Evening star., 1940-09-24
An UnenviubIe Record

The United States is beginning at
last to move into the production
stage of its emergency aircraft build
ing program. A maximum of speed
In this phase of rearmament is
vital. but the record of the past four
months, which have been devoted to
preliminary work, affords little basis
for optimism in this respect anless
some method of eliminat ting un-
necessary delays is worked out.
1t was on May Is, little more than
four months ago, that President
Roosevelt went before Congress and
said: Il should like to see this Nation
geared up to the ability to turn out
at least fifty thousand planes a year.
Furthermore, I believe that this Ma
ton should plan at this time a pro-
gram that would provide us with
fifty thousand military and naval
planes" The German Army then
had begun its great offensive, which
was to overwhelm the French a
AlUllJIl ldIbI.
The swift collapse of European de-
mocracy served to spur America An
initial appropriation bill was rushed
through Congress and the National
Defense Advisory Commission was
created. On July II spokesman for
the commission announced that con-
tracts for $100,00O0OO of Army and
Navy planes had been cleared"
seemingly an impressive accomplish
ment. But then something occurred
to spoil this pleasant picture. On
August g. nearly month later, Sec
retary of War Stimson told a con-
gressional committee that the Army
had been able to let contracts for
only thirty-three of four thousand
planes appropriated for during June.
These thirty-three planes we're to
cost only a small fraction of the
S100000,O00 cleared for contract on
July II.
For an explanation of this about
face in the rearmament drive one
must look to another congressional
enactment, the passage in June of
an amendment to the Vinson-Tram-
mel Act reducing the profit limita-
ton on airplanes manufactured for
the Army and Navy from IL to
8 per cent. AS William S. Knud-
sen Of the Defense Commission ex-
pressed it last week, this change,
particularly in its application to sub
contractors, confused the picture
terribly" and resulted in delay in
the signing of contracts. The effect
of this new limitation, holding sub
contractors to smaller profits than
they could realize from building
parts for planes to be sold to foreign
governments, was to make it impos-
sible at that time for the Army or
Navy to get the necessary signatures
on their own contracts. The airplane
production program, in other words,
had been needlessly held up by
provision which had no practical
significance whatever beyond the
implications of political gesture.
After considerable delay, this OBJ
stacle was largely removed when the
President and congressional leaders
agreed to the elimination of the
Vinson- -Trammel Act limitation and
the adoption of fve-year amortiza-
tion clause for new defense plants in
the proposed excess profits tax bill.
AS result of this agreement it was
possible to resume progress on the
airplane program, Secretary Slim
son announcing last week that the
Army alone had let contracts for the
delivery of over nine thousand mill
tary planes. The excess profits tax
bill containing the remedial legisla-
ton, incidentally is still in confer
ence between Senate and House,
although early passage is expected.
The time which has been lost in
these preliminary negotiations is
water over the dam. 1t may be that
IQ6Se V6xlIlS anu uGoQlcSS ueldyS Will
prove a thing of the past now that
the plane program is moving into the
factories, but the record since May
is not productive Of confidence in
this respect.
That there will be some further
delay while new plants are being
built, new machine tools manufac-
tured and labor and materials as
sembled is a foregone conclusion.
But it is vitally important that there
be no avoidable waste of time in this
phase of rearmament. At the outset
of the plane program, according to
Mr.. Knudsen, it was decided not to
place industry on war basis "if
speed could be obtained without do
ing So" and the program still is on
q peacetime footing.
1t is evident from the record, how
ever, that maximum speed was not
achieved during the preliminary
phase. Should further needless de-
lays be encountered during the pro-