Evening star., 1948-06-20
Cargo Plane
Fleet Sought
Experts Say 5000
Ships Needed for
Reserve

Ships Needed tor
Reserve
By james J. Strebis
Because q tremendous air cargo
feet will be needed In any future
war, military and civilian transport
experts have been wrestling with the
problems Of an adequate peacetime
reserve pool.
Thus far they have not announced
a figure as finally accepted. but
testimony before the Presidents All
Policy commission indicated 1000 OF
5000 transport planes are desirable
The entire American transport feet
in scheduled operations now Is about
1000 aircraft.
The military interest Is primarily
in q long-range, four-engine plane
at least as large as the Douglas DC
6 or the Lockheed Constellation. The
initial cost of fleet of 1000 planes
of that size would be well over $4,-
000, ,o00, 900. The annual operat-
ing cost would be several billion
dollars more If the planes were kept
busy.
Want LarSe Carrier
Assuming the planes were flown
an average of eight hours a day five
days week, with l in 10 on the
ground for maintenance, the avail
able lift capacity would be 33,000,-
100000 ton miles a year. A ton
mile means the movement of 2,00C
pounds one mile.
That is more than go times a
much air cargo as was carried by
United States air operators last yeal
and four times as much as the less
than-carlot freight carried by rail
It is Is or 20 times as much lift a
Government experts have estimated
might be needed for air freight
needs in 1850.
A 4,000-plane feet flying 10 hours
a week would burn 2,750,000, ,00C
gallons of gasoline q year, or IL
times as much as this country's air
lines used last year. In the face OF
a threatened petroleum shortage, the
extra burden would be unwelcome
The Civil Aeronautics Board told
the Presidents commission that a
1,O00-plane cargo fleet could handle
4,700 times as much cargo as was
carried in 1916 by the existing COM
mercial fleet, mostly passenger
planes. The operating cost would be
virtually prohibitive," the board
said.
But in the face of that. several
witnesses suggested the need Of 5000
transport planes as an operating
reserve for military emergency
needs. (To the military trans
port plane" Is one that can double
as a cargo or troop carrier)
Those witnesses included Vice Ad-
miral E. s. Land. president of the
Air Transport Association; G. r
Smith. chairman of American Air
lines and wartime deputy chief Of
the Air Transport Command, and
Capt. c. H. Schildhauer, former
Naval Air Transport Service off,
cial.
Others Conservative
Most airline officials were inclined
to be more conservative, with sug-
gestions of 200 to 500 planes in the
reserve pool.
When the Japs struck, the Ma
tion's domestic air feet was about
365 planes. The military took halt
of them as the nucleus for organiz-
ing its own air transport services
Eventually about 10000 transports
of $4,000 pounds or more gross
weight were built for the military
The Military Air Transport Serv-
ice (MATS), which does all of the
hauling for the Army. Air Force
and Navy, operates only 800 plane;
in transport service today. That
wouldn't be q start toward wartime
needs.
Two problems arise in having
transports ready in sufficient guam.
tity for initial demands: % De-
sign of q plane usable by civil
operators pending It's call to mill
tary service and Cd keeping the
fleet modern.
Weight Kills Utility
The first is a problem because
military transports require beef
ing up" beyond civil needs. The
Fairchild C-82 Packet is an example
1t has 5000 pounds Of weight built
into it solely to meet Air Force de.
mands. That extra weight makes
it unsatisfactory for = commercial.
operator.
On the second point. storing Of
continuing to operate World War II
transports would leave the military
far behind the best plans avail
able. Since VI day, the airline.
have put into service planes which
are much faster and larger thar
the wartime workhorses.
Still another and more compli
Gated phase of operating larg'
enough peacetime cargo fleet is tn,
Nations airport and airway system
This already is overloaded in bac
weather. 1t is being modernized
but the job will require Is year.
and cost more than 81 ,000, ,o00. 900.
Distributed By the Associated Press)