Evening star., 1949-05-02
Has Faith In Air Force
As Sufficient Power for Peace

Has Faith In Air Force
As Sufficient Power for Peace
To the Editor OF Tbs Star:
The Star cclumnist David Lawrence ae-
cuses Secretary OF Defense Louis johnson OF
defying the express authority OF Congress
when he stopped Navy construction OF their
supercarrer Mr. Lawrence chides Mr.
johnson and says, 1T is not the hating OF
work on the aircraft carrier which Is so
important 1t is the basic principle which Is
at stake
First. concerning the principle" who
actually stopped the construction OF those
two super battleships, the Hawaii and the
Kentucky. after millions were spent on them.
when their worthleSsness in todays air
atomic age become too apparent? The wasted
millions tied up In the Nays backbone.
the battieships became a grim lesson at
Pearl Harbor. yet the Navy began making
its battleships bigger and. at the same afnie.
better targets. Since the lesson learned from
the Hawaii and Kentucky. the same admirals
who sold them to us realized that they soon
would be out OF business as vast and power
full bureaucracy unless they hopped on the
air-power bandwagon.
Now by their own doctrine, the Navy Is
primarily an air force. Navy budget experts
agree that up to hree-fourths OF the total
expenses of our Navy Is fairly chargeable
to air So We taxpayers are now supporting
two, not one. vast. and expensive. separate
air powers.
Mr. johnson should be congratulated for
doing his job. Mr.. Lawrence implies that
the Army and Air Force leaders in the Joint
Chiefs Of StafI collaborated in outvoting the
Navy two to one. Does he recall who were
the voters at the Key West Conference
which first considered the supercarrier?
The Army .and Air Force were represented
by Generals Bradley and Spaatz. The Navy
was represented by % Admiral Denfeld
t2) Mr. Forrestal. Secretary of Defense and
former Secretary OF the Navy. and 90 the
Presidents personal chief Of staff Admiral
Leahy. The count was three to two. The
admirals who had formerly bucked the
development Of long-range air power and
who had laughed at the B-2s in the Pacific.
now want Navy version" of the B-2e and
their own sea-going. mobile air field.
Challenges Carrier Theory.
The Navy argument for carrier mobility
fahs fiat when one realizes that todays
airplanes can travel as far in one hour as
a carrier can 60 In one day Mr.. Lawrence
implies that the war In the Pacific was won
largely by carriers. First Of all. what Is
carrier? Is 1t not a platform to extend the
range of aircraft7 Long g-range air power,
impeded by the Army and Navy never was
developed before the war and only late In
the war did we manufacture planes OF rea-
sonably longer ranges. However. the air.
craft aboard those carriers secured the
islands by which our forces hoped TO within
striking and crippling distance Of the Japan
ese homeland.
Having served on a carrier I'm the iiiustri-
Gus Task Force So. know that the effective
role OF the carrier was through, finished. In
the Pacific ut the moment the first B-2ss
took OF from Okinawa and Two Jima for
Japan. Those planes did more effective
damage in. one raid using INT bombs
than any four carrier strikes. Their work
at Hiroshima saved perhaps million Ameri-
can and japanese lives in the projected
invasion. Air power finished the job. Actual
invasion consisted Of q handful Of American
oficers flying in 10 take over country which
still had millions OF fresh troops but which
was licked.
The ultimate end OF any military cam
paign is the destruction Of the enemy's
ability to wage war. To this end. lacking
long range airplanes We have had 10 support
a huge outlay OF supplying and protecting
overseas bases. fleets and q myriad Of install
lations. To-day our B-36 can drop q nuciear
weapon on any spot in the world In single
round trip from North America. Incredible
a. it seems IL is that simple. A matter Of
such Importance as national defense must
be decided on the realities OF existing veap-
ons. The A-bomb exists. and coupled with
the air force Of the future. the world may
enjoy peace and prosperity. free from war.
J. JOSEPH LOI1I.