One Road to Germany

Russian intelligence reports show our few raids to date have had a devastating and demoralizing effect on the German people. Russia wants 1,000-plane raids on Germany from England every night.*--Wendell Willkie in Moscow (see p. 27).

The Russian Government was the first to say--as a Government--that the U.S. and Britain should immediately concentrate their bomb power in Britain and open a real, sustained air offensive against Germany. TIME has summarized the possibilities and likely rewards of such an offensive policy ("The Red Bombing of Germany"--Sept. 7). By last week many an authoritative voice had been raised in behalf of all-out air attack on the western front this year. Some recent comments :

Major General Ira Eaker, U.S. bomber commander in Britain: "There are enough airdromes now built and building to "accommodate all the Allied air forces needed for the destruction of Germany. I believe it is possible to destroy the enemy from the air. By destroying his aircraft factories you can put an end to his air force. By destroying his munition plants and communications you can make it impossible for him to build submarines. There is nothing that can be destroyed by gunfire that cannot be destroyed by bombs."

William B. Ziff, author of the best-selling The Coming Battle of Germany, wrote in the current Reader's Digest: "Time is running out on us. We must act without further delay. We must utilize now all demolition carriers [bombers] in our possession. Whether they are ideal in their performance qualities or not, we must throw them headlong at the enemy. . . . We must have, then, one armed force to which all else will be auxiliary--an air force. We must have one production line to which all others will take second place --a production line serving that air force. We would do well to remember that just as this is the only road open to us for attack on Germany, it is also the only road open to Hitler for attacking America."

But from a commander of the German Luftwaffe came perhaps the most potent of all arguments for stepping up air assault on Germany in 1942. Discussing the problems posed for Germany by Allied air raids, the Russian campaign and Germany's minimum preparations for other Allied action in Europe, General Erich Quade said on Sept. 4: "Germany and the whole of the Greater Reich are the second front, but when we are finished in the East thousands of bombers will be freed for operations over Britain and other duties in the West."

* Twenty nights per month is the best average hoped for by airmen acquainted with British and continental weather.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.