Page 74 - World Airnews Magazine June 2020 Edition

NEWS DIGITAL

MEET "JENNY":

The first plane used in an American military excursion

by Peter Suciu

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in the United States
probably isn’t where you’d likely expect to find any
particular noteworthy US military aircraft.
The base is arguably most famous - even infamous
to some - for being the home to the US military
corrections complex, but that is really just one small
facet of this army installation, which actually dates
back to 1827.
In fact the prison, which does consist of the United
States disciplinary barracks - the department of
defence’s only maximum security prison - actually
only dates back to 1874.
The base, which is the oldest active US army post west of It went on to become the first mass-produced American aircraft,
Washington, DC, is located on the spot where explorers Lewis and the two-seater was widely used for training by American and
and Clark crossed the Missouri River in 1804 and later Stephen Canadian pilots during the First World War.
Harriman Long in 1819. While Fort Leavenworth is also home to The JN-4D was the first aircraft used by the United States
Sherman Army Airfield it is actually within the complex’s military Marines Corps (USMC).
museum where one can find a truly unique piece of military During the United States occupation of Haiti it was used in the
aviation history. first ‘dive bombing’ attack, when in the summer of 1919 Lieutenant
Today Fort Leavenworth may be as centrally located in the Lawson H. M. Sanderson of the 4th Squadron with his fellow pilots
country as possible, but it was once at the edge of the frontier, and developed a more accurate method to deliver bombs against the
home to the impressive Frontier army museum. enemy ‘Cacos’.
It is here, within the museum’s collection that chronicles the This involved abandoning the hitherto standard procedure of
history of the military’s role in the westward expansion of the allowing the observer releasing the bomb from a horizontal flight
United States, where one can find an early Curtiss Model J biplane, to one where the plane entered a steep dive of 45 degrees, which
an aircraft that has earned the nickname “Jenny.” pointed the nose of the aircraft at the target. During the first
While the 1909 Wright Military Flyer was actually the world’s dive bombing Sanderson successfully released his bomb from the
first military plane, it was the Curtiss Model J that was the first pilot’s position at an altitude of just 250 feet. This provided more
aircraft to be used in American military excursion when it was accurate and other members of the squadron adopted this tactic.
flown by the U.S. Army Signal Corps for tactical operations in The Jenny was notable for other significant ‘firsts’ - including
Mexico against Pancho Villa. becoming the first to fly US air mail and the first to be used in tests
The JN-2s used by the First Aero Squadron in operations in for ‘plane-to-plane’ and ‘ground-to-plane’ communication.
Mexico weren’t entirely successful; many were plagued with After the end of the First World War military aircraft were
mechanical problems and poor performance, but the modified sold as surplus and the Jenny was popular among the 1920s era
JN-3 proved far more effective even if these had a lower ceiling. ‘barnstorming’ exploits. Q

AFRICAN EASA CONDUCTS EUROPEAN GENERAL
AVIATION SURVEY

By Wallace Mawire
the trends in general aviation flight activity, aircraft equipment and
fleet composition trends to support safety analysis in Europe and
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has initiated long term strategic decision making.
an European general aviation survey for 2020 to help shape the It has also been added that last year the survey collected over
European Plan for Aviation Safety (EPAS). 6,000 responses and the results were used in the EASA annual
The agency is looking for assistance from pilots, owners and safety review 2019 to calculate accident rates for non-commercial
operators of general aviation aircraft to help shape the EPAS. aeroplanes.
EASA is supporting the General Aviation Manufacturers “This year we are hoping for even wider participation from the
Association (GAMA) and the International Council of Aircraft General Aviation community,” EASA said.
Owner and Pilot Associations (IAOPA) with the 2020 European Individual responses are confidential and will not be shared with
General Aviation survey. the public or regulators, nor will they be used for marketing or any
The annual survey will help provide a better understanding of other commercial purposes. Q

World Airnews | June Extra 2020
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