1917-Continued
locations in France, England, Ireland and Italy, from
which naval air units were operating at the close of
the war.
10 August Ground was broken for the Naval
Aircraft Factory at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, Pa.
14 August In an experiment initiated through the
impetus of Rear Admiral Bradley A. Fiske, and con-
ducted by Lieutenant Edward O. McDonnell at
Huntington Bay, Long Island, N.Y., a dummy torpedo
was launched from a seaplane, but struck the water at
an unfavorable angle and ricocheted, nearly striking
the plane. This event marked the beginning of serious
Navy interest in launching torpedoes from aircraft.
15 August The Bureau of Construction and Repair
authorized the Curtiss Company to paint the wings of
naval aircraft with "English-Khaki-Gray-Enamel" and
all aircraft manufacturers to use either opaque yellow
or clear varnish on floats and hulls. These, the initial
variations to the color scheme that had been estab-
lished the preceding March, were followed by so
many other exceptions that no standard existed for the
next six months. The trend, however, was to use an
opaque yellow finish for school machines and to use a
khaki finish, similar to that used on British aircraft, for
service machines.
25 August The NC flying boat development was ini-
tiated by Chief Constructor David W. Taylor in a
memo which outlined certain general requirements of
an airplane needed in war and directed his staff to
investigate the subject further. In part, Taylor stated:
"The 'United States [Liberty] Motor' gives good promise
of being a success, and if we can push ahead on the
airplane end, it seems to me the submarine menace
could be abated, even if not destroyed, from the air.
The ideal solution would be big flying boats or the
equivalent, that would be able to fly across the
Atlantic to avoid difficulties of delivery, etc."
25 August The 12-cylinder Liberty motor passed a
50-hour test with a power output of 301 to 320 horse-
power, preliminary to being ordered into mass pro-
duction.
4 September The technical members of the Bolling
Mission, having just returned from studying air devel-
opments in Europe, submitted a report to the
Secretaries of War and Navy. Among other things they
recommended that air measures against submarines
take precedence over all other air measures, that the
UNITED STATES NAVAL AVIATION 1910-1995
29
United States establish and operate as many coastal
patrol stations in Europe as possible, and that
European aircraft be obtained for use at those stations
until the more satisfactory types manufactured in the
United States became available.
7 September In tests which led to additional orders
for 300 Simon radio transmitters, radio signals, sent
from an R-6 seaplane flying from NAS Pensacola, Fla.,
were received by Naval Radio Station New Orleans,
La., 140 miles distant.
7 September A forestry green winter service flying
uniform, of the same design as the summer uniform,
was authorized for all officers assigned to aviation
duty.
7 September A winged foul anchor was adopted as
an official device to be worn on the left breast by all
qualified Naval Aviators. Before the wings were
issued, use of the letters "U.S.", which had been incor-
porated in the first design, was abandoned by order of
12 October 1917 and the design adopted was essen-
tially that of the wings worn today.
8 September A site at Naval Operating Base,
Hampton Roads, Va., was established as an air training
station and patrol base to conduct experimental work
in seaplane operation. Detachments under training at
the Curtiss School at Newport News, Va., and at
Squantum, Mass., transferred to this location in
October, and on 27 August of the next year, the Naval
Air Station was formally established.
17 September A kite balloon from Huntington
(ACR 5) was hit by a squall and while being hauled
down struck the water so hard that the observer,
Lieutenant (jg) Henry W. Hoyt, was knocked out of
the basket and caught underwater in the balloon rig-
ging. As the balloon was pulled toward the ship,
Patrick McGunigal, Ships Fitter First Class, jumped
overboard, cleared the tangle and put a line around
Lieutenant Hoyt so that he could be hauled up on
deck. For this act of heroism, McGunigal was later
awarded the Medal of Honor.
18 September A production program of 1,700 oper-
ational type aircraft was established on the basis of a
report issued this date by the Joint Technical Board on
Aircraft.
26 September Lieutenant Louis H. Maxfield, com-
manding the Naval Air Detachment at Akron, Ohio,
reported the qualification of 11 students, including
himself, as lighter-than-air pilots and requested their

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