Evening star., 1922-05-12
2z3 AHplanes ASKED BY Navy
To Completely Equip Warshiips
Gigantic Program Calls for One of Most ln,pregnable
Defensive Air Fleets in World-Senate Com
n,ittee Hears Satisfactory Reports.

Plans for complete equipment Of
the fighting fleet with aircraft dur
ing the coming fiscal year. 1t was
learned today. have been laid before
the Senate naval committee by Rear
Admiral Moffatt chief of the Navy's
bureau of aeronautics. The project
contemplated placing 213 airplanes OF
various essential types on battleships.
cruisers, scouts and other vessels
and is designed to furnish the fleet
with its own aerial defense against
enemy aircraft attacks.
Under the plan eighty-six small,
swift fighting planes will be In
cluded in the aircraft to become
permanent part Of the fleet aircraft
defense. The machines to be used for
this purpose are believed by Navy
officials to be the best yet developed
for fighting in air, having been COM
pleteiy developed under Navy control
since the close of the war. They are
designed to meet in air and repel
raids against the ships of the fleet
by enemy bombers.
Thirty-Six bombing Planes.
In addition the active ships Will
carry forty-SiX observation and spot
ting planes, twenty-seven small spot
ters, thirty-SiX torpedo or bombing
planes. eighteen scouts and four kite
. balloons for observation purposes.
Each battleShip of the eighteen COM
prisinS the fleet under - the naval
| limitation treaty will carry four
planes, two VT, or single fighters,
one big spotter and one torpedo or
bombing plane. The torpedo plane
will at surface
| craft with 1,500-pound torpedoes or
with an equal weight in bombs.
Catapult launching devices recent
ly developed and tried out success
| fully are to be installed on all ships,
enabling them to send away their
heavy seaway. The ten new scout
cruisers will carry two catapults
each and fighting and scouting planes
to add to the range of observation OF
enemy movements.
Regarded as Defensive.
This airplane equipment sought bv
! the Navy as an immediate answer,
! it was explained at the department.
! to assertions that surface craft were
defenseless against enemy air bomb
attacks, is regarded as essentially
defenive. The aerial offensive power
of the fleet is to be grouped aboard
| the airplane carriers. into which 1t
mas Deen tutt iiS
battle cruisers Lexington and Sara
toga be converted. The fleet aerial
squadron also is supplemental to an
equipment of twentyfour land
planes sought by the Marine Corps.
twelve to be fighting or pursuit
ships and twelve observation planes.
and also in addition to thirty tor
pedo planes with which it is designed
to equip naval stations.
! In presenting the naval aircraft pro-
! gram to the Senate committee avia
ton officials summarized the work of
the last year in developing modern
airp!anes and airplane engines which
has been done by the Navy itself or
under Navy funds and encouragement.
A very optimistic picture of the situa-
ton was drawn, it was learned. Navy
officers being confident that the United
States has kept fully abreast thus far
in aviation material developments in
other countries. Half dozen or more
engines of improved power and re-
duced weight have been produced. it
was explained. the endurance of new
engines has been tested up to 300
hours continuous operation, as COM