Show The Defense ns Against Aiom Bombs General Curtis E E. LeMay declared declared declared de de- recently in a L Los s Angeles speech that air defense is still apparently somewhat behind air offense especially in the field of carrying atom-carrying bombers The commander commander commander com com- mander of the strategic air command command command com com- mand credited the United States strategic air force with with with- being the major deterrent to aggression in inthe inthe in inthe the last few years although he admitted admitted admitted ad ad- that on the defensive side the United State was still susceptible susceptible tible to aerial atomic attack LeMay paid high tribute to the U. U S S. S air ir defense system which he claimed was avas the most efficient in inthe inthe inthe the world today But he added sign significantly significantly sig sig- n U I do not think that the most optimistic of us feel it it iMs is capable of stopping a determined determined determined deter deter- I mined well-planned well and coordinated coordinated coordinated b bombing attack at this time Thus despite recent reports that the army's super-accurate super antiaircraft antiaircraft antiaircraft anti air craft gun the Nike could bring down a 1 high percentage of enemy aircraft at high altitudes a completely completely completely com com- successful defense of this country's industrial centers cannot be offered by the military at this Utis time If IT war was to break out in inthe inthe the UIe near future Americans would be forced to reckon with atomic attacks on highly met metropolitan metropolitan centers which could not always be turned back In view of this prospect it seems all the more necessary for defense production to be decentralized and aad farmed out into small cities and rural areas The necessity of this was proved in World War Var II when the Nazis were forced to decentralize lize their defense which they largely succeeded in doing in all fields except the heavy armaments category centered in the Ruhr Figures on German war production production production tion recovered after the war show that in the heavy armaments field the Allied bombing of Germany exacted exacted exacted ex ex- ex- ex acted a n heavy toll and cut tank production considerably in the fall of 1944 However in the defense production categories in which pro production production production had been decentralized the Allied bombing had a more negligible effect and the production production production tion of rifles mortars assault guns and other weapons were maintained maintain maintain- ed at almost normal almost normal rates in that period in Germany The lesson is obvious to anyone who wishes to study the facts and should be beI I utilized by military planners |