Evening star., 1943-02-17
Revolutionary Aerial
Warfare Is Expected
From New Engine
Newsmen See Secret
Developments, Including
Novy's Fastest Fighter
BY JAMES Y. NEWTON


EAST HARTFORD. Conn. Feb
17.-An aircraft engine more
powerful than any used in com.
bat so far-one that is expected
to revolutiopize aerial warfare
has been developed by the Pratt
& Whitney division of Unitec
Aircraft Corp. here.
The big engine was one of many
new devices in research and test
stages revealed to correspondents
for the first time today, equipment
OF a type one might more readily
expect the men from Mars" to use
Most Of the equipment is being de-
veloped for the Navy, and large
group Of Navy officials from Wash
ington got first glimpse of it. They
were impressed.
Fast CorSair Performs.
A special air show featured in
itlal showing OF the Vought Corsair,
the Navy'S sleek 400-mile fighter,
fastest naval plane in the world.
The Corsair got battle baptism in
the South Pacific three days ago. A
formation Of six climbed. rolled and
dived to the delight of those fortu-
nate enough to view the perform
ance.
Pilots described in glowing terms
the action of the first CorSair ship
to be powered with a 2.O00-horse-
power engine, declaring they would
outperform land-based planes. The
ships are products of Chance Vought
Aircraft, another division of United.
The speed and maneuverability of
the Corsair - officially designated
F4U-1-Was impressive. The Navy
baby however, will be obsolescent
before many months have passed.
United has under development three
radically new fighters designed to
use the new engine, which are ex-
pected to fly rings around" any
thing now in the air.
NeWsmen spent hours in the labo-
ratories and test places of the
United subsidiaries, encountering one
eye-opener" after another. Nearly
everything seen was strictly in the
held Of military secrecy. A majority
OF the radical changes were in pro-
peller and propulsion equipment.
They saw, among other things,
counterrotating double propellers.
Special weather equipment de-iced
propellerS and wings quickly at tenn
perdtures ranging to 60 below zero,
though permitting operation in 150-
degree heat.
Products Back up Boast.
The supreme optimism of the men
who work in the giant aircraft labo-
ratory here is contagious. They talk
of speed and tricks" that are in
credible, yet they have the goods to
deliver to back them up. The men
who do the research, who watch the
tests with eagle eye, are, like their
industry, young. To them the pos
sibilities of action in the skies are
unlimited.
The huge Pratt & Whitney plant
here mas built more engines since
Pearl Harbor than the four COM
panles licensed to make its products
Ford, Buick, Chevrolet and Nash
Kelvinator. The experimental plant
alone is larger than the pro-
duction factory of a few years ago.
Engines are given every conceivable
test. When finally delivered to the
Army or Navy, the power plants are
letter perfect.
A big portion of the propellers for
our combat planes are produced by
United's propeller division. This
type Of equipment is coming out in
such quantity that it no longer is
the "bottleneck" Of plane produc-
tion it was a few short months ago.
More important still, the develop
ment Of props" has been boosted
ahead of airplane research. Not
long ago we had giant planes on
paper without equipment necessary
to bring them into reality.
Navy Officials Present.
The show" here today was part
Of that arranged by the Navy to re-
veal to members of the press certain
Of the latest naval research and
production developments.
AIIlOAB lIlOSe VINO came from
Washington for the tour of Uniteds
shops were the Assistant Secretaries
for Air Of the Navy and War, Rob-
ert Lovett and Artemus L. Gates,
classmates at Yale and members of
the same fighter squadron in the
last war. Rear Admiral John S.
Mccain, chief of the Bureau of
Aeronautics, and Rear Admiral
Ernest M. Pace, chief of the bureaus
materials command, also were pres
ent. Charles A Lindbergh joined
the group in watching the show.
The Buck Rogers stuff" the Navy
Is demonstrating today will sound
the death knell of the Axis on our
far flung ha tile fronts tnmorrnW