Naval Aviation News - Dec 1944

8/3/2019 Naval Aviation News - Dec 1944

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NAVAL AVI AT I ON NEWS O E C E H B E R 1 5 ,

GUAM INSTALLATIONSforces in the Pacific move closer to the heart

of the Jap Empire we learn more and more aboutthe nature of the enemy, the way he fights and theequipment he uses. As we capture new Jap-held bases

are able to study and photograph his installationsand arrive at important conclusions as to his methodsof military defense. Photo interpreters whose job it isto get as much miltiary information as possible from

photographs of enemy territory and activity have foundthat defense installations follow certain definite pat-terns, and that these patterns recur in Jap bases invarious parts of the Pacific theater. It is highly impor-tant that pilots and their crews who fly the bombingattacks against these enemy bases become familiar with

these patterns and able to recognize typical installa-

tions from the air. Guam offered the Japs every op-

portunity for favorable fortification against attack. Inthe north half of the island every seaward approachis obstructed by cliffs 300 to 600 feet high. Thereare no harbors and shallow bays are filled with reefs.

SOUTH half of the island has the large harbor ofApra and several minor harbors, but there are the

same hazards involved in passage over the reefs. Thebeaches are obstructed by reef-shelf varying in widthfrom 20 to 1,000 yards. Besides the cliffs surroundingpossible landing beaches,, a ridge running across thewaist of the island offered primary defense positions.But the Japs were unable to hold this base, equidistant

from Yokohama, Formosa, Manila and Port

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obstaclesat Ylig Bay, Guam, photographed at low tide, showthe varied use to which the Japs put local materials to build bar-ricades against attack.form pyramids which

Coconut logs weightedare mostly covered by by coral and stoneswater at high tide

H O T O G R A P H S on this page show the variety of differentways the Japanese have found to make use of simple

natural materials to build barricade defenses on their islandfortresses in the Pacific. Landing boats must run the gaunt-let of boat obstacles made of coral and stone piled insidelogs and other types of under-water barriers built of coco-nut logs weighted down by coral to give added strength.

Once inside these boat obstacles, landing troops still mustmake their way through rows of barbed wire arranged toslow up landing and direct troops toward positions heavilyprotected by machine gun and rifle fire. Zig-zag lines ofbarbed wire supported on short sticks just above the groundare hidden in the low underbrush to impede progress.Sharpened bamboo sticks projecting from the ground add tothe effectiveness of this type barricade.

Interpretation of pre-invasion photographs has made itpossible for allied bombers to blast a path through naturaland man-made obstacles with. which the Japs have sur-rounded their island fortresses, greatly lessening loss of life.

C O C O N U T L O G S FO R M T A N K B A R R I E R W I T H L O W S H R U B S F O R C A M O U FL A G E R O W S O F B A R B E D W I R E C O VE R E D B Y T I D E S L O W T R O O P S B E AC H L A N DI N G

R O W S O F C O R A L A N D S T O N E S IN S H A L L O W WA T E R S IM P E D E L A N D IN G B O A T S B A R B E D W IR E IN T E R S P E R S E D S H A R P B A M B O O

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N ANY attack against a Jap-held island fortress the enemyhas the advantage of shelter offered by carefully pre-

pared foxholes, pillboxes and strong points of various types.He has expected invasion and has prepared a system ofbarricades, trenches and tank ditches designed to slowdown the American invader, while Jap snipers and machinegunners harass him from well-defended positions. It costs

Ofstrong point on Beach shows large cave dug intorock and covered artillery emplacements formed with concrete

many American lives to crack through natural and man-made obstacles to tackle and overwhelm strongholds of AAand machine gun positions and exterminate the enemy.

On Guam the Japs applied careful planning and work-manship to building a series of strong points protecting pos-sible landing beaches. Pictures on this page show conver-sion of Adetegan Point into a highly fortified defenseposition. large cave with a 30-foot diameter had been duginto the rock and covered artillery emplacements adjacentbuilt of stone and concrete blend with the surroundingrock. An underground trench served as communicationbetween gun emplacements and the cave used as barracks.

V I E W O F A N D T H R E E G U N P O S I T I O N S O F M A S O N R Y B L E N D E D W I T H C L I F F : L A R G E C A V E D U G I N R O C K C O V E R S A R T I L LE R Y A N D S E R V E S A S Q U A R T E R S


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U. S. stands beside a 25 mm. high velocity AA gun capturedfrom Japs Guam. Position is partly hidden by crude

4.7 gun near coast east of Agana. Japs have tried to nscarred earth less conspicuous by palm fronds. Note ammo sto

were no fixed defenses no mobile artillery atGuam when the Japanese the island. Prior to

1922, when Guam was disarmed in accordance with theWashington Naval. Treaty, Apra Harbor was defended bysix 6-inch guns, but after this time the only defenses of theisland consisted of two 3-inch antiaircraft guns of obsolete

on the USS Penguin, which was sunk off Orote Pointto prevent capture. The USS Barnes, also at anchor in ApraHarbor, had two antiaircraft machine guns.

But as soon as the Tans moved in thev began strenuousdefense of the island its strength level com-mensurate with its and as an air basedominating: the lines of between thein the and the Mandates and the south Pacific

Although as large all the other Marianas combined,

Guam never was fortified to the extent that Saipanwere, rapid progress was made by the enemy

between 10 December 1941 when they occupied the islandand the day of its recapture by American forces. Theentire civilian population was at once evacuated fromSumay and the Orote Peninsula, and defenses were con-centrated in this area a new airfield.

Fairly continuous reefs, few good beaches or bays offeredexcellent natural hazards for any attack on the island andextensive coastal cliffs offered excellent positions for pro-tecting guns. Two such positions are shown in the groupof photographs on this and the following page. These areshort 20 cm. guns in camouflaged positions.

The reinforced concrete shelter of gun opposite has

been made to blend into the surrounding terrain, while theposition below, dug into the side of the coastal cliff, hasbeen camouflaged with branches and straw matting hungfrom the beams. Evidence that the wished to con-ceal their strength are the dummy guns opposite-one ina bomb crater, the other in an old U.S. gun emplacement.

Straw sand bags reinforce revetment of this 25 mm. AA gun at for 20 cm. gun dug into side of cliff overlooks Agana Bay.edge of Agana airfield. Shell clips rest in framed enclosure, right From camouflaged positions such this Japs harassed invaders


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This shor t 20 cm. gun emplaced at Point of thelanding beaches. The position has been carefully camouflaged by

Dummy with barrel of canvas-covered wood painted wasone of four placed by Japs in bomb craters near Agana airfield This dummy gun was installed on old U.S. emplacement overlookingthe sea. Japs take great pains to confuse estimates of strength

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Marine holds up canvas cover of ammunition rack built into sideof earth-covered revetment for 4.7 gun. Note log reinforcement

OF the most important secrets to know about theenemv is where he keens his vital war and

what these supply dumps look like the air.In some cases are stacked in piles in a centraltransportation from which they distributed, orthey -may be hidden from view under the protection ofwooded areas or coconut groves.

Explosive materials are given extra protection ofheavily reinforced concrete or even caves dug

Japanesestoresconsisting of food, candy and rice wine were foundon Guam stacked in crates under protection of wooded areas

into sides hills. Guam offered excellent sites for thistype underground storage, and one of these storage cavesdug deep in a hillside is illustrated below. Even readyammunition supplies were given the protection of earthcovering, shells being stored on wooden racks built intothe sides of revetments around gun positions. These revet-ments were reinforced with coconut logs and stones andthe mounds of earth camouflaged with palm fronds.

Supplies of a nonexplosive non-combustible nature werefound stacked in crates under protection of wooded areas.In the photo at right above: Marines are investigating cratesof food, candy, and rice wine found on Guam. One of theimportant functions of photo interpreters in their analysisof aerial reconnaissance photos is spotting Jap supplydumps which are number one targets in a bombing attack.


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Palm fr onds laid across bamboo sticks camouflage a slit personneltrench that connected a gun emplacement with an ammunition

an attack is launched against the enemy wemust know where to expect the greatest opposition,

where he has built his strongest defenses and gun positions.Reconnaissance photographs can supply this vital informa-tion, but even though interpreters may point out enemyinstallations in a report on the area, it is up to pilots andbombardiers to be familiar enough with the appearance ofthese installations to recognize them at the crucial moment.

It usually is fairly easy to recognize gun positions from

D O U B L E R E V E T M E N T S A T A G A N D G A I N S T R E N G T H F U E L O I L C O N C R E T E G U N R E S T S O N D R U M S I N R O A D S I D E

storage dump on Guam. The hilly terrain of the island offered- -.many s i t e s f r o m w h i c h t h e Japs could defend themselves favorably

the air and in photographs, as their revetments make a dis-tinctive pattern and are arranged in a definite relation toone another. Even though these positions may be camou-flaged, the scarred earth of the revetments and the shadowswhich they throw make them conspicuous to the observer.

Evidence that the Japs had devoted a great deal of timeand care to their defenses of Guam is the construction ofrevetments shown on this page. In the case of the double

at Agano airfield an outer ring of two rows ofcoconut logs filled wtih earth and crushed stone is backedup by an inner ring of fuel drums also filled. In the case ofthe roadside defense position, a concrete withslots for firing rests on top of fuel drums firmly embeddedin the earth. These positions were tucked away among thefoliage, adding to the difficulties of our attacking forces.


10/52

Hold Your FireDuring the course of a regular gun-nery practice, the pilot of the tow planeflew beyond the range limits. The ac-companying fighter pilots, apparentlyengrossed in their practice, failednotice that they were out of the pre-scribed area. As a result, the govern-

ment received a claim for damage toprivate property caused by bullets

from one of these planes.

P e t t i b o n e s a y s :

I t w a s j u s t d u m b l u c k t h a t n o o n ew a s k i l l e d i n t h i s c a s e . T h e r e w e r e p e o p l ev e r y c lo s e t o w h e r e t h o s e b u l le t s s tr u c k .

G r a n t e d , i t i s u p t o t h e t o w p i l o t t os t a y w i t h i n t h e b o u n d a r i e s o f t h e f i r i n g

r a n g e , b u t n o t h i n g h e d o e s e v e r e x c u s e st h e p i lo t o f t h e a t t a ck i n g p l a n e f r o m f i ri n g

o n a f o u l r an g e . R e m e m b e r , t h e m a n w h of i r e s t h e g u n i s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r w h e r e t h eb u l l e t s g o .

Care les snes s -Enemy of Old AgeAn enlisted man detailed to check

gasoline pits was struck by the pro-pel ler of anwhich was return-ing to the parkingarea, B E C A U S E :

He failed tokeep a lookout whileon a busy

2. The pilot failedto insure that the

was clear,and also failed tocomply with the sta-tion order requiring a wingman on allplanes being taxied in congested areas.

3. The crewman in the co-pilots seatdid not keep a sharp lookout on his side.(Pilots should insure that anyone sittingin that is aware of his lookoutresponsibilities. )

fully

4. The wingman assigned to guide theplane left his station before the aircraftwas safely out of the congested area.

C o m m e n t -A n y o n e o f th e s e m e n c o u l d

h a v e p r e v e n t e d t h i s f a t a l i t y b y p r o p e r p e r -formance o f d u t y . S a f et y r e g u l a t io n s m e a nn o t h i n g u n l e s s t h e y a r e e n f o r c e d .

The Ins t ruc to r Who Wasn t ThereWhile practicing acrobatics, an in-

structor flying from the rear seat, prom-ised show his student something newafter they had completed several snaprolls. He certainly did!

At approximately 4,000 feet, the in-_

of the course and did until hesaw the plane heading for pilots

blossoming chute. he took thecontrols and off at 800 feet.

Here is the instructors description ofwhat occurred: It happenedthat I was unable to catch totry to keep from falling.the rip cord, I looked up to see theplane coming toward me-right on me.My chute was just starting to open.The leading edge of the wing hit myshroud cords and jerked me aroundseverely, even to the extent of jerkingmy helmet off, jerking the chute shoul-der straps down below my waist andripping my pants off. My leg strapswent down below mv knees and I de-scended hanging bymy knees until Ireached up and grabbed the straps lead-ing to the shroud lines and hooked myarms through. Just before reaching theground, I pulled myself up as best Icould and lit in a sitting position withmy knees up.

The plane was equipped with nar-row belts and shoulder straps. I dontknow when the belt opened. I usuallycheck my belt after any snap maneuverand assume that I did so on this occa-sion.

Investigation showed the leg strapswere too long, owing to improper ad-

justment. At the hospital, it was foundthe pilot suffered four broken vertebrae.

As a result of this accident. twotraining bulletins were issued at thestation concerned, in order to stress:

LETstructor started a right slow roll, duringwhich he o u t . The went into

FROM Y o u !

a spin. The student it was part

1. Safety belts should be checkedcarefully: a. prior to leaving the lineand, b . frequently during flight, partic-ularly before and during acrobatics.

2. Correct adjustments of parachutesare necessary if they are to fit andoperate as intended.

3. Instructors should ask students fre-quently during acrobatic flight to checktheir safety belts.

4. A loose safety belt becomes un-fastened more readily than a snug one.

Danger AreasAn instructor was giving his student

an acrobatic check in the assigned area.The was just being pulled into aloop at 9000 feet when it collided with

S BD. The S B D was attached to anear-by station and was cruising throughthe area in level flight. All occupantsof both aircraft were killed.

The two pi lots were consideredequally responsible for this collision.The S NJ pilot for not insuring that thearea was clear and the S BD pilot forentering a Danger Area without specialauthority and for not keeping a sharplookout for other aircraft.

The investigating board made thefollowing recommendation for eliminat-ing accidents from this cause:

That when communicatingtransient and itinerant aircraft, controltowers advise them of the condition ofair traffic and other invisible hazardsthat exist in their flight path.

C o m m e n t - I n a d d i t io n t o e m p h a s i z i n gt h e n e c e s s i t y f o r c o n s t a n t a l e r t n e s s i n t h e

a i r , t h i s a c ci d e n t a l s o s h o w s t h e n e e d f o r

p i l o t s b e i n g m o r e f am i l i a r w i th D a n g e rA r e a s . A c t i v i t i e s a r e r e s p o n s i b l e f o r i n -

s u r i n g t h a t t h e i r f i l e s co n t a i n o n l y t h e

l a t e s t a e r o n a u t i c a l c h a r t s , k e p t u p t o d a t ef r o m i n f o r m a t i o n r e c e i v e d t h r o u g h W e e k -l y N o t i c e s t o A i r m e n , H y d r o g r a p h i c O f f i c eM e m o s t o A v i a t o r s a n d t h e M i n u t e s o fI A T C B m e e ti n g s . P i l o t s m u s t b e f a m i l ia r

w i t h t h e C a u t i o n a n d D a n g e r A r e a s i n -d i c a t e d o n a l l o f t h e s e u p - t o - d a t e c h a r t s .


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12/52

How Is J udg m e n t ?A careful analysis of formation acci-

dents led a Corpus squadron toconclude that the were poor at

judging angles Trainingalong these lines was given by arrang-ing: airnlanes on the ground and

pilots to the cockpitsand see what the planes looked likewhen properly spaced.

The initial theory about poor judg-ment in this matter was largely provedwhen numerous pilots, including in-structors, were so incredulous that theypersonally measured distances and an-gles before they were convinced thatthe spacing was correct.

P i n F e a t he r W onde r s Just prior to finishing their primary

flight training, six cadets sched-uled for formation prac-tice. The students took

off in their respectivesections and 30 minuteslater were observed atlow altitude, chasingtails over rough ter-rain, outside of thedesignated training area.Shortly thereafter, twoof the planes collided,

resulting in destruction of one aircraftand damage to the other. Both pilotsescaped uninjured.

All six students were found guilty of

gross violation of air discipline andwere dropped from training.

l a te To Cla s s .A T RM pilot allowed his fuel tank to

run dry while operating at low altitude.He immediately shifted tanks andstarted his auxiliary fuel pump, butsince there was insufficient altitude to

was forced down atsea.

The pilots statement included the fol-lowing: A good lesson I learned is toswitch gas selector valve at a higheraltitude. There is too little time to actat 7 5 feet.

P e t t i b o n e sa y s :

I refuse to g e t mad a t t h i s p i l o t- I m g l a d h e f i n a l l y g o t t h e w o r d .i t s t o u g h t o h a v e t o w a t c h p i l o t s l e a r n

e v e r y t h i n g t h e h a r d w a y . I n t h i s c a s e , al i t t l e s e r i o u s a t t e n t i o n t o F l i g h t S a f e t y

Taxi accident: H e t a x i e d t o o f a s t a n d d i d n tl o o k w h e r e h e w a s g o i n g .

B u l l e t i n s 7 -4 4 a n d . w o u l d h a v e

t a u g h t h i m t h e s a m e t h i n g a n d a t a m u c hc h e a p e r r a t e , t o s a y n o t h i n g a b o u t t h e

d a n g e r i n v o l v e d .

Care le s s Inspec t ionAn had just landed aboard a

carrier and was taxiing up deckwhen the starboard landing gear gave

way, resulting in serious damage to theplane. Subsequent check showed that apiece of line had been left in the wheelwell which, when the wheels were ex-tended, in the locking pin.

P e t t i b o n e s a y s :

I t s e a s i e r t o s w e e p o u t y o u r p l a n e

b e f o r e f l i g h t t h a n t o s w e e p i t u p l a t e r .

C o r r e c t i o nThree suggestions of a cv squadron

were included in the article, CockpitTips For Combat, in the 1 Septemberissue. These were: 1. That goggles beworn to minimize the danger resultingfrom shattered glass. 2. That wheneveran aircraft is on fire, oxygen masks withdiluter valve turned to be worn as

a v i a t o r s s h o u ld k n o w t h e a n -s w e r s t o t h e s e q u e s t i o n s . I n t h ea i r , t h e p e n a l t y f o r n o t k n o w i n g

m a y b e d e a t h . If y o u m i s s a n

a n s w e r o n t h e g r o u n d , p e n a l i z ey o u r s e lf b y l o o k i n g u p t h e re f-e r e n c e .

1 . W h e n i n d o u b t a b o u t t h e p r e s -

e n c e o f i c in g c o n d i t i o n s , s h o u l d

y o u u s e a l t e r n a t e a i r ?2 . H o w m u c h a l t e rn a t e a i r n o r -

m a l ly s h o u l d b e u s e d ?3 . W h e n l a n d i n g o r m a n e u v e r in g

i n p r e p a r a ti o n t o l a n d i n g , w h i ch

a i r c r a f t h a v e r i g h t o f w a y ?

4 . H o w l o n g d o e s i t t a k e a p i l o t

t o c h e ck h i s id l e m i x tu r e ?

5 . W h e n s h o u l d t h e i d l e m i x tu r ec h e c k b e m a d e ?

A n s w e r s t o Q u i z o n P a g e 48

a defense against breathing smoke. 3.That oxygen masks with diluter valveturned to be worn at all times with-in range of enemy as a general pro-tection for the face and as a defenseagainst breathing smoke, should theaircraft catch on fire.

Items and 2 are considered sound,but item 3 is considered impracticableowing to the danger of depleting theoxygen supply. If desired, the oxygenmask may be worn, but the dilutervalve should not be turned unlesssmoke actually is present in the cockpit.

I t D idn t Have To HappenWhile at low altitude, the engine of

an FM-l cut out, necessitating a forcedlanding in a stumpy field. Thewas demolished in the ensuing crash.The pilots seat gave way, allowing himto be thrown forward so that his head

the gunsight, causing a com-pound fracture of the skull.

An examination of the crash showedthat the pilot had been wearing hisshoulder harness and that it was prop-erly locked, However, the straps werenot over reinforcing bar as theyshould have been, but were led directlyover the top of the seat. This causedthe top of the seat to give way duringthe crash, and undoubtedly themain factor in its ultimate failure. Hadthe shoulder straps been passed overthe reinforcing bar in accordance withTechnical Note there probablywould have been no seat failure, and

the pilot would have been injured onlyslightly or not at all. This opinion isbased on the results of numerous simi-lar crashes in which shoulder harnesseswere properly used.

C o m m e n t -I t is r e co m m e n d e d t h a t p i lo t sr e v i e w T e c h n i c a l N o t e w h i c h

s h o w s p i c to r i a ll y h o w s h o u l d e r s t r a p s

s h o u l d b e p a s s e d o v e r t h e r e i n f o r c i n g b a r .

A v i s u a l ch e c k s h o u l d b e m a d e b y p i lo t s

w h e n e n t e r i n g t h e c o c k p i t . P l a n e c a p t a i n s

a l s o s h o u l d b e c a u t i o n e d t o i n c l u d e t h i s

i te m i n p r e -f l ig h t i n s p e c t io n s .

T hr e e P o i n t s on l a nd i ngOn coming in to land, an SNJ-4 pilot

recently dropped his plane in and wentinto a ground loop. The Trouble Boardwas unimpressed by his excuse of oilon the windshield. They pointed outthat his was not the first oil-spatteredwindshield. In their opinion, his troublewas 100 percent carelessness.

For the benefit of such careless pilots,they pointed out that no airplane yinvented will land itself andthe following definition of a three-poilanding: in which b o t h fr owheels and the tail wheel touch

ground at the same time-notwheel, one wing tip and the tail wheel


13/52

N a v a l A v i a t i o n i n D e c e m b e r , 1 9 1 9December-The problem of housingand preserving the NC-4 was beingconsidered by the Navy. would costabout $65,000 to place the exhibit inthe Smithsonian Institution, since roof-ing would have to be placed over acourt large enough to accommodatethe plane. The Naval Academy esti-mated that $35,000 would be neces-sary to supply housing facilities.

December-Inter-communication be-tween airplanes was solved

at NAS Anacostia. Twelve voltsinstead of six were applied to the micro-phone transmitter. The addition de-manded a disconnecting device to al-leviate the danger of burning out themicrophone due to excess current flow.

December-Lt. A. S. andEnsign W. E. Blackwell left theaway Naval Air Station in an F-5-Lflying boat with four mechanics whowere urgently needed at HamptonRoads. Flight was made in five hours.

December-Preliminary tests of anadjustable pitch propeller for airplanes

Naval Affairs asking appropriations offor lighter-than-air ships.The Navy was prepared to build oneor more dirigibles of an improved typewith any available funds. Navy officersstrongly urged a policy of original de-velopment, feeling sure the Navy wascapable of turning out larger and moreadvanced types of dirigibles withoutbeing instructed overseas builders ofthese ships.

D e c e m b e r 2-At the suggestion ofCaptain Thomas T. Craven, director ofaviation in the of Naval Opera-tions, aeronautics was incorporated into

the Naval Academy curriculum.D e c e m b e r X-Secretary Daniels in-

formed Congress that 217 aeroplanesand 448 engines owned by the Navywere to be sold; 50 foursand 100 spare motors were be trans-ferred to the Air Mail At thattime the Navy owned 1,797 planes,1.68 balloons, 17 dirigibles and 4,057engines. Ninety-eight new planes and79 engines were built for the Navy.

D e c e m b e r accommodate the

with open portals, would provide awindbreak nearly 600 feet wide, insur-ing a large degree of safety in landingand releasing ships.

Magnitude of these doors can begrasped better by imagining that astory building, with a frontage of 135feet, could have been placed withinthe hangar through the space coveredby both leaves of the door. The hangarwas expected to be in service by thesummer of 1920.

D e c e m b e r 26-NAS San Diego co-operated with California Fish and Game:

by seaplanes

for aerial fish patrol. This was an effortto aid fishermen by sighting schools offish and reporting their location byradio to the central office.

D e c e m b e r 2 7 Army Air Corpsagreed to train Navy pilots inplanes at March and Carlstrom Field.This was to prepare them for carriershipboard operations.

D e c e m b e r 30-A joint Army andNavy Board was created for the

of co-ordinating various helium

L A K E H U R S T A I R C I R C U S T H R I L L E D M A N Y B E F O R E T R E M E N D O U S H A N G A R H E L I U M T A N K S S T A N D R E A D Y F O R S H I P M E N T A T F O R T W O R T H P L A N T

were made recently at the Aeronautical ill-fated R-38 [it burst in two while on aEngine Testing Laboratory, Washington eight in England], the Navy was

gas activities and requirements of

Navy Yard. The propeller was fitted toan Hispano-Suiza 150 hp. engine and

ing a hangar of unprecedented size atous government bureaus, including full

Lakehurst, N. for both assembly andcontrol over operation of the present

operated at various speeds up to full housing purposes.and future government-owned helium

power. The adjustable mechanism,Specifications called production plants, disposition of helium

signed to give variable speeds withoutfor a building 804 feet long, 318 feet products, conduct, or supervision of

throttling engine, worked satisfactorily.wide and 200 feet high. The framewas to be of structural steel built on

conduct, of further experiments

D e c e m b e r I-Secretary Daniels had the three-hinged arch truss principle,taken with a view increasing

estimates prepared which he planned to the efficiency of production plants andlay before the House Committee on

each arch supported on steel towers 62feet high. When completed, the hangar,

controlling further steps for .tion of helium as deemed expedient.

1 1


14/52

S K I P P E R H E L P S O L D S A N T A W I T H T H E P R E S E N T S

SHORE or afloat Navy people rememberChristmas in traditional fashion. Even

in wartime the season is observed as wellas circumstances permit. At shore stationsa time-honored naval custom illustrates inlarge measure the true spirit of giving. At

such stations Navy personnel dig deep into their pocketsand scour gift shops of surrounding cities. Then, onChristmas, wide-eyed children from orphanages or fromless fortunate homes are brought to the station to see SantaClaus and such marvelous gifts as would gladdenthe heart of any youngster.

Typical Navy Christmas was the one featured at Norman,Okla., last year. There was no cost to the Navy because the

personnel ofNATTC

gave freely and generously. One appealpublished in the station paper brought in a flood of morethan $6,006 in a days contribution. This meant that $30

T U R K E Y D R U M S T I C K P L U S O N E H U N G R Y L I T T L E G I R L , E Q U A L S S M I L E

could be spent on each child. Volunteer shoppers toured thestores of nearby cities, after complete list

of *children invited. showing both names and sizes,had been drawn UP .

Then came of securing: a Christmas tree.An tree not fill the so werescoured until a towering of a tree was fittedinto the decoration forth tobuv the decorations for their,

over the ornament stock of two big five&d-ten-cent stores. In short order the big stationwas transformed into a scintillating Christmas fairyland.

0N THE great day, three of the station trailer busesbrought excited youngsters to the party. NATTC had a

6 6 man weighing 300 pounds who played Santa. Aboard atinseled, beribboned jeep, Saint Nick rolled into the bigauditorium on a wave of wild excitement. When all the giftshad been distributed. the guests were escortedstation chow hall for a turkey dinner with allthe trimmings. When every child had eaten his fill, guestswere taken home. It was a Christmas in naval tradition.

12


15/52

M A LE V O I C E S H A R M O N I Z E C H R I S T M A S C A R O L S O V E R C A R R I E R S P E A K E R

wars grim stress may causePeace on Earth to seem hollow and

meaningless phrase, the Navy afloat to thebest of its ability observes the season andremembers the Child in the Manger on His

natal day. On many ships crews rigged upChristmas trees and at mess, tables groaned under a loadof Yuletide food, with King Turkey headlining the bill offare. There were gifts which crew members luckywith the mail had stowed away for opening. Aboard onecarrier, Santa Claus came aboard in a dive bomber (see

with six torpedo planes named after Dancer,Prancer and all the rest of Santas reindeer leading theway. Wardrooms rang to old Christmas carols as the Navyafloat observed the Yuletide season. Christmas of 1944 willfollow out the same pattern as far as circumstances permitand fighting Americans from afar will remember other Yules, A L T H O U G H A T S E A N A V Y C O O K S S T I L L C A N W H I P U P C H R I S T M A S D I N N E R


16/52

A T J A C K S O N V I L L E N A T T C P O L I S H E S E X T E R I O R O F A I R C R A F T S E A R C H L I G H T I N S T A L L E D O N B LA C K O F M A N Y A C T I O N S I N P A C I F I C

electricians mates are to install and maintain the powerfulbig searchlights which are on

which have and Theproved so successful in night patrolwork in the Atlantic and Pacific. They

lights cast such a powerful light thatnewspapers can be read in the beam a

SEARCHLIGHTaid in spotting subs, barges and ships.

The school, located at Naval Airmile away. (See Aircraft Searchlightfilm, MN-3382, at aviation film

Technical Training Center at Jackson- ries.)ville, gives two weeks of training toAEM' S from the fleet or graduates of the

Planes equipped with the lights

school. After finishing, they go toplayed a major part in sweeping the

Patsus, Hedrons, and FairwingsEnglish Channel prior to D-Day andhave been valuable in spotting the Japs.

polished reflector of huge searchlight shows intricate gear forpositioning carbon arcs which generate tremendous candlepower

14

Gear installedin forward cockpit of Catalina enables aircrewmanto track and train searchlight and pick out targets in the dark


17/52

S e a S q u a t t e r s N o w H a v e a C l u bS o c i e t y I n c l u d e s S u r v i v o r s

A new club has been launched forair personnel who have come down atsea and have taken to rubber lifethe Sea Squatters Club. It joins theranks of other service societies, such asthe Caterpillar Club and the ShortSnorters Club.

The latest addition to the ranks, con-ceived a company which producescompression gas devices to inflate rub-ber life rafts and Mae West vests, al-ready has two women marines as mem-

bers. They were forced down in a NavyLiberator off the California coast anddid a four-day Robinson Crusoe on anisland with 11 men. The clubs emblemis a miniature raft and a rider.

R e p o r t M a y A s s i s t N e wF u n c t i o n s in M e m o r a n d u m

CASU-7-New C A S U ' S formed forduty can obtain val-uable informationconcerning m a t e ri a land s u p p l y functions

from a memorandum report recentlyprepared by this activity. Request forthe 7 memorandum report shouldbe addressed to C A S U 7 , FPO, SanFrancisco.

The report contains information onfunctions of 7 as well as a sum-mary of existing policy governing dis-tribution of aeronautical material andequipment. Use of lists in outfittingsquadrons and air groups is explained.

Real ism Helps In Co mb at Tra in ingM o d e l A i r f i e l d U s e d f o r

VMF at providing anelement of realism in their combat train-

ing syllabus, this fighter squadron con-structed Sackamanura Airfield, amodel Japanese airfield on the heavybombing range.

The complete target was designedand constructed by officers and men ofthe squadron. The plan was staked outon the ground by the Intelligence Officerand three pilots, and the project com-pleted in three days, employingeight men with hand tools and twotrucks. A bulldozer was used on thelast day to clear off the airstrip andtaxiways.

The individual target planes were

outlined on the ground to a depth ofseveral inches according to the actual

dimensions of Japanese aircraft, andfilled in with white lime. Red meat-ball insignia on the wings were circlesof red cloth. At points where gasolinetanks are located on planes, three pairsof ammunition cases with metal linerswere placed and filled with used engineoil and surveyed gasoline. The targetthen was ready to use and, when hitswere registered, . the ammunition cases

flared up, giving off black smoke andleaving no doubt that the target was hitin a vital spot.

Pilots of the squadron were enthusi-astic about working this target on livestrafing missions and other squadronson the station are planning to use it.

Aer ia l Bombing Becomes Se lec t iveA r e R e m o v e d F r o m

That aerial bombardment can bemade selective as well as effective, hasbeen demonstrated by a strange inci-dent which took place recently duringthe Marshall Islands campaign. Amer-

ican planes bombed the Jap-heldfortress of Wotje atoll until the enemy

garrison was punch-drunk, afterwhich naval warships slipped in atnight and lifted virtually the entirecivilian population of that atoll fromunder the Japs n o s e s . T h u s t h e n a t i v e swere spared sharing punishment beingdished out to the enemy.

More than 700 native Micronesianswere liberated from Jap oppressors inthis daring operation. The carefullyengineered rescue was staged at night.Two small American warships slippedinto a lagoon of Erikub Atoll about sixmiles from the Jap fortress, carryingseveral natives who had previously es-

caped from Wotje without assistance.The natives were lowered silently

from the warships in their outriggercanoes, spread their tablecloth-sizedsails and skimmed away toward Wotje.Landing quietly on the native beachthey began slipping from hut to hut,arousing their kinsmen with word thatrescue was at h a n d .

Quickly and silently the 700 rolledup their mats, gathered their pigs,chickens and children and dumpedthem into outrigger canoes. Not longafterward the flotilla drew up to thewaiting warships.

At dawn, women, children and theinfirm were taken aboard the warshipsand the outriggers, tied together in along line, were towed out to sea. Aftera long journey, the 700 rescuednesians arrived at another and saferatoll to be welcomed by other nativesrescued earlier.

J a p s B u r y T h e i r D a m a g e d P l a n e sT e l l N a t i v e s N i p F li e r s A r e I n v i n c i b l e

Finding it increasingly difficult toconvince Pacific natives their fliersare invincible, the Japanese, on at leastone occasion, buried a plane which aNavy pilot knocked out of the air. Atechnical air intelligence officer ex-amined the concealed wreckage of aJap and made this report:

The wings and entire fuselage, minusrudder, vertical fin and engine, were buriedby the Japs to save face with the nativepopulation. Japanese officials in the pasthad told natives that their aircraft neverwere shot down. Immediately after

had crashed, a Japanese guard wasplaced around the area and word waspassed that the plane was American. Re-mains of the plane then were buried in a

nearby well entrance and bulldozed over.The rudder and fin were overlooked by theenemy and were picked up by the natives.

1 5


18/52

P U B LI C A TI O N S

U s a g e o f S e r v ic e B u l le t in s

Contractors Service Bulletins aredistributed to naval air activities

prior approval of BuAer.When the need for a change or mod-

ification to delivered equipment is rec-ognized, the contractor is requested tcsubmit to the Bureau a service bulletinestablishing procedure for retroactive in-corporation. If satisfactory to the Bureau,the bulletin, or the information containedtherein, is relayed to the naval establish-ment in a Bureau Change or Bulletin. Itmay be issued in any one of the followingforms :

1. Service Bulletin, complete or in part,as enclosure to Bureau Change orBulletin.

2. Pertinent information from contrac-

tors bulletin written into a BureauChange or Bulletin with referenceonly to the former.

3. Service Bulletin printed and sup-plied by contractor, stapled to aBureau Bulletin approving same.

H E N parts kits are furnished by theaircraft contractor in compliance

with a Bureau Aircraft Service Change,he will pack one copy of his approvedbulletin with each kit for shipment inaccordance with allocation previously fur-nished by BuAer. The copy of the bulle-tin which is packed with the kits of partswill be stamped, This Bulletin has been

approved by BuAer as covering the in-stallation provision of BuAer Model---Aircraft Service Change No.----.

Activities therefore are requested notto requisition Contractors Service Bulle-tins. The applicable Bureau Change orBulletin will, however, be supplied uponrequest to Chief, BuAer (Attn: Publica-tions Branch) on form 140.

IMPORTANT NOTICE

A.C.L. was forwarded to thefield only after much consideration andstudy. Furthermore, the policy it pre-scribed was developed-as the result ofmany requests from air activities as well

as consultation with many cognizant offi-cers-as the best and most desirable planfor distribution of technical information.

To provide to all air activities the max-imum benefits this letter offers, it is

. that a ll act iv it ies return ( B tothis letter, with complete informationfilled in as requested. So far, comparativelyfew activities have returned this enclosureas directed in A.C.L. 90-44.

It is strongly urged that all establish-ments that have not prepared and sub-mitted this important information do soas soon as possible. Care should be exer-cised to make that the activitysproper mailing address is included. Also,in indicating material desired, request onlythat which is essential, though de-sires to send all items needed by an activity.

Fie ld Map Aids Airc ra f tD i r e c t i o n s P r o m i n e n t l y D i s p l a y e d

MCAS E L Visiting aircraftshould have little difficulty in orientat-ing themselves at this Marine station.

A giant map of the f ield now is dis-

played on the tower of the operationsbuilding. Newly completed concrete

runways, parallel to the old blacktop.are shown on the map in white, as con-trasted with the old runways in black.

M A P O F F I E L D P R O V E S H E L P F U L T O V I S I T O R S

The map is easily visibletaxiing past the operations

from planesbuilding.

P e r p e t u a t e S e a B a t t l e sLa r g e r P la n e s W il l B a s e o n N e w S h ip s

T w o c r u c i a l s e a e n g a g e m e n t s o f

World War II, the battle of the CoralSea and the battle of Midway, are beingperpetuated by the Navy as namestwo new aircraft carriers.These C V B S which were alreadyunder construction in October are thk

largest known ships of type.In the Coral Sea battle during May

1942 the Japanese were effectivelychecked in their southward advance.This also marked the end of the periodduring which the United States wastotally on the defensive. The Battleof Midway in June of 1942 was first

decisive defeat suffered by the Japanese

navv in 350 vears and restored theof in Pacific.

Earlier in the war names

S e a and were assigned to twoescort carriers were A n x i oand St. Lo. The S t . since was sunkin the second battle of the Philippines.

Eggs , Gum Drops He lp War Ef for tP h o t o g r a p h e r s I d e a

A does not think ordinarily ofgum drops as vital war

rials, but such a strange omlet,by a Navy enlisted man, helped

intelligence functionduring recent operations in the

Central Pacific when a shortage occurred.Egg albumin, it seems, is an essential

ingredient used in lithographic plate

making. None was available the ad-vanced island position on which VD-4was based, nor was any available atPearl Harbor or on the Pacific Coast.Dried albumin was not available either,nor was photographic gelatin. Yet some

vital intelligence reports had to be made.A photographers mate, in civilian

life a lithographer, devised a chemicalwhich did the trick. Base of his newmaterial is gum arabic-the ingredientthat makes gum drops that way and

that puts the creamy head on beer.B Y G E O R G E A . C A R D A S C I A ,

B u A e r C o m m e n t - A g a i n s t some futuree m e r g e n c y , p u t th e f o l l o w i n g l i t h o g r a p h i c

p l a te f o rm u l a in y o u r n o t eb o o k : 1 o z . g u m

( d r y ) , 1 1 o z . w a t e r , a d d 1 6 0 g r a i n sp o t a s s i u m b i ch r o m a t e a n d o z . a m m o -

n i u m h y d r o x id e 2 8 % . P r o ce d u r e : 1 . C o u n -

t e r e t c h . 2 . D e s e n s i t i z i n g e t c h . 3 . C o a tp l a t e . 4 . E x p o s e .

5 . D e v e l o p w i t h d e v e l -o p i n g i n k a n d d r y . 6 . W a s h w i t h w a te r.

S e x t a n t C a ge S hu t s O u t i n s e c t sM a k e S h o o t in g S i g h h

NAS B A N A N A R I V E R - A sextant cagehas been designed by this stationsnavigation department for shooting

sights during the mosquito season. A

standard astro-dome is inserted in ahole cut in the top of an easily con-structed screen box.

During summer months, taking starsights became virtually impossible be-cause of mosquitos. Only through useof the sextant cage was it possible tocarry on with navigation training.

F l a s h i n g L i g h t s A i d i n S a f e t yE x t e r i o r o n V a lu a b l e

Flashing exterior lights on todayscommercial and some military transportairplanes have aroused the curiosity of

many observers and have even led someto make such comments as, Hm,


19/52

der if the pilot of that airplane knowshe has some loose wiring to his lights,or Oh, yeah, thats the new blinkerscheme for flashing position in degreeslongitude and latitude.

H er e t h e re a l s t o r y : Before the war,even when commercial planes had littlecompetition for air space, airlines de-sired to make transports easier to spot

when approaching a field. The adventof war and consequent increase in airtraffic soon made it necessary that air-liners be seen more easily, not only fromthe ground but also by other planes inthe air. Near-collisions were reported,and it was pointed out that exterior

T W O C H A R T S S H O W T I M E F O R F L A S H I N G L I G H T S

lights continuously on blended withstars and ground lights, especially overlarge cities where a myriad of groundlights forms the background.

To make commercial transports easierto spot in the air, required that thetwo tail lights (one red, one clear) beflashed throughout all night flights. Bymeans of an electrical device, lights areflashed at the rate of 40 cycles per

minute, where each cycle is the equi-valent of a circle as shown above. Thedifference in off intervals is to give asharp definition between the red flashand the clear flash.

The airline operators took this re-quirement and applied it by flashingall exterior lights on their transports.The red and lights are

n at the same time as the clear tailand two fuselage lights, bothflash with the red tail light. There

some variations, but all add up toexterior lights.

In the operation of its transportanes the Navy concurs, where

with the safety advantages ofthe exterior lights.

ent is continuing to obtain flashinglighter in weight and with

eater utility than the present flasher.

R e q u e s t P i l o t s I n f o r m a t io n

A i r F o r t e s C a n n o f S u p p l y C o p i e s

P i l o t s I n f o r m a t i o n F i l e published by AAF hast been approved for Navy use, and

should not request copies from Army Air

Training Literature Section has obtained aof P I F and can fu rn i sh a s i n g l eto and larger units

request one.A dd r e ss r eq u e s t f o r s i n g l e r ef e r en c e

O F F I C E O F C H I E F O F N A V A LO P - 3 3 - J , T R A I N I N G L I T E R A T U R E F I E L D U N I T

O N E P A R K A V E N I J E , N E W Y O R K N . Y .

FLIGHT S A

Three new pilots are scheduled toreport today, Commander.

The skipper of a fighter squadroncheerfully reported this news to the airgroup commander aboard X.He really needed those three aviators.

Later in the day the skippers hopeswere dashed. the trio, hefound one was a veteran with monthsof experience on another carrier. Thatwas fine, but the other two had notpracticed landings aboard a carrier inthe six months since they had beenchecked out during One hadmade only nine carrier aboardthe U.S.S. W o l v e r i n e back on LakeMichigan and the other had only ten tohis credit. These two could beused even on routine patrol sweeps.When a strike was ordered on a major

naval base, they stayed on deck.The Captain of Carrier X cited the

incident in his official report of theair attack. So the word got to Wash-ington. The difficulty was presented tothe newly organized Flight Safety Coun-cil for action.

The council also heard reports fromCarrier telling that when its com-

posite squadron was expanded only oneof new aviators was an experiencedpilot and reports from Carrier Z thatnew pilots reporting aboard had neverbeen on a carrier before.

The council took up the matter withthe Training and Aviation PersonnelDivisions under DCNO (Air). Bothchecked into the problem. The pilotreplacement program was tightenedand improved. All hands concernedwere alerted to difficulties of arepetition of such carrier duty assign-ments for aviators. As the FlightSafety Council was informed at its nextmeeting, It is believed that this matterhas been satisfactorily solved.

This incident shows the currentordination of flight safety activities.

Two of the more important and re-cent developments in this program arethe establishment of the Flight SafetyCouncil and a Flight Safety and Air/SeaRescue Section in the Flight Divisionat the Navy Department.

Aviation safety is a matter of morethan passing interest to the enlisteddraftsman working over engineeringblueprints and the rear admiral in

charge of a carrier task force, as wellas the pilot and rear seat gunner in a

.

dive bomber over Manila. It concernseveryone connected with the Navys

aeronautical organization, Such a subject can not be handled in its entiretyby any one section or division of theNavy Hence a FlightSafety Council was set up to superviseand co-ordinate matters being handledthrough various units.

S A F E T

In addition to the chairman, who alsois head of the Flight Safety and Air/SeaRescue Section, council members in-clude representatives of the Air/SeaRescue Agency of U. S. Coast Guard;

Naval Medical Research Institute; Avia-tion Medical Research Division of Bu-reau of Medicine and Surgery; Air In-telligence Group; Engineering, Main-tenance, Military Requirements andSpecial Devices Divisions ofTraining, Flight Divisions of DCNO(Air).

A part of the Flight Division, thenew Flight Safety and Air/Sea RescueSection has administrative responsibilityfor the naval aviation safety program.The new section grew out of activitiesformerly assigned to the Flight StatisticsSection, which maintains a central file

of all aviation accidents, details of theircauses and recommendations fortheir elimination or reduction. Respon-sibilities of this new section include:

a. Increasing safety in naval aviationthrough promulgation of standard safety

and initiation of indicated re-search projects.

b . Supervising flight safety education.c. Furthering the air/sea rescue features

concerned with naval aviation.Promoting maximum efficiency of

various flight safety. and air/sea rescuefunctions and preventing overlapping intheir operation.

e. Analyzing aircraft accidents and,

where indicated, dispatching its own in-vestigators to the crash

Maintaining liaison with other govern-ment and civilian agencies engaged inaviation safety.

Both these agencies, like allothers concerned with aviation safety,are seeking to prevent or reduce avoid-able accidents in naval aviation. To dothis, it is necessary to know what causesaccidents. These causes may concerndeficiencies in training, equipment,maintenance or personnel capabilities.Only by systematic and thorough in-vestigation can causes be determined.T H I S I S T H E S E C O N D I N A S E R I E S O F R E P O R T S O N

T H E N A V Y I S D O I N G I N A V I A T I O N S A F E T Y


20/52

Polices By-passed Islands. Search plane squad-ron has completed eight monthsof duty in the Central Pacific, finishing itsassignment of watching over certainheld islands by-passed by our drive towardTokyo. Operating from the Gilberts andMarshalls, this land-based squadron in-flicted its heaviest damage to the enemyby bombing and strafing assaults againstNauru, Wotje, Taroa, Jaluit, Taongi andKusaie. The squadron dropped 26 carloadsof high explosives on these islands withmore than 80 percent of them causingdamage within the target area. In additionthe Venturas machine guns expended000 rounds of ammunition in eight months.

New Training Method. VMSB 254 has beentraining a number of junior pilots (whoseprevious training was primarily in torpedotactics) as dive bombers. A spotting sheetpermits a close check on the accuracy ofdive-bombing and the progress of eachpilot. The sheets are filled out at the com-pletion of each flight and are kept on filefor the correction of bad scores. The sheetrecords hits within the circle asdirect hits, within the 200 circle asbits, and all other drops as misses.

Pack a Although Navywere never desi ned for that sort

of business, the state y old girls have

proved they pack a Sunday Punch whenit comes to raiding Jap shipping out in theRecent press reports from that

war theater credit the leisurely flying boatswith remarkable e One lone P BYsank three Jap in Davao Gulf withonly four bombs in a single bombing run.The p-boat caught a seaplane tender andtwo destroyer escorts while they were re-fueling and attacked without hesitation.Shortly afterward, a C at a l i n a sank an

Jap freighter-transport in TiworoStrait on the southeastern coast of theCelebes. The Catal ina scored four directhits, putting two 500-pound bombs in thecenter of the ship. The same night other

damaged a lO,OOO-ton tanker anda 300-ton freighter in Straits in thesouthern Philippines.

Dividends. Although expert Japanese pilots can handle their planeswith remarkable dexterity and sometimesgive showy acrobatic exhibitions goodenough for the state fair circuit, their skillhas proved no match for the teamwork ofNavy pilots. Proof of this fact can bedrawn from two brief but highly spectac-ular scraps between Navy pilots and JapZeros in the region of the Marianas.

The first Jap flying exhibition occurredwhen five Hellcats teamed up on a fleeingZero. Just as the Navy pilots would get

into firing position the Jap would pull upinto an extremely fast climbing turn, duck

for the water, zig-zag back up and then

go into another violent turn. His maneu-vers were perfectly timed for a while butat last he missed, lining himself into thesights of a Hel lca t pilot. The Zero ex-ploded in mid-air.

Shortly afterward another Hellcat quin-tet sighted a second Zero and gave chase.The Jap was 300 from the waterwhen he sighted is pursuers. He beganhis show with 15 consecutive slow rolls,next dived to within five or 10 of thewater and bounced his plane up and downin an effort to coax a Hellcat into strikingthe briny, then pulled into a half loopseveral times and flew along on his backwagging his Zero from side to side. At last

he completed a full loop at less than 500and found the Navy team calmlyfor him. The Japs state fair show endeabruptly with a well directed burst fromNavy guns.

It was like trying to catch fleas on ahot griddle, remarked a pilot.

Reluctant Raiders Return. Hard-hitting VB-109has returned from seven and a half monthsin the Pacific, during which the big

became a dreaded scourge of the Japs. Specializing in bombing from tree-top and masthead level, the squadron at-tacked 147 enemy ships, sinking 43 anddamaging 91; destroyed 20 enemy planes

on the ground and four in the air andprobably destroyed or damaged 70 moreplanes on water or ground. VB-109 made1,141 operational flights for a total of153 combat hours. When other squadronsin the Pacific dubbed VB-109 ReluctantRaiders, it was meant as a tribute.

Pilot Saved His Plane. Fanning out a fire inyour plane wing by side-slipping is nomean feat but the pilot of a carrier basedNavy dive bomber did it recently andsaved his While divin on histarget which was on a Jap held is and, thepilot ran into ack-ack and one shell set offthe ammunition box behind the wing ma-

chine gun. Deciding he still had time tocomplete his dive, the pilot streaked downto bombing position, released his bombsand pulled away with flames licking closerand closer to the cockpit. At 2,500 feet hetold his rear seat aircrewman to bail outand the crewman later was rescued. Thenthe diver began side-slipping his plane so

HEA R FRO M Y o u !

that the airstream would pull flames away

from the fuselage. At length the fire wasblown out. Though fire had burned outhydraulic fluid so he could not get hislanding flaps down and a Jap shell hadshot away a right wheel locking pin, thepilot landed successfully on his carrier withonly a right wheel buckled.

Bot h Bagged Their limit . TWO pilots of a car-rier-based night fighter squadron in thePacific went out hunting one morning notlong ago and shot down eight Jap sea-planes before breakfast. The first pilotwas strafing shipping in a harbor when hebagged his first Jap. Two others attackedhim from the rear, so he radioed the sec-

ond Navy pilot to be ready, led the Japsover to him and let his friend shoot themdown. More a more experttarget practice took p ace and moretumbled into the drink. One Jap flewinto a cloud, so a Hellcat went in to shoohim out while the other stayed on top ofthe c loud to n ip the Nip . When theeighth Jap had tasted salt, the hunterswent home to their ships for coffee.

Night mar e By The Number s. F 1 y i nmares,

Night-as the airmen called themselves,

were the first Leatherneck twin-enginedbomber crews to see action. Plastering the

Japs with monotonous, deadly precision,

they have established thePB J 'S

continuedvalue to Marine air arm.In March of 1944, the began play-

ing for keeps. Their initial combat missiongot underway in the South Pacific-a day-light at hotly defended TakabarMission, supply dump and labor camp tenmiles from Rabaul. As a squadron new tocombat, they had an understandable rightto a good percentage of misses; however,they dumped their load on an assignedarea of 500 by 150 yards, and out of 84bombs dropped, 82 had smashed home inthe small target.

After several daylight familiarizationstrikes over Rabaul and Kavieng, theywere pronounced ready for tedious, haz-ardous night heckling operations. Their rolewas part of an Allied tactic which afterknocking out the enemys airpower, avoid-ed direct assault on his strongholds, sub-stituted by a by-passing maneuver, andkept the Japs pinned down.

During the day, the Nipponese were un-der constant attack by single, twin- andmulti-engined bombers. The Flying Night-mares followed the day strikes.

The squadrons efforts were recognizedin a letter of commendation from theCommanding General, 13th Army Bomber .Command: You have developed the dan-gerous, tiresome mission of nightto the highest perfection it has attained in

the 14 months in which I have been work-ing under Commander, Aircraft, Solomons.


21/52


22/52

C O R R E C T D I T C H I N G I S O N E O F T H E F I R S T G U A R A N T E E S O F A S U R V I V A L I N E V E N T O F A P L A N E C R A S H A T S E A . T H E S E A I R M E N K N O W I T S P I

NAVY P IONEEREDE AD men with no visible marks upon them had beenfound on the battlefields of earlier wars, but prior

to the Spanish civil war and the evacuation ofthe sustained curiosity of medical science had not beenprovoked by this strange phenomenon. When theR e u b en J a m e s sank late in 1941, men struggling in thewater again were slain by a strange force. That tra-gedy spurred research on this side of the Atlantic.

Naval medical men have pioneered this research inthe United States and nearly all that is known todayabout the invisible death-dealer has been discoveredsince December of 1941 through experiments made in

the Potomac area and at Pearl Harbor. Under the ob-servation of and experts, high explosives

BLAST RESEARCHby the ton were fired. In some- experiments bombs fab-ricated from laboratory test tubes were used, while inother tests the explosive ranged up to 2,000 lbs. Navydoctors who exposed laboratory animals to an explosiondid not hesitate in taking the same risks themselves.

HE Y climbed into diving suits and descended into theocean to learn what a blast would do to them. They

listened to the vibration rumble through their visceraand moved closer for another explosion. Today a navalairman downed during a sea battle and exposed per-haps to depth charges or other underwater blasts is a

far better insurance risk because naval medical menhave learned the facts about blast, the strange killer.


23/52

TESTS INDICATE AN AIR BLAST

IS NO MAJOR MILITARY PROBLEM

N THE summer of 1942 the first air blast experiment to bemade in this country by the Navy took place at the

Explosives Investigation Stump Neck, Md. The

term laboratory experiment was a misnomer, for that daymen of BuOrd went out into the wide open and setoff 1,700 pounds of TNT. Primarily the blast was fired to testa new concrete shelter, but BuOrd invited medical men ofthe Army and Navy to participate. Control animals wereused. The test indicated air blast was not nearly as dan-gerous as had been supposed.

fully exposed to the concussion at a distance ofonly 100 ft. were not injured and went on nibbling grass.More blast experiments followed. Then came the Norfolkexplosion. Research men from hastened to the sceneto observe for themselves what a terrific air blast had reallydone to humans. Their conclusions were surprising. Men soclose to the explosion that they were severely. burned by

the flash were examined painstakingly. Not one showed anytrace of injury from the invisible force of the air blast.

ETURNI NG Stump Neck, Md., the Navy research doctorsbegan new tests to prove out their Norfolk conclusions

and formulate policies. The Norfolk findings were borne outby these experiments. To be hurt by a blast in open air aman must be close enough to the flash area to burned, orhe must be struck by flying debris.

An air-borne blast is a shell of compressed air that movesoutward in all directions from the explosion center. Incross section this air shell is a wave of com-pression, f 11o owed by a negative or suction phase. Sincethe negative phase can never exceed a perfect vacuum, which

is 15 lbs. to the square inch, it is not regarded as being ofmajor military importance. The compression phase lastsfrom to of a second while the suction phase en-dures about a second. Air-borne blast waves travelin a straight line at about 1,000 a second, and intensity ofa wave decreases with square of the distance. Reflectance isshown by a blast; that is, the waves bounce back from a flatsurface intensified almost percent for a short distance.

Air blast from explosion at NAS Norfolk shattered this buildingwhich stood inside the immediate disruptive area of explosion

Flash fr om the same explosion caused fire, increasing the damagefrom this blast. Men who were singed showed no concussion injury

batt le scene illustrates how an air blast taking place in aspace, such as this Jap tunnel, becomes more damaging

Fr om cr ater of the earth at Norfolk in immediate areaof explosion, debris was widely, aggravating blast effect


24/52

T H A T M E N I N B A T T L E G E A R C A N W I T H S T A N D M O R E U N D E R W A T E R S H O C K T H A N D I V E R S W A S B Y E X P E R I M E N T S M A D E A T F O R T P I E R C E . F L A .

FIRST WATER BLAST EXPERIMENT

WAS MADE IN OLD LAUNDRY TANKLTHOUGH naval research men by this time were con-

vinced that concussion damage from open air blastswas not of major military concern, they had ample evidencegained from alone that water-borne blast waveswere a grave hazard which thousands of Navy men, includ-ing airmen, as well as general fleet personnel, might

So, early in 1943 the assistance of officersthey moved their experiments to the Naval Medical Centerat Bethesda. There, in a parking lot, they constructed a

Depth charges cause their damagesubsequent phase of turbulence

a silent compression wave. Ais harmless. It results from gas

sized ocean by sinking an old laundry tank 70 by 48 by42 into the earth, tamping it securely with mud and fillingit with water. This crude pool was destined to become thescene of exhaustive tests, meticulously made.

Needing charges to fit their miniature ocean, theexperimenters knew also that the charges must not shatterand injure partially submerged, animals, since such injurieswould upset correct conclusions from the experiment. Sothey turned to glass test., tubes as the ideal container becauseglass will pulverize under heavy impact. Into the test tubesthey poured tetryl. This explosive was chosen because itcould be measured minutely down to the split gram. So withdry cell batteries furnish the juice, the experimentersfashioned miniature detonators from ordinary bell wire andtipped it with chrome wire. They sealed their Mk. Nothingdepth charges with cotton and paraffin to keep out water.

DAY AFTER day the searchers off their home-madedepth charges, using varying amounts of the explosive

and firing them at varying distances and depths. When theywere through, a great many new facts had been ferretedout. They knew the lethal dose and the deterrent distancewhere the invisible shock waves would not kill. They knewany part of the body is vulnerable to the blast,first of all the lungs, then the intestine and even the headdue to air-containing mastoid cells in the cranium.

Though air-borne blast waves travel only about 1,000feet a second, blasts travel through water at 4,800 feet asecond, losing intensity in inverse ratio with the distance.Underwater explosion has a compression phase traveling ina wave through the water like a huge expanding doughnutfive feet thick, and a disturbance phase. The latter is causedby the gas bubble. Months after the Bethesda experiments aNavy submarine captain backed up research conclusions thatdamage was done by first silent wave. No damage is

done while your submarine is rocking and shaking from ablast, he said. A clicking sound has already done it.

2 2


25/52

GOATS PROTECTED BY KAPOK JACKETS WERE FIRST F LOAT IN G A N I M AL S C A N B E S E E N I N F O R E G R O U N D , A S A C H A R G E I S F I R E D

BILLY GOATS IN KAPOK JACKETS

SURVIVE TESTS IN DEEP WATER

F

R O M the Bethesda experiments research men had con-cluded that an air-containing covering such as non-

saturated kapok or sponge rubber might shield an animal orman from water blast injury, providing it fitted snugly aboutthe subject. The time had come to prove out this theoryusing something larger than guinea pigs. Goatswere in orderand a goat cannot be submerged in an old laundry tank. Sothe medical men again turned to their friends in BuOrdasking BuOrd made available the old mine layer,U.S.S. Wassuc to be used as the experimental base.

For hours staid scientists sat up with their needles andthread tailoring the goats little kapok jackets to fit eachanimal snugly.research man.

It was a devil of a job, said the chiefI would make jacket to fit the goat just

right; then he would sneak out, gorge himself on tin cans

or something, and the jacket would be too small. Goats suredo swell up. No pains were spared in fitting out the jackets.

the goats and their wardrobes were ready andthe good ship Wassuc steamed down Chesapeake Bay.

Goats were lowered into the water and depth charges con-taining a 300 lb. load of explosive were fired. Billies

the jackets escaped injury completely.Other experiments followed upon a still larger scale and

there was no lack of volunteers nor of necessarynent. At one time military strategists considered the use

shallow water mines as a defense against landing barges.old landing barge was secured and a site chosen for the

Mines were planted in shallow water and thebarge was loaded with goats. Some were placed

varying thicknesses of rubber mats while others stoodthe bare deck. The barge was towed across the mine

field and the charges were detonated. Every goat survived.Even those that went overboard with the explosion escapedinjury. It appeared that to be injured by water-borne shockthe victim must be in contact with the water itself.

Having proved the air-containing organs are vulnerableto blast waves and having learned through use of the goats

that only actual contact with the water transmits the illeffects of blast, Navy doctors were in a position to adopttheir first rules of blast survival. They knew a Navy piloton a half submerged raft should sit up rather than lie onhis stomach when depth charges went off. Otherwise hemight be killed or badly hurt, because lying face down upona partly submerged raft would place not only his intestinesbut also his lungs in actual contact with the water itself.

Unhurt exposureto a depth charge because of his kapok jacket,a goat can be seen in background, back aboard

23


26/52

NAVY MEN FACE BLAST THREAT TO

LEARN HOW OTHERS CAN SURVIVE

C

HRONOLOGI CALL Y, next development in experi-

ments came shortly after the goat episode when 10officers of the Navy volunteered to go down to 20 ft. underthe water in diving suits and expose themselves to the effectsof a depth charge at varying distances. The chief experi-menters were among the first to go down. At first, a Mk. 5charge was fired at a distance of 920 yds. and even then the

could hear their stomachs grumble from the blastwave. By the time they had moved up to 300 yds. their

stomachs, as the chief put it, were really grumbling good.They proved that the deterrent distance at which a diver

can feel shock but sustain no ill effects is equal to acalculated pressure of 50 lbs. to the square inch. By usingbeef gut, some of it empty, some filled with air and somewith a saline solution, they exploded the old theory thatit took 500 of pressure to perforate a mans intestines.Their tests showed it takes only 250

In subsequent diving tests at Stump Neck one volunteerworked up to within 150 yds. of a Mk. 5 depth charge withno sign of an injury to himself from the water-borne blast.

CE R T A I N other conclusions are accepted by Navy medi-

cine today because of the experiments. The old theoryheld that the deeper a man sinks in the water the greaterwill be the pressure he feels from a blast. In the Potomacarea experiments it was found that depth made no differ-ence in the intensity of just lasts longer.

In striking the surface a compression wave bursts outinto the air shredding the surface of the water into long fin-ger-like strips. The same thing happens when a blast wavehits the body of downed aviator. It travels through solidtissue and bone until it reaches an organ such as the lungor intestine containing air or gas. Then the wave burstsout into the gassy medium, shredding the tissue surface asit escapes into the air or gas bubbles.

As World War II moved into amphibious stages it wasnecessary to determine how much blast a man up to his neckin water can withstand wearing battle gear. Moving to theAmphibious Training Base, Fort Pierce, Fla., the experi-menters again called for volunteers and got 10.

They proved that a man under such conditions can stand70 lbs. of pressure, which is 20 lbs. more than he couldstand in diving gear. The safety rules for minimizing ifnot avoiding injury from underwater blast were brought into

existence because doctors of the United States Navy arecurious, painstaking men willing to take a chance themselves.

24


27/52

Swim away from expected underwater explosions. You willbe safe at 110 yards from Mk. 6 jacket, closer with it

Keep head of water and when resting float on your back.Only those parts of your body under water will feel the blast

life jacket properly tied and adjusted. It is a pre-server that will safeguard you from explosions and drowning

use Of any floating object which will support your weightto draw yourself up out of the water. Keep chest out

on a partly submerged raft when underwater ex-plosions are expected. Stand or sit to avoid bodily injury


28/52

THE FI NE old art of keeping body and soul togetherunder difficult conditions is being practiced inmany parts of the world these days. Try this survival

quiz, then check yourself with the answers on page 40.

[ Q U E S T I O N S F R O M S P E C I A L D E V I C E S V I S U A L Q U I Z Z E R N o .

5 9 , S U R V I V O R O N L A N D ]

answers here

1 . 4. .

2 . . 5. .

3. . . 6. . . . .


29/52

M C A S EL

TO R O

- A Marine recentlyturned from the South Pacific tells thisstory: A s radio operator in an armoredamphibious tank, he was trying to raise atank farther down the beach.

Can you hear me. Can you hear me?,he asked. There was crackling static in thereply.

Can you hear me ? Can you hear me?,he called again. Then a reply came.

I can hear you good. Give me mes-sage. But the Leatherneck recognizedthe Japanese touch to the English lan-guage and replied:

I can hear you good, too. Goodbye.

C H A P E L o f f i c e r s a t

Pre-Flight have had the opportunity whichcame to an engine inspec-tor during his Japanese visitin 1929. This lieutenant waspitcher on the University ofCalifornia baseball team thatw as i nv it ed to Nippon,financed by the Japs. The

Japanese have some won-derful ball parks, recounted

the lieutenant, the one at Tokyo beingcomparable to Yankee Stadium with aseat ing capaci ty up to 7 0 , 0 0 0 .players were excellent fielders, clever inbase sliding, but not too potent at theplate.

NAS N E W Marine did a reversestrip tease here recently, and sold hisuniform for $65,550 worth of war bonds.The Marine appeared at a local bondtion in civilian clothes. Then, piece bypiece, he put on his uniform as bids weremade by spectators. Bids ranged from $50for his hat to $50,000 for a gun.

MCAB C H E R R Y P O I N T -A Pfc at this sta-tion devours razor blades as easily as hisbuddies put away their daily chow.

It all happened while I was serving inthe Hawaiian Islands last year. One of theboys in our outfit was trying to provehow tough he was by biting off a pieceof razor blade and chewing it to bits be-

fore swallowing it. Well, I figured that ifhe could get away with it, I could too, so

tried it without any ill effects. RecentlyI consumed 12 blades in four days for theentertainment of my pals. His buddiesvouched for this statement.

M C A S E L l e a d i n gblood donor was thrilled to receive thefollowing letter from a sergeant in theSouth Pacific who read of her donationin the D e a r C o r p o r a l :

d o n t k n o w w h e t h e r t h e co n t r i b u t i o n

y o u a n d y o u r f r i e n d s g a v e t o t h e R e dC r o s s b l o o d b a n k w i l l h a s t e n t h e r e t u r n

o f y o u r r e l a t i v e s a n d l o v e d o n e s , b u t

c a n a s s u r e y o u f r o m p r a c t i c a l e x p e r i e n c e ,t h o s e co n t r i b u t i o n s h a v e m a d e a n d w i l l

c o n t i n u e t o m a k e i t p o s s i b l e s o m ey o u r b u d d i e s w h o g e t w o u n d e d t o

t u r n a t a l l . C e r t a i n l y , if y o u r g r o u p c a n m a k e t h e

a n d t h e s a c r i fi c e , t h e l e a s t w e ca ns a y i s w e l l d o n e. F r o m a l l t o a l l

of you, our very b e s t w i s h e s .

S T . M A R Y S lieu-tenant (jg) has introduced a new navaltradition for reporting aboard and payingrespects to the commanding officer. Hesignaled his arrival by going out on theOrinda golf course and hooking his balla mile off line through the skippers livingroom window. He followed up this breezyapproach by pursuing the ball into the

house and introducing himself.and son com-

binations among men in uniform arentparticularly unusual, but it is a rare com-bination when both are lieutenant colonels.These two have a total of 41 years in ser-vice, the father having begun his Corpscareer in 1917 and the son enlisting in1930. Lt. Colonel, Junior has just returnedfrom aviation duty in the South Pacific.

NAS following letterwas received from a young lady in anearby Illinois city:

To S u p e r v i s o r o f Pilot TrainingAirportIllinois

NAS F L O Y D B E N N E T T F I E L D -A sign onthe cigarette machine in thetion Building Canteen reads: NO cigar-ettes. Chelsea.

NAGS J A C K S O N V I L L E A sai lor ap-proached the Travelers Aid desk andulained that his bride of 1942was arriving bv bus in a few minutes.

and that was afraid he would beable to recognize her. He had married aafter courtshin of four

and had been shipped out morn-ing: after the Ive been out

States for two he added.The Travelers Aid representative met

t he b us . Ye s , I m M rs . Jo e Do aks ,

Sq u a d r o n sLET

HEAR FROM You!

answereda pretty, well-dressed girl.Your husband had to leave the station,

said the representative, and he askedto meet you and take you to my desk.

Seaman Doaks waited three minutes,rushed up to the desk, opened his armsto the girl and exclaimed, Mary, darling,its like heaven to see you again!

NATB PENSACOLA-Rides, weekly pub-lication of the rationing office designed tobring about a greater share-the-rides move-ment, made its debut recently. Names ofautomobile owners, their addresses andphone numbers are printed so that per-sons in their neighborhood needing ridesmay contact them.

NAS NORMAN-TWO aircraft havebeen painted to designate the 6-flag. Whenweather conditions are such that it isadvisable for all aircraft to return to thefield, these planes are dispatched. Pilotsof each aircraft are assigned a certainnumber of fields which are listed on theinstrument panel.

MCAS MOIAVE-Walter, duck ofa fighter squadron here, is just about ready

to call it quits and besomebody elses goodluck pet. The Mojavedesert is no place for aself-respecting d u c k ,says Walter, #recalling

the climax to this deserttrouble which was pret-ty rugged.

It seems that the dryair dried out all the oilin the mascots feathersand turned them fromsnow white to a dis-

gusting jaundice color. One day when suf-fering from the heat, Walter discovered thehuge combat swimming tank and happily

lunged in for a dip. All was fine for aew minutes-and then the water seeped

into the unoiled feathers. Walter waswaterlogged, and started to submerge!

Flapping his wings in great conster-

nation, Walter was able to attract an alertlifeguard, who rescued him. The duck wasrestored to the bosom of his squadron, buthe is still fed up with the desert.

MCAS . a unique posi-tion in the Corps is a Woman Reservesecond lieutenant. She is the daughter ofa lieutenant colonel, sister of a captainand wife of a lieutenant-all Marines.

that com-mercial companies carried in a Marinenewspaper is still bringing results and prov-ing that the sailor with hisport aint seen yet.

An order was just received by aconcern for 34 Marine pillow cases. The

request was placed by a Marine corporaland each is to be sent to a different girl.

27


30/52

members of theMarine Corps Womens Reserve here, whilespending a furlough in New York City,were amazed to discover that the majorityof the civilian population did not recog-nize their forest green uniforms as beingthose of the Marine Corps.

After several days of being calledWAVES, SPARS and members of variousforeign organizations, they gave up trying

to make themselves known and begannodding pleasantly to casual commentatorsregardless of the title used.

The climax and the end of their patiencecame, however, when they were confrontedby some Canadian fliers. One of themquestioned in a marked British accent, I

are you-Seabees?

NAS and sketch-ing classes were organized for military per-sonnel. An eager response indicated thatclasses s o o n may outgrow the classroom.

MCAS E L a new version toM i c e a n d M e n . On a recent oxygen hop

while he was flying at 25,000 feet, a Marine

fighter pilot saw a mouse climb over thetop of his instrument panel, and settlehimself comfortably-unaware that at suchheights, an oxygen mask is necessary.

NAS PATUXENT R I V E R - V R - 1 has twoseamen second class, V-10, assigned to dutyas flight orderlies on the Patuxent-Norfolk-Washington National Airport shuttle ser-vice. It is anticipated that these WAVESwill start on longer runs in the near fu-ture. Assignment of WAVES to this dutymarks an innovation in and seems in-dicative of many domestic flights beingtaken over by WAVES.

MCAS EDENTON-TWO bottles of water

-one from the Atlantic and one from thePacific--were poured into the new swim-ming pool at recent dedication ceremonies.

NAS NEW ORLEANS-Awaiting word fromon their commissions, 20 aviation

pilots first class built 50 model aircraft,some so painstakingly exact they had tinyrudder pedals and sticks which actuallymoved control surfaces. Many plan touse them for instructing their students.

MCAD MIRAMAR-Nothing can better il-lustrate the fighting spirit of New Zealandfliers in the Pacific than this episode re-lated by a lieutenant who recently returned.

I was flying over Rabaul one day,

he said, when I heard a New Zealand pi-lot call over his radio to another: Hey,

come on down here. Ive gotZeros cornered.

NAS NEW to givea helping hand to ambitious bluejacketswho wish to make the Navy their career,a school to prepare men for Annapolis willopen here. It will be staffed officersselected as especially qualified navalmatters. Applicants for training will beinterviewed bv the commanding

N A S duck seasonrecently around this station, and

if ducks could release communiques, theirfirst undoubtedly would read, Flak wasterrific, but few of our aircraft are missing.

2 8

-To JAPANA c c o r d i n g t o t h e

radio, a Japanese scientist has developeda beer extract to quench the thirst of

front-line soldiers while saving shippingspace. The beer extract is concentratedbarley and hop juice to which the soldiersmust add their own carbonated water.

-To THE UNITED STATESThe Japanese government is em-

ploying school girls to whip up civilianmorale after air raids. When the all-clearsignal sounds, the drum and flute corps ofthe Nagasaki girls commercial school maketheir appearance.

6

-To T H E UNITED S T A T E SGeneral Yamashita, who seeks un-

conditional surrender from General Mac-Arthur, sometimes gives the impression of

being vague because he has been knownto doze off and even snore in the midstof conversation with peo le. A classmateof his, however, reports t at he is theof person who, while dozing, hears all theconversation carried on at the time.

. . .

6

-To JAPANFashions for men as well as women

have changed in Tokyo under wartimeconditions. While women have taken towearing slacks, men have donned westernclothes and fez-like hats for the sake of

You are returning from an op-erational patrol in a P B Y and fixyour 1300 position as 119 miles duesouth of Kiska, Lat. 51 59 N,Long. 177 30 E. You find your

track to be GS 120 k, THTAS 124 k.

W h a t i s w i n d ? F o r c e . . . . . . . .

F r o m . . . . . . . .

You plan to continue on trackfor 15 minutes and then change

for your base , the U.S .S .P e l i c a n , Lat. 47 19 N, Long. 17715 w.

W h a t i s T H t o b a s e . . . . . . . . . .

W h a t i s G S ?

convenience during air raids. Most peoplesacks to accommodate medical sup-

plies or unrationed goods found fromtime to time or donated by friends.

-To JAPANThe shortage of cigarettes in the

United States is so acute that many Amer-ican women have taken up pipe smoking.

-To JAPANA national cookery school has been

set up for training village women to de-rive the most value out of all availablefood. Lack of proper nutrition wasshowing a tendency to damage the willfor increased food production and hinder-ing the morale of the farmers. Extrememeasures were necessary, since many werereceiving unbalanced diets due to a de-crease in allotment of fish and tasteless-ness of available food resulting from hap-hazard cooking.

. . .

-To OCCUPIEDreported that several tanks,

which were made in part of scrap iron andcopper contributed with boundless benev-

olence by Emperor Hirohito, had beenreceived at a front line base in the North-ern tip of Japan.

-T o T H E U N I T E D S T A T E SThe Tokyo radio declared that the

Japanese consider it an insult to be calledpropagandists and claimed that, whereasthe brilliant war results achieved by the Japanese navy in the fighting off Formosaand the Philippines was true news,America has spread only false newsabout that action. The broadcast went onto explain that the difficulty is the

Japanese are a truth-telling nation, anddo not know the intricacies of falsehood.

. . .

-To J A P A NThe Japanese agriculture and com-

merce ministry has decreed. thatsupporting poultry farmers throughout

Japan must turn over to the governmentat least 10 eggs per hen monthly.

-To R U S S I A Japan was surprised and offended

by Premier Stalins speech in which hebranded them as an aggressor nation.Since the Japanese are fighting to free thepeoples of Greater East Asia from the im-perialism of America and Britain, Japanwas disappointed that Stalin could not dis-tinguish between liberation and aggression.

-To T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S

Roosevelts re-election to a fourthterm was greeted calmly in Tokyo. Al-though various American experts predicteda close race, only 10 to 1 bets were accept-ed by Japanese willing to put money onthe much younger and inexperiencedDewey. Assured of another four yearstenure in the White House, it is certainRoosevelt will now assume an even morearrogant attitude in the mad quest tobring the world under the smokescreen ofAmerican efforts toward world security.

-To JAPANA total of 1,066 families who

have brought 10 or more living childreninto the world will receive commenda-tion certificates and a picture frame as agift from the Japanese Welfare Ministry.


31/52

T H I S L A D , H I S F R A C T U R E D N E C K S T I L L I N A B R A C E , I S E N G A G E D I N W O R T H W H I L E O U T D O O R A C T I V I T Y . H E S O N T H E W A Y T O C O M P L E T E R E C O V E R Y

R E HA B I L I T A T I O N a l o n g w i t h to a dance or party on Saturday night.standard medioal care. includes The program, set up by

that a sick or wounded the Surgeon General last April, speedshis health. As a supplement

Spee ds Recovery Ofcomplete recovery of hospitalized -Navy

to medicine and surgery, it ranges all men. They stay in the hospital longerheat treatments for than they would in civilian hospitals,

wound-stiffened limbs to studying: but they get out they do not

The Sick and Woundedfrom carpente

Documents

Naval Aviation News - Dec 1944