A New Use For Television

Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 28, 23 January 1931, Page 6

A New Use For Television

Destroying Enemy Submarines h 4 LEVISION pictures transmitted from an army observation plane were recently employed to locate and destroy theoretical enemy submarines intent on reaching the Golden Gate and San Francisco. The observation plane was sent out to find the "enemy" vessels, particularly submarines, known to be proceeding toward the harbour. The plane

was equipped with a television transmitter, which was operated in conjunction with a ground station far inland. The trained observer saw the tell-tale. spear-head wake of two submarines on the water below, although the vessels were so deep that their periscopes were under water. He immediately made a sketch of the ocean and adjacent land below, depicting the position of the submarines by two crosses. On the map he printed a request for a bombing plane, and then transmitted the sketch by television to the ground station, where it was handed to a bombing crew. The bombing plane immediately took off, flew to the indicated locality, and dropped dummy depth charges before the submarines had proceeded a mile.