The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-10-14
MILITARzE
ALL PRIVATE
lair FIRMS
Confined II ON page n

had appropriated a total of 1897 &c.,
600 for military aviation during the
war and $434,SS3,2S7 more between
1919 and 1924. In the last five years,
he added, congressional appropria-
tions for aviation averaged $50, 67e, 657
year.
Enormous Expenditures.
This sum, Madden declared. was
$3,252,O00 more than Great Britain
spent in. 1923 and S75,146,0OO more
than Japan spent in the present fiscal
year. Despite these huge appropria-
tions for the American air service,
Madden said "the bungling expert
mental work Of army and navy Of
ficials had resulted in a record OF
failure so far as the development OF
aviation was concerned.
The congressman proposals for a
new military air policy included:
l. An air budget of SS7 100000 a
year for the purchase of 1900 new
planes annually from private manu-.
facturers and the maintenance of a
! Joint army and navy flying force OF
1,500 commissioned officers and $4,000
enlisted men,
2. Use Of enlisted men as pilots
wherever possible.
3. Abandonment of all aircraft ex.
periments and manufacturing by
both army and navy.
Aid Private Graft.
4. Delegation of experimental and
manufacturing work to establish com
mercial aircraft companies in order to
build up these concerns as a reserve
force for use in time of war.
5. Creation of a civilian procure
ment officer" who would purchase all
governmental aircraft, supervise its
construction and direct experimental
work by the private companies, TAX
ing these duties away from the army
general staff and the navy bureau OF
navigation.
g. Elimination of some existing
governments aircraft fields, but main
tenance of two on the west coast, two
in the Mississippi valley, one on the
south coast and two on the east coast
Opposes Air Joy Rides"
Z. Prohibition of all air stunts, in.
Guiding Joy riding cruises around the
World. jumps across the Pacific and at
empts to reach the North Pole" SO
hat all military air training will be
devoted to war tactics.
| Madden cited testimony given by
9th Major General Mason M. Patrick,
| hief of the army air service, and by
ear Admiral William Moffett, head
the naval air service. to support
charge that the two services had
lied in the efforts to develope mill
ry aviation
Patrick, he said, had told a con
| Tessional committee last fall thai
he army had placed in the second
ne of defense" nearly all the pursuit
planes purchased in the preceding
Two years because they were anti
quated by later inventions. The army
air head, he added also testified that
262 Thomas Morse planes had beer
bought by the army which were ode
ficient in speed and particularly in
vision, because it is very dificult fol
the pilot to see out Of them"
Charges Criminal Waste.
Il have heard something of charge
Of criminal negligence" said Madden
referring to Colonel Billy Mitchell:
charges, "but this borders on criminal
waste"
IF credit is to be given to the
testimony of many of the witnesses
here" Madden added, 1.-THE last five
years of development and experiment.
ing have been productive of very little
If any advance toward permanent
aviation plan which might be ac
cepted by congress. You have been
told no real steps forward have been
made.
Il cannot help but conclude that
the technical development of this new
art may not be safely left to the
armed forces if we are to take oui
place among the countries of the
world in the air. | can but conclude
that millions off dollars have been
squandered in purposeless, meaning
less, endless experimental orgy. Sure
ly it is not too much to expect that
the millions should have purchased
more than 10 in evidence in tangible
results"