Evening star., 1949-03-03
World Flight Spurs
Demand for Greater
Air Force Budget

All FOICe DuQgeI |
The Air Forces spectacular feat
In circling the globe nonstop
brought new demands on Capitol
Hill for bigger appropriations to-
day. while diplomats assigned to
the flight q significant and dra-
matte place in the cold war
strategy.
Chairman Tydings Of the Sen
ate Armed Services Committee
said the flight "offers some meas
ure of what another world war
would mean to all peoples of the
earth" and showed the ''increas-
ing importance Of air power in
national defense"
Other committee members agreed
with Senator Tydings that the
flight greatly bolstered the Air
Forces chance of getting congress
sional approval Of more money
and more planes.
Perhaps significantly. the flight
was staged at a time when Con-
gress faces a decision on how much
money to allot the Army. Navy and
Air Force.
Representative Kilday. Demo-
crat, of Texas, a member OF the
House Armed Services Committee,
said the flight showed "the wis
dom of our 70-group program
which concentrates on research"
Meanwhile, observers pointed
out that an important fact in
terms of international politics was
that the State Department had an
opportunity to block the flight. but
did not do so. Two and half
years ago the department did
block somewhat similar project.
Thus the changed attitude mayA
be taken as a measure Of the ex-
tent to which relations between
Russia and the West have gone
downhill.
Flight Points Up Diplomacy.
The decline started at the peak
of hopes for East-West co-opera-
ton in peacemaking. It's present
low point Is characterized by the
belief of the Western powers that
military readiness to strike back
is now an absolute essential of
peace.
In this sense the B-50 trip
which ended yesterday at Fort
Worth provides a single dramatic
instance. 1t shows what the
United States and other Western
powers are trying to accomplish
on a broader scale and in a diff
ferent way through the proposed
Atlantic security treaty.
Top American officials define
the purpose Of that treaty as
being to confront any potential
aggressor-by which they current
ly mean Russia-with such "over-
whelming" force that he would
not dare attack.
In the flight of the B-50 bomb
er. the Soviet now can read un-
precedented evidence of the range
Of American strategic air power.
They may reason that no single
one of their cities. should war
ever come, would be safe.
LIE May Cautious on Answer.
Gen. Curtis Z. lie May, chief
of the Strategic Air Command,
has asked at Fort WORTH whether
the round the world flight means
you can deliver an A-bornb any
where in Russia"
He put his answer this way:
Lets say any place that would
require an atom bomb"
The Air Force was meticulous in
laying out its flight plan for the
B-50. 1t made sure that ut no
point did the route approach either
Russia or Soviet-held areas.
The nearest the B-50 came to
Russia was hundreds of miles to
the south, when the bomber few
over India.
Assuming that the Atlantic
treaty project goes through. the
Russians will have further evi-
dence that Americas striking pow
er could be provoked into action
not alone by an attack on the
United States. 1t could be set of
by an attack on any Of the other
countries in the North Atlantic
alliance.
Cleared by State Department.
So far as the State Department
Is concerned, the flight apparently
was not made primarily as a
saber-rattling gesture - whatever
meaning other countries may at
tach to 1t. It seems to have been
conceived as an effort by the Air
Force-perhaps with an eye on
congressional appropriations - to
prove that such a thing could be
done.
But officials confirmed today
that the proposal was put before