.-The main body OF the Atlantic fleet,
including seven dreadnoughts, So de-
stroyers and number of submarines
Of Admiral Henry B. Wilson, sails to-
tanamo, Cuba, for the annual winter
maneuvers and exercises.
y. The fleet as constituted Is relative
.ly. smaller than previous years due to
the fact that lack OF men kept the
number of pre-dreadnoughts battle
ships, several cruisers and large
number OF destroyers in port. OF the
log destroyers attached to the Allan
tic fleet, only 35 have large enough
crews to warrant sending them to sea.
Admiral Wilson's flag flies from
the. main OF the dreadnought Penn
sylxania, wartime flagship of the Bni-
ted States fleet. The other dread
thoughts in the fleet are the Oklahoma,
Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Florida and
Delaware The North Dakota, re-
Gently at Gonstantinople, is. en- route
10 Cuba to join the fleet.
Despite the handicaps of depleted ana
unframed personnel, the fleet this
year faces the most extensive and
comprehensive schedule Of winter ma
Heuvers in history Particular atten-
lion will be given to working out les
sons. and problems resulting from
tho war and in giving careful test
TO wartime mechanical innovations.
Cooperation between naval aviation
forces and the fleet, experiments in
submarine attack problems and tacti-
cal maneuyers under high speed, in
addition to the usual strenuous prob
lem of target practice, are expected
TO keep officers and men busy night
and day during the stay at Guantana-
mo. Aviation ships accompanying the
fleet we're to give the first opportu-
nifty to experiment with the practical
bility of large tactical units carrying
their own flying forces.
After spending month at Guanta-
nano the crews will be given brief
respite from the strenuous round OF
drills when the seventh division of
deadnoughts goes to Barbadoz and the
fifth to Trinidad, performing tactical
maneuvers en- route. Various smaller
craft will accompany the two divi-
sions. On February 25 the units will
be Joined at Colon where they will re-
main until March 4, giving all hands
an opportunity for shore leave at the
Canal. Leaving Colon March 4, the
fleet will return to Cuba and continue
exercises and maneuyers, including
main battery target practice, until
April 26 when the homeward- bound
pennants will be broken out and the
return voyage started /. After arriving
in home waters the vessels will scat
ter to various navy yards of the At
lantic coast for the annual overhaul
period.
The greatest problem the fleet will
face during the winter drills, naval Of
ficers said today, was the preponder-
ance OF unframed men in the crews.
This is particularly true of the engi-
neers and artificers branches, they
said. Due to the rapid Rehabilitation
of the navy, the highly trained and
expert gun pointers and turret trainers
developed during the war are now for
the most part civilians. Many months
OF hard work will be necessary to
train men TO take their p.ace Con-
sequently II is not expect. d that the
Atlantic fleet which has led the world
in target practice will this year
achieve 50 splendid results. The aver
age age Of the crews OF the ships 60
ing south today was 10 years. No ef-
forts viii be made this winter to Join
the Atlantic and Pacific fleets for
combined maneuvers