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Show 0 H'lll'l' Junes Photo Courtesy of the Lee Wells Collection balloon was designed to study condi- The Explorer II tions in the highest reaches of the atmosphere. It was flown in 1935 and carried Capt. Orvil A. Anderson and Capt. Albert W. Stevens higher than iinyone had ever flown before. Sponsored by the National Geographic Society and the U S. Army Air Corps. Explorer II rose to 72.395 feet, a world altitude record which held for 20 years f7:l 3 Utah's Orvil Anderson pioneer of balloon aviation by and impress their global audience. Jennifer Compton Lee Otlicc ot History All lie wauled to do was fly an airplane. 'Hint's why ( )rvil Anderson pursued aviation. And from this voting and humble desire, he would f,r on to play a significant role in some key events in the history ol flight and airpower. ( )i vil ( )i son Anderson was born in Sprinjjville, I lH!).r). in wanted He to be a pilot and con'tah, sidered joining the Royal Air Force, but a U.S. Army recruiting sergeant promised him he would he fiyinR in a matter of weeks if he enlisted. Upon enlisting in the Aviation Section of the U.S. Army Signal Corps on Aiijj. 23, 1917, his name was accidentally changed to Orvil "Arson" Anderson due to an Army clerical error. Disappointed that he wasn't in theairasquickly as he had hoped, Anderson went to Army Balloon school where he graduated Auj,'. 'A, UMKand won a commission as second lieutenant. Air Service, Army of the I hiited States. He soon became an early pioneer of balloon and airship flight. Balloons proved to be quite useful in both world w;irs as a means of reconnaissance and transportation. I Ie stayed in the service after the armistice endWorld War I, although he considered sepaing rating to study law. Ie received a regular commission as a first lieutenant on July 1, 1920. In 1922, the Air Service centralized lihter-than-ai- r training at a Balloon and Airship School at Scott Field, Ill1 inois, along with a depot for .V'v related supplies and equipment. in September. Anderson was on the first airship flight from Virginia to California. Three years later, he commanded the Nth Airship Company. The school accepted a big, new, semi-ngiairship, the RS- 1. Built by Goodyear, the RS-- 1 trans-continent- w The aerial photography was one of the most impressive accomplishments of the flight. From the record altitude, photos showed the division between the troposphere and the stratosphere and the curvature of the earth. This event gained worldwide attention and earned Anderson both the Harmon and Mackay trophies. And although he gained fame as the nation's top balloonist, he knew the future of military air was not in f record-breakin- g lighter-than-a- ' rrn7l',;iiTQi heavier-than-ai- B-1- 1 kflftgitl? 0 UtHAHii: -- j i EE! 5331 fl ir.,i r-- - 1936-193- 1937-193- of Flight cubic feet, a length of engines. Anderson tested the KS-- 1 and found it of no military value. With no m mey f r a new and Ix 'tter ship, the Army dropped the project. Although the Air Corps maintained a few manned blimps in its inventory until 1938, the most important of its lighter- - chairman of the Combined Oper- ational Planning Committee, European Theater of 0X'rations; deputy commander for operations, Eighth Air Force; ;uid senior military advisor, U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey. His promotion to brigadier general came we cell service on Sept. 18,1942 and then to major 2.H2 feet, and four i!P general on Feb. 28, 1944. The end of WWII brought another turning point in his life. He believed his future lay in developing the minds of new generations of Air Force thinkers, so he agreed to become the founding commandant of the W;ir ColOrvil Anderson lege in 1946. He enjoyed his new Ihan-ai- r crafts were manned position as an educator and estab balloons sent aloft to examine the earth's atmoslished educational processes that would be used phere. to help mold the Air Force of the future, and are Considered to be number one in ballooning, still used today. Anderson put his experience to use. In July 1934, In 1938, he had been involved in the preparatwith funding from the National Geographic Sociion of the Air Corps Board's "Report on Air Coips ety, William Kepner, Albert Stevens, and Orvil Mission under the Monroe Doctrine," which, for Anderson attempted to set a world altitiukrecord the first time, demonstrated the cost effectiveflight in the Explorer I, a very large balloon. But, nesses it would later be called-o- f long-rang- e bomat ()0,(XX) feet, the balloon ripiicd. Falling and now bardment over shorter range (cheaper) planes at 6,000 feet, the hydrogen mixed with the air and favored by the War Department staff. the balloon exploded. Fortunately, all three pasThe common practice of escorting fighters was sengers parachuted to safety in the cornfields required to provide position defense for bomber of Nebraska. formations. But Anderson noticed Herman Goer-in- g On Nov. 11, 1935. the Army Air Corps stratoswas ignoring the first rule of air fighting by phere balloon, the Explorer II, tried again to set instructing his pilots to disregard American fighta new world altitude record. Several innovations ers and to attack the bombers. In the European were made to the airship to ensure its success. Theater, on Jan. 4, 1944, Anderson persuaded The manholes were widened for easier escape Major General Jimmy Doolittle to issue orders and the balloon was enlarged ;uid filled with helium to Eighth Air Force fighter pilots to "pursue the instead of hydrogen. 'Hie crew was cut to two Hun until he was destroyed." Anderson knew Anderson and Stevens while their paychecks that aiipower would function at best if pilots were were cut in half. 'Hie balloon measured 192 feet freed from the typical defense position and allowed when fully inflated and was much larger than any to attack. This new wave of thinking helped to of its predecessors. shape the Air Force into today's smart, aggresThere were 64 scientific instruments packed sive force. into the metal gondola, weighing a ton, which In 1949, Anderson headed the Air University would allow data collection on cosmic rays, micnxir-ganism- s committee on Air Force research and developin the stratosphere, the ozone layer, ment, which worked to provide the rationale leadmeteorology, and biology, electrical conductiviing to the establishment of a separate Air Research ty of the atmosphere, the effects of high altitudes and Development Command. Perceiving that on insects, and other subjects. In contrast to all existing resources would quickly become obsothis complicated equipment, the travelers themlete, Anderson helped to focus the Air Force on selves were very low-tecpacking a lunch and technology. borrowing football helmets from a local high I Ie never fixed his middle name to read "Orson" school. because he figured he was known by the misThey took off from the Stratobowl near Rapid taken. Orvil A. Anderson, so he didn't want to City, South Dakota, and floated to a height of change it. In 1950, after serving this country 72,395 feet, a record that stood for 20 years. for 36 in the Air Force. Major General Orvil years Encased in their sealed and pressurized cabin, Anderson retired. But, in 1954. he was appointed the captains flew for eight hours and 13 minutes, the Executive Director of the U.S. Historical Foundrifting a lateral distance of 225 miles. During dation at Maxwell Field where today a building the flight, they used a short wave radio to address stands in his name. AVIATION TRIVIA Bring answers to the Mill Aerospace Museum visitor's desk. Those with the correct answer receive a collector's set of Centennial of Flight Ji KS ir r Anderson believed night had future and with the appearance of such aircraft as the Martin bomber, he recommended the Air Corps discontinue its airship program in 1933. With two years in the stratospheric project behind him, he took new steps in his military career. During he attended the Air the Corps Tactical School, and during Command and General Staff School. In August 1938, as a major, he was assigned as executive secretary to the Air Corps Board at Maxwell Field, Alabama. Rather than see this as a neutral move, he said it was actually the first opportunity he had to do some deep thinking about the whole range of Air Corps potentialities and problems. And, using this opportunity, he proved to be quite the problem solver. I hiring WWII, his abilities as a thinker and planner were evident as he served in several important positions: Centennial as chief of the Plans Division, Headquarters Army Air Force; featured a gas capacity of p 'a u a military 7(X).(XX) Trivia Question: When did U.S. Air Service pilots make the first non-stoflight across the country? . k. flight. d , f2 trading cards from the Air Force History and Museum Program. The answer and a new question will be published next week. Answer to last week 's question: Richard C. S'uiders was the first American Expeditionary Force officer, in 1917, to ny over hostile territory in Europe. 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