Evening star., 1943-06-21
Pictures Prove Allies
Superior in Bombing,
Elliott Roosevelt Saws
Presidents Son Speaks
To 800 U. S. Soldiers
At Forum in Africu
BY the Associated Press.


ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA, June 21.-Col. Ell
lott Roosevelt, the Presidents son
and commander OF Allied aerial
photography service in North Africa,
said yesterday the Allies stand head
and shoulders above the Germans
in heavy bombardment and we have
the pictures to prove it."
He spoke to group of 300 Amer
lean soldiers at a forum for those
on leave.
THE movies must have been
pretty bad in town tonight for you
to come to hear me-" he told them.
Before getting down to the most
interesting-and most censorable-
aspects of his work, Col Roosevelt
gave his listeners a series of laughs
with his own version of his Army
career.
First Sent to Newfoundland.
Il came into the Army as a radio
expert and wound up as a pho
tographer," he said. II had never
fired machine gun in my life so
they put me first thing to testing
power turret guns"
Soldiers nodded sympathetically
as Col. Roosevelt asked: Remember
that sheet we used to fill out giving
our preferences for overseas serv-
ice?" Il put Hawaii first, the Phil
ippines second and the West Indies
third" he said, 80 I found myself
in Newfoundland. Just when I
got to like the cold countries, they
sent me to Africa. And I still don t
like Africa"
Col. Roosevelt said his first big
job was mapping possible airfields
for the North Atlantic air transport
route "and if I ever get killed !
hope they name the worst one after
me-"
The photo reconnaissance pilot is
mot a glamour pilot" Col. Roose-
welt said. He doesn't shoot down
enemy aircraft. His ability is
judged by his luck in keeping out
of the enemy's way and bringing
home the pictures that were asked
for. It's one of the most hazardous
assignments in the entire air force
particularly 'dicing.'"
Dicing he defined as coming ir
at Photographic objective at q
height Of 100 or 200 feet-it's not
encouraged for long life"
Pilots Exploit Related.
The colonel proudly related the
exploit Of Pilot Capt. George Hum
brecht of st. Louis which won the
Distinguished Flying Cross recently
He was coming back from a mis-
sion with pictures when he let down
in an overcast and found himself
among 81 Messerschmitt-1 109s and 7
Focke- Wulf- 1905 which were on the
way to bomb his home field" Col.
Roosevelt said.
THE Germans jettisoned their
bombs and attacked Humbrecht, but
he managed to keep away from them
for 10 minutes while calling the field
for fighters to come up and help
Finally two Germans made passes
at him from each side and filled his
ship with 10 cannon shells. Hum
brecht landed sideways with a dead
stick.
Completely unhurt, he climbed
out to be greeted by a British officer
who invited him to have a drink
I sure villa big drink of water,
he replied. I've been sweating it out
up there"
A few minutes later Spitfire shot
down one of the Germans who had
knocked out Capt. Humbrecht's s
plane.
Col. Roosevelts narrowest escape
was on a flight over Italian terri
tory when anti-aircraft fire smashed
one of his planes two motors about
3 feet from where he was sitting
But he didn't tell the soldiers
about it.