To the Engine Repair Park the brigade has looked for the main portion of that mechanical work on which so much has depended, and it has not looked in vain. The necessity for the establishment of this unit was apparent from the first, it being put into action about the time when flying might be said to have reached a permanent status. Some three months later, in August, 1917, the unit was enlarged by provision for aeroplane repair, and work of both types was done under one command. With the rapidly increasing flying hours put in by the Corps, there again appeared the necessity for still further enlargement, and the unit was finally subdivided into Engine and Aeroplane Repair. This system remained till the close of hostilities.

It is quite obvious that the mechanical condition of the power plant of an aeroplane is of paramount importance, and, in consequence, no expense or trouble was spared to put the Engine Repair Park on the best possible basis. The equipment, which in the winter of 1917, promised to be ample, soon proved insufficient, and in September, 1918, the Park moved into large and most completely fitted shops in rented premises on King Street. In this building four floors presented a scene of extreme activity, the work being so arranged as to be progressive, finishing with the final tests before shipment. During its life of some nineteen months, this Park completely overhauled no less than 1,325 engines, of which all but thirty-five were of the Curtiss 8-cylinder type. Records show that for a complete overhaul, such as was given, an average of 300 hours’ work was required. The total strength of the unit in November, 1918, was 125.

It is of interest to note that obligations covered the complete dissembling and assembling of engines, the repair sections, situated at the various wings, doing only a top overhaul, for which they were suitably equipped.

During 1918, it became apparent that considerable saving could be effected by carrying the work of the unit into the manufacture of engines as well as their repair, and, in consequence, much time and thought was given to the turning out of those integral parts which, assembled, made up the complete engine. To such a pitch was this carried that the point was reached at which only about twenty individual parts out of several hundred were purchased, the balance being the product of the Repair Park itself. It is estimated that in this way some $30,000 was saved on the manufacture of Curtiss engines, and some $20,000 additional when this economical system was applied to the manufacture of machine gun parts. These estimates of saving are probably low, owing to the fact that 50c. an hour was allowed for bench work and $1.00 an hour for machine work.

The rarity of any serious engine trouble reported by the flying wings, is a tribute not only to the admirably simple design of the Curtiss engine, but also to the excellent work done by the Engine Repair Park.