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-2-

The observations of the air line pilots on Paragraph 1.
 
"WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE POSSIBLE THREATS TO THE PEACE AND WELFARE OF THIS COUNTRY - BOTH NOW AND DURING THE NEXT FEW YEARS?", are that no matter what the future may hold in the way of war for our peace-loving nation, the warmakers will strike through the air. We know latent weapons are being developed, rockets, and radio-guided missiles of various types and character. We know, too, that our enemies are working furiously to solve the secret of the atomic bomb. Our enemies will press home their attacks through the air. The airplane will be their principal weapon -- the carrier of their devilish devices of death. The airplane will carry all the terrible destruction that their inventors and scientists may be capable of devising. Speaking realistically, obviously our only really effective defensive weapon against all is -- THE AIRPLANE. 

In modern global warfare, time and distance are the principal factors, and the only way to keep peace and properly protect our people is to build our airplanes better and faster with greater cruising range than those of our enemies. In future wars, any attack against us must be stopped at its source or intercepted effectively before it reaches its assigned targets in our country. This causes it to be abundantly necessary that we do not stint on effort, time, nor money for scientific research to fully and completely develop all branches of our country's aviation, including military, naval, commercial, and air line transportation -- the latter, the greatest of air reserve reservoirs. The formula of General Nathan B. Forrest of Civil War fame, "The way to win battles is to get there firstest with the mostest," is as true today as it was when these fateful words were uttered. It is even more factual today because at the time General Forrest was fighting campaigns, the one who arrived first with the most certainly had an advantage, but it wasn't necessarily the difference between defeat and victory. In modern global aerial warfare, the one who reaches his targets first will strike the decisive blow and thereafter there will be little or no opposition. 

Prior to the beginning of World War II, there was must discussion and even ridicule about the national defense value of air line transportation and the air line pilots. Now the ridicule has ceased and there is no more argument. The point has been proved. The air line pilots feel that, both now and for all time, we must not take the terrible chances of again permitting our aviation to fall into the deplorable and pitiful inadequacy that followed World War I. This time we paid a terrible price in life and money for our mistake; next time the price can very likely be our freedom. 

This brings us to Paragraph 2 in the Chairman's September 15 statement, "IN THE LIGHT OF KNOWN AND POTENTIAL DANGERS, WHAT IS THE KIND OF AN AIR ESTABLISHMENT -- MILITARY AND CIVILIAN -- THAT WE SHOULD HAVE NOW -- TWO YEARS FROM NOW -- FIVE YEARS FROM NOW?" The air line pilots' answer to that point is that we must maintain our air supremacy in every respect. We have achieved air supremacy and we have, despite