AMERICAN WAR PRODUCTION

Press, Volume LXXIX, Issue 23963, 2 June 1943, Page 3

AMERICAN WAR PRODUCTION

“ 100 FIGHTING SHIPS THIS YEAR” AIRCRAFT AND CARGO VESSELS (8.0. W.) RUGBY. May 31. The one hundred thousandth aeroplane manufactured since the United States began war production came of! the assembly lines to-day. This was one of many impressive facts of United' States production revealed when Mr J. F. Byrnes, Director of the United States Office of War Mobilisation, made his first broadcast since the creation of the office last Friday. Of shipping, Mr Byrnes said; “In the first months of this year we completed 100 fighting ships, and during this year we will double the size of the Fleet. That accomplishment is without parallel in history. These are fighting ships—battleships, aircraft-carriers, cruisers, destroyers, escort ships, and submarines. They do not include several thousand landing craft completed in the last five months, “This year’s warship construction will be marked by two special achievements—carriers to give air coverage to our convoys and to our attacks, and escort vessels to destroy enemy submarines. The submarine is still a deadly menace, but our attack against the submarine is even more deadly. Recently one of our convoys was set upon by a pack of Nazi submarines. They got one of our merchantmen, but we got four of their submarines.’’ Referring to merchant shipbuilding. Mr Byrnes said; “The United States is building merchant ships four times as fast as they are being sunk.’’ Mr Byrnes disclosed that more than 1000 ocean-going cargo ships and almosr 100 tankers had been built in the last 12 months, compared with 50 ships and 22 tankers in the previous year. 60,000 Aircraft Sixty thousand aeroplanes had been built in the same period, compared with 10.143 in the previous year. Equally striking were the Army* figures. “In all the World War,’’ he said, “wo produced one piece of artillery for each 45 soldiers. We made 100.000 pieces of anti-aircraft cannon in May this year,, and we produced three times as many pieces of artillery for the ground troops as we did in all the 19 months of the last war. Production of high explosive powder has been six times as great as during the last war. “In the year ended June 1, 1941, our ordnance plants turned out 25,000 machine-guns and sub-machine-guns. In the year following wo turned out 700,000. In the last year we turned out 1.500,000, bringing our total to 2.225.000 since America began to rearm. In the three years’ period we manufactured 44,830.000 bombs.” Mr Byrnes said that in spite of some stoppages of work in the war industries, the great mass of workers and labour leaders were doing their utmost to prevent interruptions. Only onetwentieth of 1 per cent, of war workers’ time had been lost by strikes in 1942. “Many attacks and many front lines lie ahead,” he said. “We are just entering the critical period of the war. I pledge myself to try to achieve the same co-ordination of efforts in civilian government that exists on the military fronts.” WAR EXERCISES IN BRITAIN AMERICAN COMMANDOS TAKE PART (8.0. W.) RUGBY. May 31. American Rangers (commando troops), all of whom have undergone basic training at a commando school in the Scottish highlands, took part in a joint British-American Army exercise—the first of its kind—in the Southern Command area. During the operations the Higher Command offered the Rangers a tempting bait in the form of a raid on Army workshops. The bait was swallowed and the Rangers wiped out the workshops and captured part of the British plans of operations. An outstanding feature of the exercise was the excellent concealment maintained by both sides—a fact which made the work of the Army Co-ope-ration air squadrons extremely difficult. The Americans took every opportunity to prove the efficiency of their new self-propelled 75 mm and 105 mm field guns, which were organised in a “Cannon Company,” and their “Bazookas,” or anti-tank rocket projectors. The “Bazooka” comes within the modern “Woolworth” category of weapon, but like the Sten and Northover guns its effectiveness is out of all proportion to its simplicity of design and operation. With a length of tubing and two wooden attachments — one a shoulder butt and the other housing the firing mechanism —it looks an innocent weapon, but it will stop a lank if it is hit. HESS’S FAMILY NOT IN BRITAIN FOREIGN SECRETARY’S REPLY LONDON. May 30. In the House of Commons the Foreign Secretary (Mr R. A. Eden) said that Hess, the Nazi leader, had not brought any British securities with him when he landed in Britain. No member of Hess’s family was in Britain. Mr Eden made this statement in reply to a question, notice of which had been given by Mr Thorne (Labour), who had asked whether Hess had brought £15,000 of securities for the support of himself and members of his family, who, he said, were now living in Britain. Mr Tiiornc: Is Hess still a prisoner of war in Britain? Mr Eden: He is still confined under the same conditions as he was originally confined. (Cheers.) Mr Rhys Davies (Labour): Although Hess may not have brought any securities here, did he have any investments here before? Mr Eden: No, not that I am aware of. Anyhow, he hasn't been able to touch any, even if he had them. All he brought were a few mark notes, the value of which is nil in Britain. Mr Thorne: Is Hess still in a bungalow down in Surrey? Mr Eden: I do not possess Mr Thorne's detailed knowledge, PRESIDENT OF CHINA CHUNGKING, May 31. An improvement in the condition of the President of China (Mr Lin Sen) is announced. His blood pressure is belter, and his mind apparently has cleared. , Native Adviser in Fiji.—The Secretary of State for the Colonies has approved the appointment of Ratu (Chief) J. L. V. Sukuna as adviser on native affairs in Fiji. Ratu Sukuna was educated at Wanganui and at Wadham College, Oxford. He joined the Foreign Legion in the last war, went to France, and returned to Oxford after the war. Ho was subsequently called to the Bar. He was the first Fijian to be appointed District Commissioner.—London, June ! 1.