Jets to Germany

The U.S. has only a minuscule air force in occupied Europe: 75 P-51 fighters and ten B-29 Superfortresses, all of World War II vintage. In all of Europe, the U.S., Great Britain and France together could put no more than 300 combat aircraft in the air. "Suspicion estimates" place the Russian air force along the Western border at better than 4,000 planes.

Last week, as the Soviets hotted up their cold war against the Allies in Berlin (see INTERNATIONAL), the Air Force announced that by mid-August it would double its fighter force in Germany with jet fighters. The mission fell to the crack 36th Fighter Wing, a self-contained tactical unit now stationed at Albrook Field in the Panama Canal Zone.

The 36th's pilots, with their P-80 Shooting Stars, ground crews and dependents would all be transported by ship from Panama. The Air Force said it was just a routine rotation, made in the interest of training personnel in European operating conditions.

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