Evening star., 1943-06-05
Increase of Air Force
In China Advocated
Maj. Eliot Urges Sending
Planes to Aid in Drive
Against japanese Columns
BIZ Mcj. George Fielding Eliot

1LS 'A VI. WV W tStot'tS C1tob'
1t is now possible to form some esti-
mate Of what the Chinese have accomp-
lished in repulsing the japanese thrust
westward from Ichang during the past
| week.
The Japanese seem to have started
out in two columns, one north of the
Yangtze River and one south of it.
Their main base was At Yochow, on
| Tungting Lake, which is supplied di-
rectly from Hankow by portion of the
Canton Hankow Railway which is here
in Japanese hands. Their advance base
was Ichang, which is supplied from
Yochow by river boat.
The northern column does not seem
to have made any considerable prog
| ress. Probably it was much the weaker
of the two. The southern column gained
ground at first and captured several in
habited places. Then. as usual with
Japanese offensives during the past two
years, the Chinese began to bring in
creasing pressure on the japanese f1anks
and communications as the japanese
advanced.
But this time the Chinese had air
power as we'll as ground troops And
the Chinese air power TOR rather the
Chinese American air power seems to
have possessed almost complete air supe-
riority-at least in the qualitative sense.
On Monday, they knocked out % Japa-
nese planes (and probably a few more
in raid on the main Japanese air base
at Ichang, and since then our flyers
have had it just about their own way.
Their principal attention. after dis
posing of the Japanese air force in the
forward area. was directed against the
river traffic which was the source of the
Japanese supplies, with excellent results.
Barges, iunks and steamers were sunk,
warehouses and docks set on fire. Troop
and transport columns were also at
| tackled.
The japanese offensive collapse The
Chinese, advancing, retook all the ground
gained by the japanese and pushed them
back to the Yangtze, where their en-
deavors to recross the river to Ichang
were interrupted by the Chinese and
American flyers.
At the moment of writing, the Japa-
nese hold on Ichang itself appears to
be in danger and the Chinese are main
tanning pressure all along the Japanese
line between Ichang and Tungting Lake.
| Our flyers also have raided Yochow and
| the railway line connecting Yochow with
Hankow
We could not have been afforded a
better demonstration of what lust A.
little air power can do for the Chinese
Armies. The Japanese cannot meet
american flyers tor American trained
| Chinese flyers on even terms, or any,
| thing like even terms. What has hap
pened to the quality of their flying per-
Sonnel is matter of some disagreement.
| but there can be no question that it has
deterlorated 1t has been so in the
Southwest Pacific, it was so in the abor-
tive attempt to strafe our ships at Attn.
1t Is so in China. The only reply that
the Japanese can make to an increase in
the air power of their enemies at anv
point OF the vast perimeter which thev
are seeking to defend, is overwhelming
numbers-and even that does not ALWAYS
serve their purposes.
But this must be considered ALONGSIDE
the difficulties which lack of raw mate
rlals, OF skilled labor and of transporta-
tlon present to their aircraft industry,
and likewise the fact that thev already
are paying the penalty of trying to
shorten their period of pilot training.
| OBVIOUSLY the japanese are no longer
able to make considerable air effort in
one place without suffering correspond :
/ ing setbacks in another place. They
nave been trying to build up their air
force in the Southwest Pacific and thev
have been roundly beaten on the Upper
/ Yangtze in consequence.
There is lesson in this which can be
generally applied to the whole Far East
ern theater of war Given the contin-
udhce OF our qualitative superiority,
there seems to be a great opportunity
Tor the use of compare lively small, but
highly trained air forces, the presence of
which will insure local successes unless
couhtered by far greater numbers of
| Japanese planes. Thus the Japanese air
power may become as overstrained as the
German air power has become. and it's
reserves completely absorbed; while anv
attempt unduly to hasten an increase in
It's numbers, whether of planes or of
pilots, can only produce a further de-
terioration in quality.
In particular, there seems to be M
place where better results for small ex-
pendltures can be obtained than in in
creaslng the strength of our Air Force
IN China up to the limit of our capacitv
to supply it, Aside from the material
results of the Chinese victory and of the
further gains which may be reaped from
1t, let us think only of the effect on the
morale of the Chinese Army and people
and likewise of the effect on Japanese
morale Neither the japanese soldier,
nor any other, fights his best when he
sees his own air force shot out of the
sky and finds the air above him DOM
mated by the death dealing souadrons
of the enemy.
Copyright 1943, New York Tribune. 1nc)
PInin 'Inke' Devor.