Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-09-25
ARMY BOARD To
PROBE BOMBING
PLANE CRASH At
MITCHELL FIELD
ONE OF THE VICTIMS
A ST0WAWAY, REPORT
Official Check Of the Post
Assignments aiIS to
Show That Whitney Was
REGULARLY ASSigned.

Mineola y. Y. Sept 24.-Prep-
arations were under way today
for an anrmy board inquiry into
the crash lass night OF a Martin
bombing plane which killed six
army men at Mitchell Field, at the
conclusion Of the mimic air at
tack on the land forces at the can
tonment. Major Weaver, com
manding the field, will appoint
board of army officers tomorrow
to hold an inquiry into the crash,
the cause of which, it was said,
probably never would be known.
one Of the six victims, it was
reported unofficially at the field,
was a "stowaway." Those killed
were:
FIRST LIEUTENANT RAYMOND
Il. DAVIS, a regular army pilot Of
Langley Field, Va.
FIRST SERGEANT THOMAS
BENFIELD, of Chicago.
CORPORAL DAVID II. STlN-
EMS, New York.
FIRST CLASS PRIVATE Ed
WARD KANE. who left no home
address.
PRIVATE HENRY J. NICHOLS,
Route Three, Carr Hill, Tex.
PRIVATB IRVING M. WHIT
NEY, of Ashburnham, Mass.
All but Lieutenant Davis were
stationed at Mitchell Field,
Whitney. it was unofficially re
ported at the field, was stow
away. An unofficial check up of
post assignments of the victims OF
the tragedy, failed to show that he
had been assigned as one of the
men to man the bomber in her sin
gle turn of the field.
Point Stressed by Officials.
The point most often stressed by
army officials in stressing the
tragedy is that the bomber was be-
yond the field of powerful search
lights which were used by the
Blue" or defensive forces in the
maneuyers. 1t was at first believed
that Davis had become blinded Dr
the brilliancy of the shaft Of light
which criss-crossed the dark skies.
Officers also disbelieved that the
purple land mist which drifted
down Long Island had in any way
confused Davis, who was recogni2-
ed as one of the best flyers of
bombing planes in the air service.
Just another of the air TRACE
dies which probably never will bs
explained" Major Weaver said III
his brief official, announcement Of
the accident.
Photography is expected to plaS
a large part in the inquiries to bs
conducted into the accident. Met
of the Fourteenth Photographic
sections, headquarters of which il
at Mitchell Field, we're at the scene
and had been making pictures Of
the maneuvers for records al
Washington. A picture was made
IL was said, of the bomber a mo.
ment before she banked. Photo.
graphs also were taken of the
wrecked plane after the crash, be'
fore the wreckage was cleared
away. Scores of persons. however,
for souvenirs who flockeA
to the field today, dug parts of the
plane out of the ground.
Round of Humdrum Details.
Explaining the application of the
term "stowa way to Private Whit
lltS, IL was Sdlu lIldI tileTe are any
of privates and com
missiOned officers stationed at the
flying field who have never had
time in the air. Many of these men
entered the service in the belief
that flying would become an every
day occurrence of their lives
When they found instead that their
lives We're filled with from reveille
to taps with an endless round of
details which seldom
takes them inside an airplane
hangar, no opportunity is lost OF
going up"
Whitney, it is believed. hoped
into the plane in the last minute
and during the excitement of TAX
ing Off.
Funeral services will he held to-
morrow at Mitchell Field for the
six victims, after which their bod
les will be shipped home.