The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-07-10
FLYERS CLAIMS
REFUTED BY NAVY
Officers Claim Plane Will
Never Replace Modern
Cruiser
WARFARE MERE CYCLE
In All the Centuries of Navy
Progress Only the Ram
Has Been Discarded
ny DAVID NJ. CHURCH

WITH THE Arl.ANriC FLEET
July 9.-No matter what the out
come OF aerial bombing operations
AGAINST naval vessels now under
way, these tests viii mover convince
the officers OF the Atlantic fleet
that the battlcship and fighting vcs
scl IL TO be- displaced by air forces.
Although many of the officcrs
admit that they have been forced TO
recognize that the aerial fighters
have acquired an admirable amount
OF skin. s'll thcy rcfusS To agree
that air forces are yet a serious
menace to fighting sra ships.
The first argument that every
naval officers givrs tn the claim uf
the aerial proponents is that naval
warfare has been the result of years
ot progress. and In all these year,
there has been but one weapon which
has been discarded and that is the
ram. II is pointed out that for cv
cry advance In methods of attnCkH
upon naval craft thcrf has been dc
yolOpcd new defense
Warfare u Cycle.
Warfare Is but n cycle of develop
mont, the Atlantic fleet officers
point out. when the cycle IL com
plctcd warfare becomes only tcS,
of strength, and they believe that ~
the final Hnalysia no matter how
great the development of the air
plane. 1t will be but a tcst OF
strength.
Getting down to specific argumcn'
against the airplanc and its bomb
Ing attacks. the officers OF the fleet
point out that thus far II has not
boon proven that here iS any sue.
coSfiul armOr- piercing aerial bomb.
tntil this comes the battle wa gon"
is sfc. they say, for when n battle
ship goes into action her vulnerable
parts are under protection of
h"avy coat OF armor. Even though
her sup"rTructurc and her deck
d"fensos may be blown completely
away she viii remain fighting
craft, unless her armor IN pcnotrat-
ed ana the vitals of the vessel de
stroy"d.
Opponents Of Fleet Are Menace.
During the war the men of the
navy had no fears or aircraft, thoy
gay They declare that tho British
grand fleet which kept the German
naval force bottled up. lay AT an
ohor during the greater part OF the
"aT "ltnlN easy NTlklng distance
OF German aerial bases, yet there 10
no record Of any successful or cx-
tcnsivc air attack upon the grand
fleet Have the dcvoiopmcnta I'm
aerial warfare come SO quick and
fast during the last three years that
the aerial proponents are able Ia
mbstan late their claims that the
battleship IL now obsolete? the off
c'ra ~ the fleet inquire
Turning directly 10 the bombing
tests, the fleet officers state that II
Will b" impOssibl" to Judge conclu-
siyoly what the strength of the air
raiders !H. for there has been no de-
frnsc. There have been no attack
Ing air parties and there has been
no anti-aircraft defense. II ~ i'm
possible, they say. 10 estimate the
ability OF the dc'ouscs Of th@ fleet
until It has been actually demon
strat"d.
The officers OF the navy are will
ing 10 ar eo that aircraft is ~ great
value TO them. They use naval air
craft IN thcir target practice con-
tinually. Thcy feel that there Hhould
be generous appropriations for air
craft IA major defense, but they
refuse to consider seriously any
COGTlNuED ON rNGE ~"