Existing comment:
Machine Gun Fired From Airplane:
During the 1912 flying season at College Park, additional volunteers were accepted for flight instruction, more airplanes wre purchased, and new experiments were conducted. One of the most notable tests was the first firing of a machine gun from an airplane by Capt. Chandler on June 7, 1912. He scored fire hits on a 6' x 7' cheesecloth target from an altitude of 550' and obtained 14 hits from 44 bullets fired, for a remarkable 32 per cent score.
The General Staff of the US Army was unimpressed, however, and one staff officer made it clear that "airplanes were suitable only for reconnaissance and that thoughts of air battles were purely the product of the young fliers' fertile imaginations." |