The Washington times., 1921-09-16
AERO CHIEF
QUITS POST
Under FIRE
Major General Menoher Hands
in Resignation Following Con-
troyersy With Assistant.
ny International News Services.

The discord and dissension which
for months has been smoldering in
the United States Army Air Service
resulted today in the resignation of
Maj. Gen. Charles T. Menoher as
Chief Of Air Service.
General Menoher has sent his res
ignation to the Secretary Of War.
II has not yet been acted upon, but
Il Is understood that II will be ac-
.epted and the army air service viii
have new bead within the next few
Quits Under Fire. ~
Back Of General Menoher's resig-
nation ts a record of months Of
sension and discord over policisi.Ay n
personnel which was featured
months ago by General Menoht
manding tbat his first assis
Brig. Gen. William Mitchell, the
flying general" In the army. be
moved. General Menoher at
time sent a letter to Secretary
War Weeks demanding Mitcf
removal.
The Secretary OF War mediated
differences between the two of ID
at that time and the result was that
General Menoher remained chat OF
air service and General Mitchell re,
mained as his first assistant.
1t was patched up peace" fnow-
ever. and subsequent events revealed
that the causes Of friction had not
been removed. Recently II has be-
come 80 pronounced that General Men
oher's resignation resulted.
Menoher In Not Even . Flyer.
The difficulties between General
Menoher. who IL not q flying officer,
and General Mitchell, who il a flyer
Of note, first arose through Memo
hers policy Of putting Notifying Of
ficers In high administrative positions
In the air service.
General Mitchell objected to this
policy as detrimental to the morale Of
the service, and insisted that flying
officers be given recognition in I'D
ences hinged on an Interpretation of
an article Of the national defense act.
which stipulates the number of non.
flying officers in the air service.
The difference became go pro-
that the matter was put up
to the judge advocate general of the
army, and he rendered a decision IA
vorable to General Mitchell's side Of
the controversy. General Menoher's
demand that Mitchell be relieved of
came a short time later.
More recently there have been
strong differences Of opipnion con-
the results Of the recent bomb.
Ing tests off the Virginia Capes.
strong advocacy Of the air
plane as against the battleship in mod
ern warfare aroused the resentment
Of navy officers. and his views were
0ho rad nifhaT hxy a ~ :
ticers.
1t was charged that Mitchell did
not conduct the tests fairly" and
that the conclusions which he drew
from the bombing tests were unfair
10 the navy" and misleading to the
generally"
90 To these criticisms. General Nit
chell's friends replied It had been
In actual tests that a
modern battleship could be sunk by
aerial bombs In fifteen minutes, and
hat the facts spoke for themselves.
The resultant controversy has been
tests and has kept both army and
navy circles in Washington in al
a.f =
Say Menoher Discredited Planes.
Mitchell's friends have charged that
General Menoher was lukewarm In his
support of the army side Of the con-
and that It was largely due
% General Menoher's attitude that the
,ecent report Of the joint Army.Navy
Board was construed as favorable to
as against the airplane. 1t
has been reported In army and navy
'ircles within the last few days that
General Mitchell was preparing to
'egister q formal protest against the
indings Of the board
Speculation was keen in army
quarters today as to the successor OF
General Menoher, when his resigna- |
ion is accepted. Mitchelrs friends |
expect that he will be |
nominated to head the air service, |
n which ha In m strong a m rtt..,