<text id=00he0205><title>Bombsights and Guns</title>
<history>US Air Force: Events History</history>
<article><hdr>Bombsights and Guns</hdr><body>
<p>Pioneering continued at College Park. A rudimentary bomb sight had been developed by a Coast Artillery Corps officer and tested during 1911 at the school. In 1912, Colonel Isaac N. Lewis brought one of his first sample machine-guns to the school and requested that it be tested from the air. It was reasonably successful, even though the gun had no sight and was hand-held, its muzzle braced against a footrest. Night flying was tried, after one pilot was delayed on the way home and made a successful emergency landing by the light of ignited gasoline and oil puddles. Acetylene lamps were placed along the runway as guides.
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<p>Up to this time, the Army had not established its own qualifications for pilots, relying instead on the Federation Aeronautique Internationale to set standards and issue licenses. In the summer of 1912, the Army announced the new rating of Military Aviator. The candidate had to show his ability to climb his aircraft to at least 2,500 ft (762 m), operate in a wind of at least 15 mph (24 km/h), carry a passenger to 500 ft (152 m) and then deadstick the airplane to a landing within 150 ft (46 m) of a designated point. He also had to make a cross-country flight of at least 20 miles (32 km) at an average altitude of 1,500 ft (457 m).
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<p>The aviators flew their first missions in support of Army troop maneuvers in the area of New York City from 10-17 August 1912. They made reconnaissance flights, reporting the position of Red forces by radio, and including an hour-long mission over the triangle formed by Stratford, Derby and New Haven, Connecticut, spotting both Red and Blue forces in the field.
