OCR Text |
Show GERMAN STRATEGY. Xot long ago it was pointed out that the Germans with fewer "aces" were doing greater execution than the French and British air fleets. The reason is found in this fact: The German airmen air-men are not in the habit of flying over the enemy lines in order to fight. They remain on their own side and await attack at-tack and as it is their custom to go up in groups they have all the advantage. advan-tage. This may be cowardice or it maybe may-be military strategy. It is effective at any rate. One of the most famous of the German airmen, now dead, is reported to have observed to an American Ameri-can interviewer: The great principle of the German Ger-man aviator is to operate with the minimum of risk. The English seem to consider war in the air as, above all else, a sport; while the French, with a rare and courageous cour-ageous fatalism, fly and fight, not for pleasure, but with a consecrated con-secrated ardor for their duty. We suppose the American airmen will adopt a combination of tho French and English style of fighting above the clouds and will seek the German fliers wherever they may be found. Yet we hope thev will exercise due caution and not give the enemy all the advantages. In other words, they should be brave, but not foolhardy. The Germans calculate cal-culate all their war maneuvers to a nicety and it will be necessary to employ em-ploy their own tactics against them in the air as well as on land and sea. We know some of our impetuous youths would engage a whole flock of German machines, but there is nothing to be gained by it. |