The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1925-02-27
NEWS REVIEW OF
CURRENT EVENTS
Navy Board Declares Bat
tleship Still Is Backbone
Of Our Naval Defense.
BY EDWARD w. PIcKARD

BY EDWARD w. PlcKARD
CONTRARY to the opinion Of Brig.
~ Gen. William Mitchell and those
who support his contentious, the bat
tleship is still the backbone Of naval
defense and the airplane, while very
valuable. arm, will always be an aux
iliary instrument Of warfare against
whose attacks the battleship can be
made practically invulnerable. Such
Is the finding Of the special board Of
the navy created by President Cool
idge toihvestigate the claims Of those
who asserted that aircraft could sweep
naviess from the seas.
This board, headed by Admiral
Eberle, chief of naval operations, re-
ported last week. Its conclusions,
summarized, are these:
1.-THE battleship is the element Of
ultimate force in the fleet, and all
other elements are contributory to the
fulfillment of its function as the final
arbiter in sea warfare. The other ele-
ments have their important. and at
times, indispensable functions.
s"Aviation has introducedsa new and
highly important factor in warfare,
both on land and sea. It was utilized
on an enormous scale and with great
effectiveness in land operations during
the World war, but did not seriously
influence sea operations. It's influence
on naval warfare undoubtedly will in
crease in the future, but the prediction
that it will assume paramount impor-
lance will not be realized.
sThe airplane (heavier than air) Is
limited in performance by physical
laws.
"The airship Fighter than air) has
some valuable characteristics, but due
to great vulnerability, is Of doubtful
value in war.
Aircraft cannot operate from terri
tory that is not controlled by the mill
tary or naval forces Of their own coun-
try.
"Airplanes cannot occupy territory.
nor can they exercise control Of the
sea.
sAirplanes cannot reach distant
overseas areas under their own power
with any effective military load, and
therefore, cannot operate there often
sively or defensively until supplied
with weapons and fuel.
"The battleship Of today, while not
inyulnerable to airplane attack, still
possesses very efficient structural pro-
lection, as shown by the experiments
on the Washington. The battleship of
the future can be so designed as to
distribution of her armor on decks
and sides, and as to interior subdivi-
sion, that she will not be subject to
fatal damage from the air.
"The effect Of plunging long range
gun projectile hits on a ships deck
has now become closely analogous to
the effect Of hits by heavy aerial
bombs.
by armoring the battleship's deck
with six or seven inches Of armor, we
effectively meet any practicable at
tack from the air and also attack by
gun projectiles fred at the greatest
probable battle ranges.
"The interior subdivision will resist
any mining effect from aerial bombs
1t cannot be said, therefore, that air
attack has rendered the battleship OBJ
solete.
ssThe observation value Of the air
plane has been extended to assisting
gunnery by observing and reporting
the fall Of shot relative to the target.
"Airplanes have demonstrated theiI
great value to the feet in scouting
observation and bombing. The use Of
torpedo planes, gas and smoke screen:
is still in the process Of development
Airplane carriers are necessary ele
ments of a properly constituted flee
to carry airplanes to the scene of ac
tion."
AS to the plan of unifying navy ant
army aviation in a separate depart
ment Of the government, urged by Gen
eral Mitchell and many others, thu
board says 1t would be most injurious
to the continued efficiency of the fee
and is a step that should not be taken