Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 11 August 1943 — Page 2

IDING MONOPOLY]

‘Otects Outmoded System of Fueling Military Planes! |

House Committee Reports.

-- By THOMAS L. STOKES Times Special Writer

\ WASHINGTON, Aug. 11.—The house military affairs|| immittee has prepared a report,.after months of investigaMm, charging the army air forces with perpetuating and ‘Protecting a monopoly by Aqua Systems, Inc., of New York, in. an airport fueling system for pumping gasoline into mili-|2 airplanes . and separating water from gasoline—a |8 ‘System proved inefficient by bureau of standards tests nearly 5 ‘a-year ago. = Other types of separators, proved far better by bureau |} of standards tests, have been frozen out. : The many accidents ‘to military planes have recently | 3 f become a matter of concern. While data on military plane - accidents and their possible . causes is secret, the civil

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in Aqua getting the business. The instructions said:

aeronautics authority has found that water in the fuel system has caused some civil- | Jan airplane accidents. (In combat areas a different system is in use, handpumps being _ émployed rather than the hydraulic “system in use here, in which water Ey is the agent to force the gasoline into the plane tank). ‘The military affairs committ report is a closel guarded secret Officials refuse discuss it. It expected to submitted in

“This request is made because it =

is understood that Aqua Systems, |

Inc., will not guarantee the gaso- |=

. : : | 8 line systems installed by them |

under their patents unless these water separators are installed; and

in view of the opinion of the engi- 2

neering branch that these separa-

tors are of value though not 100|H

per cent effective” As a matter of fact, information! in the hands of the military affairs committee is to the effect that they are only 70 per cent effective with a low gallonage, and less than that when the flow is more rapid.

Other Systems Better

Subsequently, in September, the bureau of standards made tests on several types of separators sub-

few days to Sec- : Mr. Stokes retary ~~ of War Stimson, Undersecretary Patterson, and Gen. Henry H. Arnold, head of the army air forces.

The military affairs committee, which began its investigation well over a year ago, planned public hearings, but these were stopped by orders from the White House and the secretary and undersecretary of war. .

Hopes for Action Now

It now hopes to get some action after being blocked at every turn. The story of Aqua Systems and ils preferential status is told in amazing detail in the records of investigations by the justic department and the military affairs committee. It reveals entertainment of and - favors given to, army air force offi cers, including ' the distribution at Christmas, 1941, of $3000 worth of llguor bought in Washington by company .officials; submission to the company of specifications of proj: ects in which is was. interested:

| companies until July 1 of this year.

sudden transfer of officers who had | ky

some say in matters in which Aqua | was interested. | . “It is a stench” is the volunteered comment of people who have | dad any part in the investigations.

Indicted in 1942

The Aqua company and a subdiary, Flotation Systems, Inc. ere indicted in New York on

March 17, 1942. Aqua was charged |= the justice department with vio-|E

ting the anti-trust laws since 929, with maintaining a monopoly

of 95 per cent of the business in |S hydraulic gasoline storage systems E

and partly through specious rep-

resentations of patent and other |S

‘Tights which it did not have), with

obtaining “high, unreasonable, arti- |=

ficial and monopolistic prices,” and, ; creation in 1939 of Flotation Systems, Inc., with conspiring 0 grab off all business in the theh expanding airport program. The case was not contested. The

nies and the seven officials | é

mitted by various companies. These! were completed on Nov. 15, and a report was gubmitted shortly thereafter to the army air forces. This report showed other types more effective than the Aqua, and one with a rating of 99:5 per®. cent. Thus the army air forces were apprised nine months ago that the Aqua was not the best Separator. that could be obtained, and that! better ones were available. Incidentally, the bureau cf standards did not submit its official report on these tests to the other

They were put off from time to time, The army air forces still stick. to the Aqua. The justice department action has not been effective. It completed its task with the indictment and the consent decree, under which the company agreed to desist from its monopolistic practices and released its patents for licensing to others. But the monopoly still exists in practical effect, through the war department’s failure to act.

Step Into the

d pleaded nolo contendere. =

es totaling $42,000 were assessed federal court at New York, and consent. decree was entered into veén the government and the pany to stop the monopolistic

pe department anti-trust offiwho investigated the case and ted it to the New York grand yere anxious to take it to trial se of the shocking nature of of the practices disclosed, ing the heavy charges to the nment and the lavishing of ‘on army officers.

Nothing Happened

ie weeks after the indictment, ly 15, Under-Secretary of War son wrote a memo for the

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of army engineers, citing the y prices being charged the govfr He ordered that there r, if reasonable prices could not

nothing happened: Nobody

let in. The monopoly still

ously, ih ‘late May, other inies had been invited to subfor water-gasoline sepa-

figures to show that Aqua n't possibly make the device

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