UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Annual report of the Assistant Secretary of War (Mr. Payne). Annual report of the Assistant Secretary of War (Mr. Davison). Appendix A Financial statements of the War Department. Appendix C. Assignment, strength, and loss statistics of the Army.... Appendix D. Miscellaneous statistics pertaining to the Army... ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF WAR The PRESIDENT: I have the honor to submit the annual report of my office for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1930. INTRODUCTION The Army has been fortunate during the past fiscal year in being able to pursue its own training and further the coordinated development of its various components without being called upon to intervene in any domestic or international crisis. The opportunity has not been lost and the efficiency of the Army of the United States has been increased, an efficiency that is vital to the national security. The Army, as a whole, is more efficient to-day than at any time since the World War. This condition is due, in large part, to the vision, energy, and continuity of purpose of my predecessors, who discerned and sponsored the measures necessary to be taken in order to reconstitute the elements of the Army and unite them in their new relationship as components of our organization for national defense. The wide experience and sympathetic interest of my immediate predecessor, the Hon. James W. Good, are reflected in policies that have materially assisted in the economical administration of the War Department and the maintenance of adequate forces for the defense of the Nation. His remarkable energy was expended without stint in the performance of the duties of his office and the consideration of the many problems that confronted him during the first year of the current administration. His service to the country should not be forgotten. REGULAR ARMY The commissioned, warrant officers, and enlisted strength of the active list of the Regular Army on June 30, 1930, exclusive of the Philippine Scouts, aggregated 130,910. Approximately 35 per cent of this number were on duty outside the continental limits of the United States. The enlisted strength of the various arms and services on June 30, 1930, was as follows: Infantry, 41,259; Cavalry, 7,794; Field Artillery, 14,633; Coast Artillery Corps, 12,324; Corps of Engineers, 4,465; Quartermaster Corps, 7,536; Ordnance Department, 2,250; Finance Department, 400; Chemical Warfare Service, 413. The enlisted strength of the Air Corps on June 30, 1930, was 12,034. Pilots of the Regular Army, Reserve Corps, and National Guard flew a total of 353,987 aircraft-hours during the fiscal year 1930, an increase of 65,445 of airplane-hours over the fiscal year 1929 and an increase of 147,093 airplane-hours over the fiscal year 1928. Joint aircraft and antiaircraft exercises were held at Aberdeen Proving Ground. The purposes of these exercises were to develop the tactics and technique of the joint defense of an airdrome by the Air Corps and antiaircraft artillery, and to test the soundness of the organization and equipment of an antiaircraft brigade intelligence battery by organizing a provisional intelligence battery from troops taking part in the exercises. Air Corps maneuvers were held on the Pacific coast at Mather Field, Sacramento, Calif. The following Air Corps units were concentrated for these exercises. These units upon arrival at Sacramento were organized as a provisional wing, and for a period of three weeks engaged in an Air Corps demonstration and air force command and staff exercise. The lessons learned from these annual exercises and the experience gained by Air Corps units in operating as an air force more than com pensate for the expenses involved in such concentrations. With a view to providing Air Corps officers and officers of ground arms an opportunity to serve together and, by association, to establish a mutual understanding which will make possible intelligent tactical cooperation, the War Department authorized corps area commanders to attach officers of the Air Corps to units of ground arms, and similarly to attach officers of ground arms to Air Corps units. The practicability and desirability of this interchange has not yet been determined. Normal progress has been made in the realization of the Air Corps 5-year program, which has been definitely budgeted to completion in the fiscal year 1932, and which, in consequence, if not modified by future legislation, will be accomplished by June 30 of that year. At the present time plane deliveries are abreast of schedules, though deficiencies exist in certain types, and the schedules themselves are undergoing revision. The Air Corps gains slowly in commissioned personnel because of the high rate of attrition within the Corps and the existing limitation on the Army's total commissioned strength. Since March 4, 1929, the scheduled transfers of enlisted men to the Air Corps have been effected, involving some 50 per cent of the second increment, and the third increment in its entirety. To obtain this last increment, which brought approximately 1,900 men to the Air Corps, it was necessary to institute a far-reaching reorganization within the other arms and services. Five battalions of Infantry were rendered inactive, as was one regiment of Field Artillery, less one battalion. Numerous other minor adjustments were also made in the Field Artillery, Cavalry, Corps of Engineers, Chemical Warfare Service, and Ordnance Department. If the policy of building up the enlisted strength of the Air Corps by transfers from the other arms is continued, the Army will soon be unable properly to perform its many missions. Already training in our summer camps has been adversely affected by the reduction in strength of our Regular organizations. The depletion of the other arms must stop or else our program of national defense must undergo reorganization and the missions assigned the Regular Army by the national defense act be modified. During the fiscal year 1930 barracks to house approximately 2,415 enlisted men, together with 216 noncommissioned officers' quarters and 80 officers' quarters, were constructed at Langley Field, Va.; March Field, Calif.; Mitchel Field, N. Y.; Randolph Field, Tex.; and Selfridge Field, Mich. The cost of construction, including utilities, was approximately $6,295,000. The Regular Army in general devoted more extensive periods of time to tactical training during the past year than in recent years. Practically all units made practice marches of at least 100 miles, averaging two weeks in the field. Organizations are efficient in individual shooting, marching, and the tactics of small units. Taking into consideration the low strength of units their readiness for field service is satisfactory. Mobile troops in the First, Third, and Fourth Corps Areas and oversea departments were concentrated for training in the employment of the combined arms. In the Eighth Corps Area, the 1st Cavalry Division, with the 10th Cavalry attached, engaged in a 10-day maneuver. Additional maneuvers were held in this corps area involving units of the 2d Infantry Division stationed at Fort Sam Houston, the 3d Attack Group and one brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division, with the object of testing the comparative tactical mobility of mounted and motor-carried troops. Minor joint Army and Navy exercises were held in the oversea departments and on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts (harbor defenses of Long Island Sound and Puget Sound, respectively). These exercises tested communications, intelligence systems, defense plans, and training methods. They provided an excellent |