Evening star., 1934-04-08

penSe of pioneering new types o.
by the designers and manufact,
planes they engineered proved 81
they would obtain contract fol
to repay them for their outlay
1t Is the opinion Of many in the
industry that If the Government
abolishes the negotiated contract plan
and awards military airplane con-
tracts solely through competitive bid
ding, the Government itself will have
to take over all Of the costly research
design and experimental work on Its
military airplanes and will then have
to seek bids on the designs which
1t has produced.
Example Cited.
The result of competitive bidding
on private airplane research work was
illustrated few years ago in the case
of one of the best Of the Navy patrol
airplanes. The Navy conducted q
design competition, in which num-
Der of designers and manufacturers
participated. After months of inten-
sive work one of the designs was ap-
proved. The Navy made public the
specifications of the winning airplane
in an open advertisement for bids.
The winning company, which had
met out of its own treasury the cost
Of designing the plane, was forced
to take into consideration this ex.
penSe in submitting its bid. The con-
tract went to a company which was
able to underbid the designer because
it had been put to no expense in con-
nection with the design work.
The company received a prize fol-
it's winning design. This prize, how.
ever, was far short Of its expenses in
connection with the research and de-
sign work. 1t had to pocket the diff
ference as its own loss and watch
another manufacturer build its air.
plane for the Government. Obviously
the loss it suffered had to come oui
Of its research budget and its work
in this vitality important field was
correSpondingly slowed up, at a loss
to the company, the military service
and the American public.
Superior Aircraft.
II American aircraft designers and
manufacturers are discouraged from
continuing design work on new types
of military aircraft, the civil aviation
industry, as well as the military serv-
ices is apt to suffer. Many OF the
magnificent new American air trans
port planes, beyond any question
superior to any in the world today
are direct descendants of military air
planes. Proof of their superiority il
evidenced by export and import
records, which show tremendou.
preponderance OF exports from this
country Of civil aircraft and engines
over imports from all other countries
combined. American transport planes
and airplane engines are in use in
virtually every civilized nation or
earth and their numbers are increas-
Ing.
While direct comparisons Of the
military airplanes Of the various
powers are difficult or impossible
owing to the military secrecy as tc
their performance characteristics, il
is generally agreed among flying
people that there are no lombard
ment airplanes in the world today
equal to the new Martin and Boelng
bombers of the Army Air Corps. These
airplanes We're designed and foStereo
under the negotiated contract plan
Whether they ever would have been
developed under the competitive bid
ding plan is questionable.
Attack Planes Superior.
There are no airplanes in any mill
tary air force in the world like th'
new Army attack planes, which art
said to have a concentrated fire power
during the brief span Of their attack:
greater than that of any weapon ye'
devised by man. They were designed
by private manufacturers, in clost
cooperation with the Air Corps Ma
terrell Division, under the negotiated
contract method.
There Is little doubt that American
observation airplaneS and long-rangs
reconnaissance airplanes are equal
to, II not superior to any Of theil
kind in the air arms OF any other ma
tion. In point Of speed they prob
ably cannot be matched.
Critics Of the Air Corps are fone
of pointing to the British pursuit ol
fighter airplane as evidence OF tht
superiority of foreign military air.
planes to those of this country. They
have in mind. undoubtedly, when
they do so, the British interceptol
n q
airplanes, designed for maximum
speed and for close-range work only
They cannot be compared, with JUS
tice, with the American all-purpos,
pursuit airplane, which, while it ma!
not measure up to the intercepto
in speed, Is immeasurably superior
to it in range, maneuverability, ano
undoubtedly in ruggedness of CON
StructiOn.
All Compromise Designs.
Every airplane is the result of com.
promise. If you want maneuverability
you must sacrifice something Of speed
and ceiling. If you design an air.
plane for altitude, it must lose il
maneuverability and speed. If speed
Is the sole aim, 1t can be attalneC
only by cutting down range and man.
euverability. There can be no air
plane which combines all desirabl.
qualities to their fullest extent.
In the interceptor, the British mill.
tary service sought speed and vert
willing to sacrifice range and othel
characteristics to attain it. They
wanted an airplane which would &c,
away quickly for the purpose of inter-
cepting hostile air raids on England
from across the English Channel, a.
the name of the airplane implies. They
did not need an airplane which coulC
fly great distances without refueling
They did not need to carry long
range radio and could make sacrifice:
in other directions to attain speed
They wanted speed and they got it
to the reported tune of $50 miles pei