Using essentially the methods of Lyon and Dyer the response of a one‐dimensional, simply supported elastic system (such as a string or a bar) to random convecting force fields is calculated. The spatial as well as the time dependence of the correlation function of the force field are assumed to decay exponentially. The response is analyzed as a function of the force‐field parameters in relation to the dynamic characteristics of the system. Special attention is focused on the limiting case where the correlation function approaches the delta‐function form in space or time or both. In this way a criterion is established for the validity of the delta function approximation for such problems.