Evening star., 1941-03-16
Aero Squadron
Here Is Expected
To Be Ready Soon
Some Officers May
Be Sent to Army
Air Service Schools

Crganiza alton of the 121st Air
Squadron of the District National
Guard within short time is indi-
Gated by the fact that some of the
officers are preparing to be sent
to the service schools in order to
be trained as soon as the unit is
prepared for Federal recognition.
This latter is an important step in
the administration of the unit be-
cause it cannot be considered for
mobilization, it was said, until it is
formally mustered by an officer of
the Regular Army to determine
whether it complies with all of the
War Departments requirements for
such units.
1t was said at the local headquar-
ters of the militia brigade that 1t.
Albert Cox, son of Brig. Gen.
Albert L. Cox, commander of the
local militia and head of the Sc
lective Service for this area. prob
ably will be sent to one of the
Air Corps schools of the Regular
Army for instruction prior to being
transferred to this unit.
With the Headquarters Company
of the 372d Infantry, which was
modified last Monday at its armory,
at 1900 U street NV, and its dis
patch to its training center sched-
uled for tomorrow, the aero unit
will be the only one remaining in
the city.
In connection with the mobiliza-
ton of the colored contingent of
the local brigade it was said that
early reports to headquarters on
the physical examinations indicated
that the troops were pretty healthy,
as judged by the fact that only
few reflections for physical reasons
were reported.
There are 1913 enlisted men and
five officers in the organization
three of whom are company officers
and the other two, medical officer
and a chaplain, are regimental Of
flcers. The whole organization is
scheduled to leave tomorrow morn
ing from the Union Station and
will be dispatched to Camp Dix,
N. Y, where other units of the
regiment will be assembled.
First 1t Robert L. Stroud. at
tached to the 260th Coast Artillery,
now in field training at Fort Bliss,
Tex, has been ordered to Fort Mon
roe, Va, to attend the anti-aircraft
coast artillery school.
Capt. Gordon Hittenmark, radio
announcer, and who has been on
active duty at the Selective Service
Headquarters for some time, has
been ordered to attend school in
the adjutant generals section of
the Army War College for a period
of % days. after which he returns
to his station at the local militia
ermory.
Contracts for 10 new buildings on
the District rifle range, it was an
nounced at brigade headquarters,
are expected to be let within a few
days. 1t is the hope that all of the
improvements can be completed
during the summer months.
Those left in charge of the Guard
affairs are desirous of having all of
the work completed by the time the
troops return from their training.
At this time, it was said, there
are indications that authority will
be sought to keep the militia in the
field for a longer period than one
year.
Whatever the decision may be as
to keeping the troops, those left
here in charge want to have the
best facilities available for keeping
up the training ready for them when
they return. At that time also the
new armory at the end of East Cap
itol street is expected to be ready,
so that the local troops are ex-
pected to have the best training ia
cilities in the country.
The facilities to be provided at
the rifle range, it was indicated,
will make it possible for the various
units of the Guard to have short
periods of field training on the res
ervation during the Regular Army
drill period.
While the National Guard units
are in the field plans are being made
to keep them up to high efficiency
by new regulations for armory and
field inspections which have just
been promulgated by the War De-
partment. The regulations for the
armory inspection, it was said, are
designed to determine, among other
things, whether the unit is being
properly trained and instructed for
active military service. whether its
members are sufficiently armed, uni
formed and equipped for actual field
service and whether the care, facil-
tiles and methods Of storage of
equipment in the possession OF the
unit are satisfactory.