 to Germany, from Alaska to Puerto Rico. All over the world, the United States Army is on the alert to defend our country, you, the American people, against aggression. This is the Big Picture, an official television report to the nation from the United States Army. Now to show you part of the Big Picture, here is Sergeant Stuart Queen. We are continuing our special series of first-hand reports of America's continental armies. Our subject for this issue of the Big Picture is 4th Army, its principal units and installations. 4th Army has many interesting activities, such as the development and testing of guided missiles, the big guns of the artillery, and the training program of Army aviation. But it also contains the sites of many historic relics of America's great expansion in the last century. Now here is our guide, Lieutenant John Mortimer. This is Lieutenant John Mortimer and the Big Picture camera. This week we're taking you on a tour of 4th Army. At Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, headquarters of 4th Army, we enter the Fame Quadrangle. In 1846, this post was established as a training center where volunteers from the north were trained and sent to join General Taylor's Army in Mexico. Here, tame deer run unhappard through the grounds. 1898 became a memorable year in San Antonio history when Colonel Leonard Wood arrived to prepare for the encampment and training of Teddy Roosevelt and his rough riders before they went to Cuba. Throughout the grounds, there are many reminders of earlier times in the 4th's history. During those early days, this structure was built as tall as a nine-story building to hold a water tank high enough to provide enough pressure to carry water to all parts of the encampment. From this tower, one can see east, north, west, and south, the whole sweeping area of Fort Sam Houston. But perhaps the most colorful page of Texas history can be found at the first military center at San Antonio, the Alamo. The most historic battle in Texas was waged within these walls. In 1836, 184 Texans fought the last man against the attack led by Mexico's general, Santa Aña. Fighting raised around the church and convent, surrounded by this wall, eight feet high and two-and-one-half feet wide. One of the famous heroes, David Crockett, fought battlesly during the battle, as did Colonel James Bowie, both dying in the cause to send the cry, remember the Alamo, ringing through Texas history. The 4th Army is contributing to the history, not only of Texas, but of the entire southwest. Here is 4th Army's commanding general, Lieutenant General I.D. White. Good morning, General White. Well, I see you have the camera set up for the big pictures tour of the 4th Army area. Yes, sir. We're getting ready for a trip around your Army area. As commanding general of 4th Army, sir, would you tell us about the mission of 4th Army? I'd be glad to. The mission of the 4th Army is to administer and to supply and to train all of the Army units in our 5-state Army area. And what are those 5 states, sir? The states of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Oklahoma. I see. Now our first stop, sir, will be Fort Hood, Texas. What might be of interest to our big picture audience there? Well, Fort Hood is the home of the famous 1st Armored Division, one of our really great divisions of World War II. And they have just had assigned to them a new armored personnel carrier, which I think your audience would find of great interest. Well, that sounds very interesting. Our next stop, sir, is Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Fort Sill is the home of the artillery center. Some people call it the artillery center of the world. There, perhaps the atomic cannon would be of considerable interest to you. And also, perhaps your audience would like to take a look at the Army's light aviation school. Our next stop is Western Texas and Fort Bliss. Fort Bliss has the Army's anti-aircraft and guided missile center. I'm sure that your audience has heard a great deal about the Nike guided missile. And I'm sure that they would like to see something of it. Perhaps you can get something on that out there. And then we're going on to White Sands, the proving ground. Well, I guess there the perhaps the most interesting thing would be the scientists who work on the guided missiles. That all sounds very interesting, General. Now we'll load our big picture camera and be off on our trip to 4th Army. Fine. Well, good luck to you. Thank you very much, sir. After talking with General White, the big picture camera goes to another part of Fort Sam Houston to take in the Brook Army Medical Center. Here at Brook Army Hospital, the unforgettable words of Abraham Lincoln to care for him who shall have borne the battle are engraved not only in stone, but in the hearts of those who have made the care of the wounded their life's work. Their dedication has made healing an exact science and help lower the combat mortality rate. Dedicated to the same end is the Center's Surgical Research Unit. Here, technicians work unceasingly to save the lives and speed the recovery of the wounded and injured. To aid them in their tasks, they have available the most advanced equipment science can provide. It was in 1920 that the Surgeon General established an institution to provide complete coverage of field medicine in all wartime aspects. This institution is the Medical Field Service School, where Army medics learn to conserve the fighting strength of combat units. They learn this on a nearby training field where simulated problems in evacuation are carried out. In battle, wounded men must be removed with the greatest speed, and these medics drill constantly in the techniques to accomplish that. The wounded man is placed aboard the helicopter and protected from the wind and elements by a plastic hood. The helicopter is the newest bit of equipment used in medical evacuation. In Korea, it made a dramatic contribution to the lowering of casualty rates because of its ability to reach inaccessible places and lift itself into the air quickly. The helicopter speedily carries the wounded to the nearest hospital unit where they will be treated with skill and started back on the road to recovery. Confident that the Army Medical Service Training is meeting the newest challenge in the evacuation and treatment of combat wounded, the big picture camera rolls away from the oldest fort in the Great Southwest and the headquarters of military activities in five states of the region. Our itinerary sends us some 150 miles northward in the vast state of Texas, to Fort Hood, activated in World War II. Here, an intensive armored training program aims at combat readiness for a proud old division which won fame in African Italy and then was reactivated in 1951, the first armored division. A tank infantry problem is being run here. Sergeant, you're in a structure here, aren't you? Yes, I am. Well, you'd be just the man to tell us about this armored personnel carrier. How is it so useful to the infantry? Well, the armored personnel carrier is useful in such a way that it protects lives. Also, it will take them in on the objective underneath the enemy of small arms fire and the enemy artillery fire. We can get the objective underneath our own artillery fire. I see you're all loaded here. Yes, we are. Would you like to go along and see what happens? I'll be fine. Get the proper gear here. You've got to have the right gear here. The other personnel carriers move out with us. The tank's full in line. The tank infantry team is on the way. Together, the components of the team push towards the objective, the hill that lies directly ahead of us. From inside the personnel carrier, we hear a barrage of shell fire late on the objective. Approximately time-fired to keep the enemy pinned down by fragments burst over the heads of the empty carriers we're riding in, making us very grateful for the carrier's protected shell of armor. This is the part of the operation which proves the real value of the personnel carrier. We go forward under the overhead fire while the enemy is held coupless and immobile in their positions. A tank infantry operation is a coordinated movement in which each vehicle, each man has a specific function. On predetermined signal, the overhead proximity fire ceases and precisely at that time before the enemy has time to take up their position and continue to fire the personnel carrier's hull and the infantry men dismount to take over our part of the operation to pose with the enemy and take the hill. Leaving these trainees who are being taught the importance of teamwork between infantry, armor and artillery, the big picture camera wins its way northward once more. Our next stop will be the Army's artillery center to see the greatest school of its type in the world at Fort Sill, Oklahoma where the techniques of artillery support are taught. Proud of their heritage, the big gun people have named the two largest buildings at Fort Sill after artillery men who died in World War II. McNair Hall commemorates Lieutenant General Leslie J. McNair killed while observing the American attack at St. Louis, France. Serby Hall honors Brigadier General Edmund W. Serby, artillery officer of 3rd Army's 80th Infantry Division who died fighting off a German tank attack with an M1 rifle. We leave the main part of camp and head out toward the firing range. Along the road are specimens of the field artillery which was responsible for a great percentage of the enemy battle casualties in World War II. We pass artillery trainees practicing the tracking of targets by means of radar. We go now to watch the firing problem of a 280-millimeter gun. Corporal, what is this problem you're firing? Sir, this problem here is a day problem, dawn problem, sir, which we are firing a 280-millimeter gun. It is a problem which we take in our battery test. We have three tests, day, night, and dawn, which determines whether the battery will pass to go on to further locations. Are they just about ready to fire now? Yes, sir. It's about 1-0 seconds. That's pretty smooth operation. Yes, sir. That weapon is very smooth. It has two recoils to it. Now, what would you say standing back here, how that looked to you? Is that a good fire? Yes, sir. That was a very good fire considering the terrain and different locations of the weapon and different things about the weapon. That was a very good shoot. But there will have to be some tabulations made before you know whether you're on your way or not to a new location. Yes, sir. We have umpires in the area which are scoring us on every movement we make. We cannot go out into the open. We have to stay underneath trees, and such things as that. They check everything we do. Thank you very much, Bob. It was nice to talk to you. Yes, sir. Another part of Fort Sill is gaining attention these days. The Big Picture camera visits the Army Aviation School where the sky is dotted with training planes and the increasingly popular helicopters. I'm Lieutenant John Mortimer, Big Picture Camera. I'm glad to know you. I'm Captain Moffill. Sir, are you instructor here? That's right, yes. I'm the Aviation School. I wonder if we could interrupt you for a moment. Oh, certainly, yes. Lieutenant Phillips, an excuse, may I please? We'd like to find out about some of the activities going on here at the Aviation School. On our way out, we saw all these planes up in the air. How do you control so many aircraft at one time? Well, the best way for that would be to go to the control tower at postfield itself. Oh, fine. You can see the traffic directed there. I'd like you to meet Lieutenant John Mortimer at the Big Picture. Good morning, sir. How are you? You certainly keep that traffic on snarl upstairs. Thanks, Lieutenant. We tried. It gets kind of rough sometime, especially when our classes go out and we have about 30 or 40 aircraft to contend with in five-second intervals. Well, how many would that say in a month be landings? Well, it's hard to say. Sometime we forget. Well, now, where do you get all this training here? Well, sir, when we first come here, we're put on the job training for 30 days and then we're sent to school. I went to Olathe Air Station in Kansas and some of the others went to Keesler Air Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. And after that? Well, then we come back here and we're put on the job for about six months to see if we're suited for it. Well, what if you're not suitable? Well, then you're put in some other aviation job so that your training won't go to waste. Why are you smiling? Well, sir, I was just thinking, and time went by so fast I didn't realize that I'd been here over nine months. I guess I'm in. You're in. That's fine. Do you like this being a traffic cop? Yes, sir. I certainly do. Thank you very much. You've been lucky. Thank you, sir. Thank you very much. Come on over on this side of the Tower, Lieutenant, and we'll see some of the students trying out their wings. Now, these planes are passing short field landings and takeoffs. That's the takeoff barrier right there. That's right. Now, this plane is passing into position. Well, hold his brakes, run up his throttle, and he'll release his brakes, keeping his tail low. Just before the aircraft gets to the barrier, you leave the ground at almost stalling speed to clear the barrier. Now, besides taking off, they land for this efficiency... That's right. Now, you look right over here, and you have another aircraft that you're going to make a short field landing over this simulated barrier. And when they're through with this type of training, they're all set for practically any type of field. That's right. They leave the simulated barriers here. We'll make this pilot efficient enough to go into short fields over trees, houses, or other actual obstacles. That's a pretty short landing right there. That's the landing roll that the aircraft makes. It's all very interesting, Captain. Thank you very much. You're welcome, Lieutenant. As part of their curriculum at this school, pilots also receive instruction in tactical and instrument flying on all kinds of Army aircraft. Though in different states, the next two installations are neighbors and have a certain kinship in that they are both guided-missile centers. One operating at a high technological level, and the other engaged in the training of men to man the missiles. The latter mission is undertaken at Fort Bliss, Texas, at the Anti-Aircraft Artillery and Guided Missile Center. Following eight weeks of basic training at the Replacement Training Center, the recruits come here for specialized instruction. The training here turns some of them out as anti-aircraft artillery men. Some become radar or director operators. And others become specialists in the technique of aircraft warning. 2-2-3-4-1-8, Angels. Fox 9-2-2-3-4-2-4-7-6-8-4-6-1. Out on the training field, the big-picture camera visits a sky sweeper battery, which is ready to go into action. We latch on to an instructor, Sergeant Glenn Kritzer, to get some data on the sky sweeper's principles of operation. Sergeant, what would you say about the sky sweeper, not in physical detail, but as to its effects? Sir, I'd say it's a very wonderful weapon, and being that it is very highly mobile and it can be put into almost any position to be set up very rapidly and ready to fire, it's got a very active radar on it, which can be locked onto a target very promptly. Using the target selector and your computer periscope is a very wonderful weapon. Well, I'll take your word for it. Yes, sir, you don't have to take my word for it. The sky sweeper talks for itself. See that spot up in the air up there? Yes. Well, you just watch that spot. The important mission of the Center at Fort Bliss is the training of Kedriman and replacements for guided missile units. This is done by the first guided missile brigade, composed of the first and second guided missile groups. The brigade is a unique training organization designed to keep pace with any new developments in this fast-growing field. Such exacting jobs as loading, launching and handling guided missiles are taught here. Any guided missile, including those yet to be conceived by the scientists at White Sands Proving Ground in nearby New Mexico, where the big picture camera goes now to show you an actual missile shoot. From the lonely desert outpost it once was, White Sands today is a 4,000 square mile area, teaming with activity as a proving ground for guided missiles. When it was being activated, it was to serve only as a temporary testing facility, but its amazing growth and importance increased to such a point that in September 1948, it was reclassified as a permanent ordinance activity. Before this test is started, can you tell us a few facts about what's going on? Well, we have here a complete Nike system over there in the short distance there. You can see the missiles. Normally now there's one coming up. You'll see just right now. It's slowly coming up into its position that it will be fired from. The one to the left there, of course, is flying down and will stay down on its launching rail. Now, off to the right here, we have the actual complicated equipment that guides us. You'll see here in just a moment that the thing will be up in the normal position for firing. What we have done now is to take this system and set it up and adjust it, and we're now about ready to fire a test missile. Now, just before we go, about how much time is it before the shoot actually will take place? There's approximately seven or eight minutes. Before that goes, tell us about yourself, how you take part in the civilian engineer scientist. Of course, there are a lot of us here engaged in the Nike program and other programs, but there still aren't enough. We need more here as well as, of course, in different parts of the country. It's a great need for trained electronic men, engineers, physicists, and so on. We don't have enough. As we drove through the proving grounds, we noticed there was an awful great deal of testing going on at that time. That's what we're engaged in here is testing this thing. This system is priced out of the factory now and we're trying it out and it's actually what we do, your proof test program. Now, how are we going to tell when this Nike is going to go off? You will hear the regular countdown. They count down second by second and when it gets to zero, somebody pushes the fire switch and the missile takes off. We better step back then and wait for that counting down, is that correct? Very good. While we're waiting, we look at one of the many test stands where the rocket motor thrust is gauged is studied carefully by the scientists who can thus deduce precisely the motor's power. And now it's about time to get back to the missile launchy. Fire the missile now. In the background, you can hear the countdown. 35 seconds before takeoff. When the time gets down to zero, you will see the customary flash from the bottom of the missile and it will be on its way. Coming up on 20 seconds now. 8 seconds to go. This is because these vehicles probe constantly into space, so the pursuit of scientific research goes on into every phase of guided missiles at White Sands Proving Ground aptly called the miracle of Tularosa Basin. This is Lieutenant John Mortimer bidding you goodbye from the last stop in our tour of some of the installations in the 4th Army area. We're on our way now to 5th Army where we'll be with you next week. And that's the story of 4th Army. Another in the Big Picture special series of on-the-spot reports of our Continental Armies. Next week, we'll continue our guided tour of America's forces in the zone of the interior. The Big Picture camera will be focused on an army which sprawls over 13 states in area the largest of our great Continental Forces. The 5th Army. This is Sergeant Stuart Queen inviting you to tune in next week for another look at your army in action on the Big Picture. The Big Picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the Army at home and overseas. Produced by the Signal Corps Pictorial Center. Presented by the U.S. Army in cooperation with this station. You can be an important part of the Big Picture. You can proudly serve with the best equipped, the best trained, the best fighting team in the world today. The United States Army.