Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-06-02
|, REATION of an Army Air
Corps transport squadron,
, to be composed of trans

10 DC COInpOSSu VI u dilo
~ port and cargo planes OF
the type now scattered among the
various types of service Squadrons
has been suggested as a result OF
experiences in connection With
the recent Ohio maneuverS.
The transport squadron would
take it's place beside the attack
observation, bombardment ano
pursuit Squadrons as an individual
unit of the Air Corps. From this
squadron planes could be de-
tached for various missions now
flown by the individual transport
planes assigned to various flying
fields.
The suggestion. advanced by
Mai. w. H. Frank, chief Of the
Air Corps Tactical School at Lang
ley Field, Va, probably will come
up for consideration in the near
future, it was indicated at the
War Department. The matter
will be assigned for action to the
division of training and opera
tons.
Need for Service Emphasized.
The recent Ohio maneuvers, in
which every type of Air Corps
squadron was represented, de-
monStrated clearly the growing
need for aerial transport service
in connection with the operations
of the Air Corps. Aerial trans
port was a big factor in the sue
ceSsful operations of the Marine
Corps air service last year against
the SANDING forces in Nicaragua
and there is every reason to be-
lieve that it will become more and
more important as time goes on.
The fighting SquadronS, sta
toned at advanced flying fields
behind the front lines, must have
supply service by air from depotS
behind the zone of action, the
Ohio maneuverS showed. Fight
ing SquadronS, especially pursuit
plane outfits, which cannot carry
mechanics, ground personnel or
supplies, must be accompanied by
cargo planes on croSs-country
missions during which they will
be forced to work ION their own. p"
Although there were 10 cargo
planes on duty in Ohio with the
various Air Corps units, many of
them were of obsolete types and
the supply was insufficient to meet
the demands imposed by the field
operations of the air forces. The
cargo and transport plane equip
ment included several Liberty
motored Douglass transport planes
of the CT type, which now is con-
Sidered obsolete; several OF the
WhirlWind -Fokker CO type, a
tri-motored Ford and only one of
the new type Fokker C-5 planes,
the latest word in the Army trans
port plane service.
Commercial Planes in Reserve.
Organization of only one squad
ron of transport and cargo planes
for peace-time operations will be
necessary, in the opinion of Maj.
Frank. In time of emergency
there will be the tremendous re-
serve of commercial transport
planes upon which the Govern
ment may draw for military duty,
together with trained transport
pilots and ground crews sufficient
to build up any number of trans
port SquadronS, which might be
necessary.
The present Army transport
planes of the Fokker and Ford
types are identical with the COM
mercial transport planes now in
use on mail, passenger and ex-
press air lines throughout the
country. This guarantees the
constant supply of sufficient
planes of this type to meet any
emergency needs of the military
service which can be foreseen at
the present time, Army officers
point out.
All that will be necessary at
present will be the maintenance
Of enough cargo planes to meet
such peace-time military needs as