Evening star., 1925-03-07
PLANES WIN FIGHT
WITH GROUND GUNS
Anti-Aircraft Gunners Miss
All 80 Shots at lowed
Targets.

With the conceded advantage of a
high wind, Langley Field aviators
yesterday afternoon scored a COM
plete victory over attacks launched
against them by anti-aircraft bat
teries from Fort Monroe, Va, and
officers OF the ground defense ad-
mitted defeat in the tests arranged
by the office of chief of Coast Ar
tillery here to show the effectiveness
of anti-aircraft fire against airplanes.
Viewed from an Army airplane and
expressed in the language of the
Air Service. the anti-aircraft demon
stration off Grand View, Va, yester-
day afternoon was "washout." Sup
plementing this conclusion are state
ments from the officers of the anti
aircraft defense at Fort Monroe, Va,
admitting defeat in the tests arranged
for them by the Office of chief of
Coast Artillery here to show the
effectiveness of ti-aircraft fire
against airplanes. OF SO shots fired
at three towed targets not one hit
was registered.
Event Not Actual Test.
Strictly speaking, the demonstra-
tion was not test" or decision"
pants were as far from operating un-
der actual war conditions as they
could be. First, the airplanes had
received orders from the fort not to
fly farther than 1900 yards from the
batteries on the shore and to stay in
a restricted zone. Second, the planes
were to fly between 5000 and 5000
feet, and their speeds already were
known to the batteries. Third, no
attempt at lodging the fire was to be
made, but the big bombers were
to fly right across the course mapped
out, . That never would be done In
war.
From the Air Service side, white
canvas sleeve. about Is feet long and
feet in diameter at the mouth, ta-
pering down at the end to about
feet, was attached to the end of a
2,000-foot cable and towed across the
line of fire. The target sagged about
500 feet below the plane and cut down
the speed of the bombers towing them
by about 10 miles an hour. Their es-
timated speed across the barrage was
about 80 miles an hour
Plane Sleeve Penetrated.
When the planes landed with their
targets, not a single hit was regis
tered, although a machine gun bullet
had penetrated the canvas sleeve CT
another plane towed at a low alti-
tude for the machine gun attack
The exercises began at 2:30 o'clock.
The writer. occupying the back seat
of a De Haviland 4-B observation
plane piloted by Lieut.. Lester J.
Maitland of Boiling Field, got into
position 5000 feet over Grand View,
a short distance from Fort Mon
roe. and awaited Capt. Early w. Dun
cans first trip across in Martin
bomber. high wind was blowing,
and Lieut.. Maitland's plane, slightly
throttled down, stood virtually still
in the air. and hung on it's propeller
until Capt. Duncan flew along the
course. Flying parallel with the
target and about a half mile away
the attack on the sleeve was awaited
On the trip down the wind was with
Capt. Duncan and his speed was in
creased, but on the trip back the
wind was against him. However. as
he passed over the batteries a series
of puffs of a brownish color suddenly
appeared, but they were anything
but close In all about 20 puffs were
SEEN but in an instant the target
slow as 1t was moving. was proceed
ing northward. On the downwind
trip and a return upwind flight, no
Energies Unscathed.
Inland, three other Martin bombers
with 2,000-foot tow lines and sleeves
were milling around ready to go
across the course one at a time and
at different attitudes. Other planes
were in the air and each pilot was
kept busy avoiding a collision or hit
ting the tow lines. Finally, on a sig
nal from the ground, a bomber flown
by Capt. Black of Langley Field
moved across the range of fire with
the wind on the ships tail. White
puffs appeared above the sleeve, be-
low and far to either side. Capt.
Black was flying about $500 feet and
he emerged unscathed. Just as
soon as he cleared the course, Lieut..
Grisham followed at an altitude of
5000 feet and the shots were even
less effective against his target. The
white puffs against a green sea and
blue sky presented a pretty picture,
but there was nothing dangerous
about them as far as the target was
concerned.
The last pilot to &c across struck
out at an altitude of about $500 or
1000 feet and no attempt was made to
shoot at him, apparently because he
had violated the maximum altitude of
5000 feet set for the pilots.
AS each plane made it's trip across,
Lieut.. Maitland few his ship parallel
with the target and a clear and un-
obstructed view was obtained of the
effectiveness of the attack
AS the last Martin bomber went