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Show DROPPING GUNS AND CREWS IN CHUTES Army's Demonstration in Texas Is Successful. Washington. According to a report received by the chief of the air corps, the technique of landing machine guns and their crews from airplanes Is being be-ing constantly Improved. During a recent demonstration at the Air Corps Primary Flying school at Brooks Field, San Antonio, Texas, two machine guns were dropped in parachutes and put Into action by two crews of three men each, who descended from an airplane air-plane to the ground via the parachute route. Assembly of the machine guns and preparing them for firing waa only a matter of a few minutes. This demonstration featured a ma chine gun parachute bag, recently developed de-veloped by Sergeant Erwln H. Nichols, head of the parachute department of Brooks field. The parachute supporting support-ing the bag opens automatically npon being thrown from the airplane and floats to earth. The bag containing the gun, ammunition and a gallon of water f jr use In cooling, opens quickly by means of a rip cord similar to that on the parachute. The parachute Jumps were made by Sergeant Dewey Horton, Corporals Travis Garner and Robert E. New and Privates R. W. Stevens, Eddie Ben-zency Ben-zency and Lorraine Tolle. Sergennt Horton had a thrilling escape when his parachute landed on the roof of the big dirigible hangar at Brooks field. The roof of this structure has a 30-degree slope and Is well over 100 feet from the ground. Despite his precarious position. Sergeant Horton was able to spill the air from his parachute and climb to an entrance on the peak of the building, none the worse for his experience. |