Evening star., 1940-05-30
Engine Manufacture
To SET Pace for Air
Program, Jouett Says
Capacity Of q. 900
Motors by Fall Of al
Seen for ; Biggest Plants

Airplane engines will set the
pace" In expansion of the Nations
air fleets, a spokesman for American
airplane manufacturers predicted
today.
Col. John H. Jouett, president of
the Aeronautical Chamber of Cora
merce, declared in an interview that
adding to warplane production
facilities will be cheaper and quicker
than expansion of engine factories.
In completing present expansion
plans caused by Allied purchases,
the three large airplane manufac-
turers will have capacity of about
$4,000 engines of 1000 horsepower
and higher by late fall of 1941, he
said.
The two largest engine makers,
Wright and Pratt g. Whitney, are
working at near capacity now, turn
ing out air-cooled engines for the
Army, Navy, transport lines and the
Allies.
The only company manufacturing
fiquid-cooled engines suitable for
military planes, which permit greater
streaplining and therefore more
speed is reported turning out less
than one a day-all for Army use
in the new 40O-mile- pur-
suit planes designed for that type
engine.
Not at Its Peak Yet.
This Allison engine has not yet
reached the operating perfection
of the air-cooled engines, one
neutral source declared.
The appointment of William S.
Knudsen, president Of General
Motors, as director of industrial
production of the defense plans,
may have been dictated by the
necessity for a greater production
of engines rather than airplanes.
The Allison engine is manufactured
by a subsidiary of General Motors
and engines lend themselves more
readily to straight line mass pro-
duction than would planes, he said.
The possibility that aviation en-
gines may be produced by automobile
manufacturers in the near future
was advanced by William B. Stout,
one of the earliest designers of all
metal airplanes and producer of the
famous Ford tri-motor transport
plane.
He declared that automobile man
ufacturers can redesign tooling so
that the more technically advanced
aviation engines could be produced
in vast quantities.
La Guardia Approves Idea.
Mayor La Guardia of New York, a
World War flyer, told the forum yes
terday that this step is probably
the most logical. It may mean that
manufacturers will find it necessary
to avoid new auto models this year,
which would relieve pressure on tool
makers supplying the Allies. The
cost of retooling for annual changes
is estimated at $75 100000.
AS an alternative to complete
manufacture by automobile COM
panies, one airplane executive de-
clared it might be possible to farm
out" the manufacture of engine
parts to subcontractors. The parts
would be assembled by the company
which originally owned the designs.
Col. Jouett predicted further that
mass production of airplanes in the
sense that it has been applied to
automobiles will never come as long
as the Army and Navy continues
changing (models) as they do" He
declined to recommend standardiza-
ton of selected models.
A survey showed that aviation
plants producing the majority of
combat planes were operating at
nearly three full shifts and at top
capacity, even without the new
orders which will soon flow from the
Presidents program. The Glenn L.
Martin Co. of Baltimore has en-
ployes working around t>a bck.