Evening star., 1949-09-09
Public Ought TO Know
Facts on Civilian Use
OF Military Planes
$4,000 Losing U. S. Jobs
Won't Be ConsoIed by
Thought of Money Waste

Won't Be ConsoIed by
Thought of Money Waste
By David Layrence
It's an i'll wind that blows no
good-and the issue raised by Sen
ator Elmer Thomas, Democrat, OF
Oklahoma, about the way mill
tary planes are being used by
civilians and others will result
In some reform.
It's too bad that Secretary of
Defense johnson, who had such
a good idea in seeking to limit
the use of military planes by
congressional junkets, didn't meet
Senator Thomas challenge by
making public the actual records
concerning all civilian travel in
military airplanes. Instead, Mr..
johnson made peace with the
Oklahoma Senator by issuing a
new directive on the use of mill
tary aircraft by Government
officials that puts them on their
honor not to abuse their privilege
of using planes "for trips that are
in the national interest and nee
essary to the conduct of Govern
ment business" The idea of an
inquiry was promptly abandoned
by Mr.. Thomas.
The public, of course, is entitled
to know all the facts. Certainly
the $4,000 civilians who are los
ing their jobs in the military es-
tablishment aren't going to be
consoled when they learn that
public money is being wasted on
the upkeep of military planes and
their crews to provide free trans
portation for those on whom the
military services want to bestow
their favors.
Often Take Families.
It is not generally known that
these planes from time to time
carry not only civilians designated
by the military but often their
families as we'll. 1t is not known
also that various high officials
use military planes for personal
errands and sometimes take men,
bers Of their families with them,
especially on trips abroad.
Many of these things need ex-
PLANTATION. Thus the public might
easily have misunderstood why,
when the Joint Chiefs of Staff
recently went to Europe for very
important conferences on defense,
their wives went along on the
plane and toured Europe with
them. On its face, this looks like
an abuse of privilege, but every
one knows that the Europeans
are strong on the social side.
Doubtless there were dinners and
teas at which the wives of the
Generals of the military services
Of our Allies were present, so
all OF it presumably was a nee
essary courtesy in the interest
OF national defense.
Then there's the tale about the
high official who, with fair regu-
larity. has a week end golf en-
gagement in another city and uses
a large military plane for the
trips. But this, if it be true, is
understandable. After all, these
officials do not work a 40-hour
week. They stay late at their
offices on many nights and when
the week end comes, who is there
to say that it isn't in "the ma
tional interest" that the official
should have his share of recre-
alton on his golf course?
Often Hard to Justify.
There's a special service for
"VIP's"-very important people.
Some of this is doubtless neces-
sary "for the conduct of Govern
ment business. But too many
planes are set aside for the spe-
cial use of Government officials
and military officers themselves
Commercial airlines could just as
well be used-ahd at much less
cost. The temptation to use q
privately assigned plane today Ii
too great, and the trip is often
hard to justify on the grounds Of
"the national interest" or Gov
eminent business"
Political speechmaking by high
officials is made easier because
more territory can be covered by
planes-and at no expense to the
Democratic Party.
There are many reasons why
travel on military planes should
be thoroughly studied, as no doubt
Secretary johnson fully intends tt
do. It is too bad that the past
records and logs of the airplanes
and the facts concerning author.
izations for the use of military
planes were not fully disclosed
as was promised when Senator
Thomas first took up the matter
In the long run, it certainly would
have relieved Secretary johnson
Of criticism and would have as
sisted him in cleaning up a situ-
alton with respect to the wrong
use of public money that very
much needs to be cleaned up. Sec
retary johnson is on the right
track in his economy drive.
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