The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-07-19
AIR POWER VALUE
PROVED in SICILY
Heavy Use of Planes in Adj
vance of Landings Cut
Down Allied Losses
BY RAYMOND CLAPPER

Allied Command Post, North Al
RIGA, July 19.-(By wireless)-I have
met British officers who have not
been home for three years. Many
Americans I have met over here
have been away more than a year.
Few have any prospect of getting
home before Germany Is defeated,
perhaps not until Japan is licked.
For the sake of saving lives and
! finishing the war as soon as pos
sible the best chance lies in push
+ ing air warfare to the fullest eX-
tent.
Sicily is showing what the bold
use Of air power can do. The beach
landings there had bene dreaded as
likely to be the most bloody kind OF
Operation, but because OF the heavy
use of air power in advance, the
landings were relatively easy. Sicil7
also is demonstrating that enormou
Quantities of men and supplies can
be moved in day after day, operat-
ing the vast amount of shipping
necessary for that purpose, with
negligible losses. The air cover has
made possible all naval and ground
Operations with few casualties.
Evacuation hospitals made prep
arations for thousands of casualties
hut the expected rush OF the wound
led has not materialized. In the case
of Sicily air warfare seems to have
further fulfilled the hopes of its
champions.
Something New Added
1t Is obvious to the layman that
solnething new has been added to
the character of warfare. BY TAX
ing full advantage of our opportuni-
ties in the air we may be able to
offset some Of the difficulties that
otherwise would make the defeat
f Japan long and tedious struggle.
It Is to be hoped that the possible
ties now being demonstrated in
|6icily will be exploited in our big
|Ser campaigns to come.
Our present air superiority over
otcily is simplifying the whole cam
paign and speeding it forward in
the most hopeful manner. Every
day reconnaissance planes bring
back photographs showing what
traffic is on the roads which is little
IL any now, what the enemy has on
his airfields, where his shipping is,
II any.
Sometimes Just before a mission
goes out they send plane over to
make quick photographs. In the
first stages of the invasion of
Sicily medium bombers were taking
of soon after the Photographic
plane brought back target pictures.
These reconnaissance photographers
are a storye in themselves. Colonel
Elliot Roosevelt heads one air force
Photographic group in North Africa.
The photographers go out in I'M
armed planes to get pictures of every
town, perhaps mapping pictures,
perhaps a closeup shot Of a group
of buildings, railroad yards or har-
Dor works.
Laboratory of Air
We are able to use every kind oil
lane over Sicily and thus have under
TIE most favorable conditions a
laboratory of air warfare such as
we have not had elsewhere. We are
giving a workout to other planes
besides the Flying Fortress.
The most versatile plane is prov
ing to be the Pisa which once Gen.
erald Arnold was having trouble de-
tending against criticism. This plane
has become remarkable jack-of-all
trades.
Another one In action with spec
tacular success Is the little A-36
light fighter-b bomber. created out OF
the Mustang type. Finally the me-
dunn bomber B-26 which was so
much criticized In the United States,
especially because OF Its high land
ing speed, Is proving itself fully
here. One made q belly landing this
week without injury to the crew.
Tho "Coughin' Conn.," just re-
tired, several tmies came all the way
home on one engine.
Our various air weapons are prov
ing out here 10 be highly satisfac-
tory and improvements are coming
along steadily. We have remarkable
pilots and crews. All OF which seems
70 make air war our natural spe-