THE NATION: Flight from the Past

The Army Air Forces tried to impress the people of the Eastern Seaboard last week by flying 135 World War II Superfortresses over their heads. The main target of a simulated bombing attack was New York City, which only 101 bombers reached. One squadron had to be diverted to Florida after it ran into storms over Arkansas. To the disgust of General George C. Kenney, boss of the Strategic Air Command, one squadron reached New York 20 minutes late.

New Yorkers who had never seen a real bombing raid were curious but not much impressed. More than anything else, the demonstration recalled a pre-World War II day in 1933, when a mass flight of obsolescent planes of all sizes—the nation’s entire air strength at the time—was also considered quite a thing. The 135 Superfortresses were virtually the entire effective heavy bomber strength of the Strategic Air Command.