THE WILD BLUE YONDER

Muhrking and propagandizing for airpower, which makes a play for drama and sensation and which carries on the banner for Mitchell. He recounts the prejudices against the plane which were perpetuated for years; the retarding of the industry by Zaharoff during the first war, to the end that the war be protracted; the aircraft scandal, when the Treasury put out money to build planes and certain individuals conspired to bottleneck the output. Mitchell's fight against the suppression of air power -- and his court martial (of which Gauvreau wrote in his Billy Mitchell). Then the period between wars, the manufacture of planes for Germany and Japan, keeping our customers tisfied but making no provisions for our own defense. Next Pearl Harbor --and continued belittling of air power, with emphasis on MacArthur's bias against it and the bitter cost in the l of the Philippines. (Editorial comment -- one questions his knowledge here --MacArthur's own papers would prove that he recognized its importance and demanded more air support of unheeding Congress). He exalts the virtuoso performance of Chennault another her disparaged by the brass hate, and the ignoring of his plea for an armada to operate from Chinese bases. Finally, through the instrumentality of ""Hap"" Arnold, friend and disciple of Mitchell, air power gets a chance to prove itself. An expose -- in ""now it can be told"" technique. Gauvreau, has a popular approach -- his position has validity --but his Filly Mitchell showed a tendency to go off half-cooked. Watch it.