ATOMIC CLOUDS

Grey River Argus, 19 May 1947, Page 5

ATOMIC CLOUDS

INSTEAD OF BOBS Latest American Idea (Rec. 8.30). WASHINGTON, May 17. The. United States Army and Navy are experimenting with a new atomic weapon—a radioactive cloud, which could be released from a high-flying aircraft by non-explosive atomic shells. This fact was revealed to-day by Mr Glenn Martin, President of the aircraft company bearing his- name. He said such clouds, each of them perhaps one kilo square, could be .laid in a series. They would not kill suddenly, but would spread lingering death and corrosion over great areas. He said: “We are not sure that we want to put out too many atomic bombs, because of the radio-active cloud experiments. Atomic bombs may not be used at all in the next war. No one could live in the path of a radio-active cloud that would drift with the wind”.

Mr Martin issued a warning, however, that the radio-active cloud might prove to be a boomerang. "The wind might change, and blow it over your own men”, he said.

Mr Martin’s disclosure was first made in evidence before a Senate Aviation Sub-Committee. He amplified his remarks slightly to reporters afterwards, and then, on security grounds, decided to say no more. Mr Martin and othei’ leaders of the American aircraft industry told the Sub-C'ommit-tee that a five year plan of military aircraft procurement was essential to enable the industry to survive. They estimated, firstly, that Russia was probably procuring thirty times more planes than the Uniteci States; secondly, that America’s aircraft industry is at least two years behind Britain in jet e.ngines; thirdly, that German jet designs as advanced as the British ones are in Russian hands.

One hundred Superfortresses, the largest formation of bombers ever concentrated in a maks flight in the United States, delighted New York’s lunch-hour crowds when they flew over the city in a mock bombing raid The fleet was instructed to avoid the United Nations quarters at Lake Success and Flushing. The leader of the flight, General George Kennedy, said; “A demonstration for the benefit of the United Nations delegates was never considered”. LONDON, May 16. Army officials at Frankfurt state that German scientists sent to the United States to continue their research under the United States Government have already put the United States 10 years ahead of schedule in some fields, and saved millions of dollars. More than 350 German scientists under secret transfer have so far been sent to the United States, including the former Junkers research director, Dr. Anselm Franz, who is working on supersonic planes and jet engines at Wright field, Dayton (Ohio), and the guided missiles experts, Dr. Ernst Steinhoff and Dr. Martin Schilling.