Show Elsa Maxwells Maxwell's I Wily Baily Particles of Patter Today Today an old wives tale has gone into reverse Its It's the hand b behind hind the bomb that rocks a aJ J n nation cation tion I The air s r raids Ids on Hitler's Hitler Hit Hit- l ler lers r and the them ther r m ml k a a. d dos do's o's os b backyards ac k yards during the 3 list last f few e w I weeks Reeks h have a. a v e i glorified t the thereal real anal forgotten forgot forgot- It ten n man of the air a a. i r H 4 forces the thebo Y Y YI bo bombardier I I never knew 1 U until til recently recent recent- I 11 ly ly- how im im- 1 important N this Elsa Maxwell solar lolar plexus of the bombing mission really II I thought that the pilot gu was the man who directed aerial offense off offense and and nse-and and that the bombar- bombar fer r was simply a kind o of robot o a pulled the trigger Actually the reverse is true 1 I The real lowdown on high fly fly- I fag ing g missions was given me by Brigadier General Isaiah DaI Dalies Davies Da Da- Da- Da vies lies commanding officer at the I Midland Texas army flying 1 school the largest bombardier j school in jn the world I 1 The bombardier General Davies explained takes over overfull lull M full control of the ship as soon as it reaches its target As a a. matter of fact I was informed formed informed this key ke man can actually fly the ship using noth- noth n ng but his bombsight hooked i up to a a. robot pilot During the illuminating chat chatI I had with the general a fabulous fabulous fabulous lous fiscal thought came to tome tome me Here I said to myself in inbe inthe the be forgotten bombardier you have nave the real rich poor I boy actually actually the most coddled youth in the country a Hundreds of thousands of dolin dol- dol j 1 ors 8 in training ships and bombI bombera bomb- bomb I en MJ era the work of thousands of engineers instructors ground crew radio men technicians and d observers all are focused o on one purpose To make it possible pos- pos W Il sible le for this bombardier to sit in iii his greenhouse as t the h e Plastic nose of the ship ship is called e jor for r a a. few seconds at the properly properly prop- prop tr erly y appointed time For after I J aU all the one function of t the h e eI I Bombing force force is is to drop bombs I 1 The e bombardier is conscious e c of or this weight he knows what f the we measured seconds cost he heafford cant can't t afford to miss Fortunat Fortunately ly General Daes Daries Da- Da ries es told me when he graduates ates from bombardier training school he doesn't miss often Is the training as rigid as all that I asked It is he said but aside from the training we have a bombsight that is practically human human except except that it doesn't make mistakes And then I was transported into tantalizingly indefinite raptures raptures rap rap- tures tares over this great weapon of ours the Norden bombsight This gadget thinks talks breathes finds its target aims and fires It is the most amazing amazing amazing ing contraption developed since the invention of fire I was able to see some of the scores made by student bombardiers using this tion Without revealing any confidential information I can cansay cansay cansay say that the results would make that famous old sharpshooter r Annie Oakley look like a baby throwing a cake of soap Bombing from feet a height which requires oxygen masks and which makes me dizzy dizzy dizzy diz diz- diz- diz zy even to think of these boys plunk their bombs down practically practically practically cally plumb in the center of the proverbial pickle barrel Im I'm certain that if Hitler and Mr P. P G. G Mr latest crutch were were walking arm in a arm r m down the mysterious byways of Berchtesgaden these boys could split Hitler like a herring and do nothing worse to poor P. P G. G than knock the words out of his mouth If winning the war depends on offensive bombing and if offensive bombing depends on these boys and their bombsights one point is clear We have heroes in the making maturing under our very eyes deep in inthe inthe inthe the heart of Texas Texas and and the thena na nation tion And these boys are dropping every day in practice more bombs than Hitler dropped in earnest in his biggest bigge t blitz on the British Isles Press Alliance Inc |