Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-11-29
ShackIed Air Force
Seen in |nadequacy
OF Airport System
$4,000, 900 Stort on
Development Program
Held PitifuIIy Short
By JOSEPH s. EDGERTON.

Danger UnaI CIle OIuIcu OIdCcS
may find its growing air power
shackled in event of national emer-
rency by lack of an adequate air
port system is foreseen by aviation
leaders, who characterize the $40,-
900 900 airport program about to
be undertaken by the Civil Aeronau-
tics Authority as entirely inadequate
for defense requirements.
One of the real reasons why Ger
many, with an air power which at
the outbreak of the war was rated
at from $4,000 to 10000 warplanes,
has never put more than $500
airplanes into the air at once
against England, even at the height
Of Its September invasion attempt, Is
to be found in the lack of adequate
airports, in the opinion Of qualified
authorities here.
England has even more restricted
airport facilities and probably could
not launch more than 1000 air.
planes at one time from all its
airports, 1t is estimated.
U. S. Has Had Warning.
German difficulties in finding
suficient airports for the waging OF
the air war against England are
indicated by the zeal with which
the Nazis have sought air bases in
Holland, Belgium, France, Denmark
and even Norway and the vigorous
efforts they have made to keep these
bases in operation in the face OF
ROYAL Air Force bombings. i
The United States has had ample
warning, in its own experience, OF
the manner in which lack of air.
port facilities can tie up an air
force much smaller than those
operating in the world today. Nine
years ago the Army Air Corps as
sembled 672 airplanes for air
maneuvers which, up to that time,
were the greatest the world had
seen. This air force was assembled |
at Army fields in the vicinity of |
Dayton, Ohio. and moved to
Chicago, Boston, New York and
Washington, breaking up here to
return to home fields in all parts |
of the Nation.
Everywhere it went, this 672-plane
air force, only a forerunner of the
air armadas of today, was hampered |
BY lack of airports. For the as
sembly at Boston, airports as far
distant as Springfield, Mass, and
Providence, R. l., had to be used
and the writer has vivid memories
of circling for three hours in an
observation airplane over Boston
harbor waiting for scores of over
burdened airports and several States
! hal hJ1rlcy, nf fphfiY0 |
planes 80 they could be slowly as
sembled by squadrons and groups
for a "fy past" over the Boston
waterfront.
Critical Also Near New York.
At New York which, even then, |
had many nearby airports, the sit
uation was not much better. Squad |
rons circled over all of western
Long Island, and nearby Connect
cut and New Jersey, some of them
for more than an hour, after mass |
review down the Hudson River |
waterfront, waiting to be fed into
the widely scattered airports to
which they had been assigned.
When the air force visited WASH |
ington, the squadrons had to be
spread out over four States, some
Of them as far distant as Whining
ton, Del, Philadelphia, Richmond,
and Winchester, Va. From these
points they were 1aboriously as
sembled for a final Presidential re-
view here and to these points they
had to return following the breaking
up of formations before starting for
home.
For a peace-time demonstration,
not often repeated. the tremendous
waste of fuel and time involved in
such procedure may not be
serious; for a war effort it might
prove fatal.
The $40,000,000 appropriation is
mere fraction of the amount con-
sidered in aviation circles to be
necessary to provide an adequate
war or peacetime system of airports.
The Civil Aeronautics Authority has
prepared a six-year plan calling for
the expenditure of $3.50, 100000 and
recommended that $125 900 900 be
made available at once to initiate
the program. The National Aero
nautic Association asked that $780,
100000 be made available at once
to start the program.
Congress Further Cuts Request.
President Roosevelt submitted to
Congress a request for an initial
appropriation of S80,000,000, which
was approved by the Budget Bureau.
This amount was cut in half by
Congress, after efforts had been
made to knock out the entire item.
The airports of the United States
are far too few even for present
needs Of the preparedness program
and cannot begin to accommodate
the expanded training and tactical
operations programs which have
been undertaken and which are to
be increased greatly during the
coming year.
The National Aeronautic Associa-
ton characterized $250,000,000
initial appropriation as being "in
proper ratio to the huge total of
air defense expenditures which
cannot be made fully effective with
out adequate landing facilities"
The N. A. A. called attention to
the fact that, although Federal
agencies have done all they could
with the funds available, only per
cent of the Nations "so-called air.
ports" have paved runways and only
ii per cent have surfaced runways.
Due to lack of lighting facilities,
less than one fifth of the fields can
be used at night. Scheduled air
transportation operates from less
than c25 airports.
prr,> r;yil Aaron ,,ticc Authority