114. Today in 1920s Turkey: 28 September 1927 (Provincial Town Purchases Its Very Own Airplane)

(Photograph with brief story, Karagöz, 28 September 1927, no. 2038, page 3.)

Türkçe:
Her Kazaya bir Teyyare
Bu hafta Sandıklılıların teyyaresi Sandıklı üzerinde uçuşlar yaptı, halk, köylüler, çocuklar, eşraf kendi paralarıyla alıtan teyyareye bindiler. Sevindiler, alkışladılar, Türk milleti asri silahın kuvvetini anladı ve onu edinmek için ne yapmak lazım geldiğini takdir etti.
(Altyazı: Sandıklılıların parasıyla alınan Sandıklı teyyaresi kaza halkı içinde [hususi].)

English:
An Airplane for Every Township
This week an airplane belonging to the people of Sandıklı conducted flights over Sandıklı; the townspeople, villagers, children, and town notables were given rides in the plane that they had purchased with their own money. They were pleased, they applauded, the Turkish nation has comprehended the power of the modern weapon and they prearranged what was necessary to acquire it.
(Caption: The Sandıklı airplane—purchased with the money of the people of Sandıklı— among the townspeople of Sandıklı. [private])

Comments
It was not uncommon to see articles, cartoons, and other content considering airplanes and their promise for the future in 1920s print media (e.g. #5 and #14). While the first international conflict that witnessed the use of airplanes for warfare was the Italo-Turkish War of 1911-12, it was World War I that truly opened nations’ eyes to both the threat and the potential of airplanes. It is for this reason that when the subject of airplanes surfaces in the press it is often laced with “national defense” rhetoric. In the case of the current text the reader is presented with the added message of “national initiative” and “collective effort”—both of which made the purchase of an airplane possible for one very determined town in Anatolia.

The town referred to in the news piece, Sandıklı, is celebrated by the magazine, Karagöz for its resourcefulness and enthusiasm for modern technology. And in a sense, the magazine is rewarding the town for its efforts by including a story (and picture!) about it in the paper. The journal also takes the opportunity to use this example to make a broader statement concerning the Turkish nation, whom, according to Karagöz has demonstrated its understanding of the importance of acquiring “modern weapons” (asri silahlar).

Upon viewing the photograph we are met with a composite image rather than a single photograph. The (equally) resourceful Karagöz staff seems to have created a fictitious scene of the people of Sandıklı gathered around their airplane using a photomontage process. Indeed, there is a photograph of an airplane bearing the name “Sandıklı” comprising the first layer, while a second layer superimposed upon it displays a tightly-knit group of several dozen people, presumably Sandıklı-ites (or the far catchier Turkish, “Sandıklılılar”). Although mostly men, the people features in the picture are of varying demographics. Overall, I was not only tickled by the inconspicuous use of photomontage to “create” an artificial image of the event but I was also amused by the idea that the local children got to ride in the plane. What a thrill that must have been! All things considered, at its core, this is a pretty cool story.

(Entire page, Karagöz, 28 September 1927, no. 2038, page 3.)