The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1943-05-22

Aviation Likely
TO Outrank L. S.
Army, Navy
BY Charles p. Stewart

The "AAFSAT' is Just begin.
ming to be referred TO IN the news
columns. Without loss OF time
We may as we'll begin trying TO
learn what institution this par.
ticular collection Of initials stands
for
naturalization Is an. editors way
OF compacting the troublesomely
long names OF many OF our govern.
mental. commercial and other large
organizations into short space for
convenience in headwriting and
reading. The system has reached
a point where it verges on abbre.
Waiting the Christian religion as
the. "CR" leaving the reader. TO
guess what is being mentioned.
Many OF these centractions
gradually have become adequately
recognized. In the course OF
years we have grown to accept the
GAR" as meaning the Grand
Army Of the Republic the "A F of
L. as meaning the American Fed
Grafton OF Labor. the "CIO" as
signifying the Congress of In
dustrial Organizations, and today
nobody needs to be told that the
UNIV stands for the United
Mine Workers of America.
1t is like the initials &c
Before Christ. We are so accus-
toned to such Installations that
We pretty nearly understand them
better than we do the full names
that they are representative of
or late. though, initalization has
gone cuckoo.
The war developed It up TO the
nth power.
Creation OF government commits
sions, administrations and offices
progressed as such a rate that,
initialized, you cant keep track of
them-the differences between the
"oPA", the "OWI". the "MPC',
and oddles more of them.
For instance, the other day |
encountered half column OF jour
nallstic comment relative to the
activities OF the Ssh" "OA&SI"
Ssh Social Security Board)
was clear enough, but the e in
the sub setup puzzled me into an
investigation, revealing that the
latter is the "SSB's" old age and
survivors insurance bureau Leav-
ing the b. for bureau, off from
the "OA&SI1 was what confused
me.
Now for the "AAFSAT" It
seems that this translates into the
Army Air Forces School of APP
piled Tactics
We have had an Army and
Navy Department pretty indepen,
dent OF one another Their func.
tons did not automatically mix to
any extent Now they do mix
Aviation mixed them
In fact. 1t has become somewhat
predominant over either or both
~ them. Well, the "AAFSAT's'
= function Is TO effect a merger
With Aviation in a majority OF the
three.
Before this war got fairly start.
ed aviation was considered an
Army and Navy adjunct each
To date II is reckoned that they
are aviation branches. with the
flying command as the main thing
They are due to be subordinated
to It as a couple OF collateral
arms.
Combining them on that basis is
rather difficult. however. that is
the purpose OF the "AAFSAT' It
is to be done, to a certain extent,
by degree
Nevertheless. It Is agreed by e1-
perts that the business of war 10
transformed The Navy already v
being rebuilt. Il. is to consist Of
transportation Craft-plane carriers
largely Land fighters are to be
available for the occupancy OF
terrain already under control from
overhead.
The idea is tina. We need not
two or three departments but a
single department OF the whole
thing. The "AAFSAT" is to be r..
Brig. Gen. Hume Pea body sum
marizes Sea. air and ground CO
ordination-of the over-air com
mand.'
In short. the "AAFSAT' is TO be
new department. Army and
Navy cabinetships are to snuff out
gradually. They are to become
mere undersecretarys ships
The War Department will be one
unit, with the aviatorial boss as
supreme chief