The New York herald., 1921-10-23

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munication, which they characterize as the
key to successful warfare
The lighter than air machine they look
upon as something the future of which is
unlimited. The presence Of natural gas
in America is looked upon as a vital ad-
vantage in Americas future work in this
field because it produces the invaluable
heliom gas.
But before going so far as to contem-
plate a transoceanic voyage for a dirigible
they declare that they must have large
ships with which to experiment. The
Roma, the semirigid airship the army
bought from Italy, is considered by the
naval aviation experts to be an extremely
valuable ship for training purposes but
not one that is capable Of great distances.
Down in their hearts the navy men are
still hoping to obtain big dirigible from
Germany as part of Americas reparation.
At the time of the armistice Germany had
fourteen big dirigibles in commission and
seven more in the course of construction.
OF the fourteen in commission seven were
destroyed in the sheds by the Germans.
The remaining seven were distributed
among the Allies, two going to England,
two to France, two to Italy and one to
Japan Work on those in construction was
halted by the order of the Allies on the
ground that they were warships and the
terms of the Treaty of Versailles forbade
Germany to continue making warcraft of
any sort.
The navy men feel that the American
Government should insist that we receive
one of the large dirigibles from Germany,
which, they claim, can be done because we
did not ratify the Versailles treaty. The
Germans, it is understood, can deliver one
of these ships in this country in six months
time.
In addition to the work the navy is
ready to do, naval officers say that num-
Der of concerns interested in the CONNER
cial side of dirigible developments also
have excellent plans and are merely wait
ing for business to pick up so they can
obtain the necessary funds to carry their
work forward.
The general attitude of the navy seems
to be that there is no real cause for dis
cOuragement in the development Of lighter
than air craft, but that patience must be
exercised until financial conditions i'm
prove.
Joseph S. Ames, chairman of the Execu-
tive Committee of the National Advisory
Committee for Aeronautics, agrees gener-
ally with the opinion of Sir Arthur Whit
ten Brown, and he said he was pleased to
comment on the latter's interview
Sir Arthur believes that the develop
ment of an aircraft engine will overcome
the unreliability of present types" he said
II suppose, but am not sure, that he is
aware that at the present time the Langley
Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory Lang
ley Field Va, operated by the National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, is
conducting research and experimental
work looking to the design and develop
ment of the fuel injection type, which If
successfully developed will have none of
the troubles of ignition and .carburetion
common to present types of aircraft en-
gines.
Congress Urged Repeatedly
To Furnish More Money
Sir Arthur points out that the achieve
ment of the future awaits the country that
can afford to spend a great deal for ex-
pertinent and research The National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics is
charged by law with the conduct and super
vision of scientific research in aeronau-
tics in this country, and has repeatedly
urged upon Congress the necessity of con-
tinuous prosecution of scientific research
America must take leading position in
the development of aviation Organized
scientific research and experimental work
is the only sound basis on which substan-
tial progress can be assured.
Shortly after the disaster to the ZR-2
there was great danger that the American
programme for the development of air
ships would be abandoned. The National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, realiz-
ing the potential value of airships, both in
war and in commerce, and the advantage
that is ours in the exclusive possession of
helium, promptly recommended to the
President and to the Secretaries of War
any Navy that our present airship de-
velopment programme be continued with
renewed vigor. An airship filled with
helium would be worth several of the other
kind for war purposes, and would be of
infinitely greater value than scout cruiser
but the greatest use of airships is not to be
found in their application to military pur-
poses, but in their development for COM
mercial purposes"