The Lockheed XP-38

    
In 1929, the stock market crashed causing the well-known depression that lasted until late in the 1930. We find it extremely difficult now to even imagine the conditions that existed then. People worked for a few cents an hour but prices were also low. Magazines cost ten cents and coffee was five cents a cup. You could buy an entire dinner for less than one dollar. Consequently, Congress provided very limited funding, especially in Defense spending. The Army Air Corps was restricted and had to fight the Army, Navy and the Marine Corps for every cent.
     All Army Air Corps development was located at Wright Patterson airfield in Dayton, Ohio. There were a few lower ranked officers in charge of new developments, including Lieutenant Ben Kelsey. These officers were well aware of developments in Europe, with the growth of Hitler and German airpower. Colonel Charles Lindbergh had been able to view first hand the remarkable progress they were making. He visited factories and was able to see for himself. Lindbergh became convinced we should avoid war at all costs and became a spokesman for the growing group of Americans opposing any involvement of American interests in Europe.
     In the early 1930s biplane fighters were used by all air services. Design work was under way in Germany on monoplane fighters such as the Me 109 series. In those days high speed bombers were being developed. In 1935, our first B-17s were faster than most of our fighters such as Curtiss Hawks and Boeing P-12 and F4Bs. It became obvious to the Wright Field planning team that the U.S. must defend against high-speed bombers and they began
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