Evening star., 1941-02-07
BY the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
The tert of letter by Secre-
tdry OF War StinlSon to the Sem
ate Foreign Relations Commit
tee today upholding the policy
OF furnishing fighting planes to
Great Britain tollolUs:
On the morning following my ap-
pearance before your committee in
executive session on Thursday aft
ernoon, January 30th, a newspaper
of this city published a purported
summary of my testimony on air.
plane deliveries This publication was
not only inaccurate but its omission
of certain factual background has
resulted in a gross Misrepresentation
of the actual situation.
The essential Misrepresentation
thus given by the publication is that,
by the delivery of airplanes from this
country to Great Britain, our own
defensive program has been impaired
and the safety of this country there
by imperiled. Such an implication
is quite untrue. 1t disregards COM
pletely the fundamental fact that
air power depends on productive ca
pacity and not merely on number of
planes. 1t is also inaccurate in that
it gives the impression that the War
Department could have and would
have bought planes which the Brit
ish are at present receiving on orders
placed many months ago and long
before the substantial appropria-
tions were made for the develop
ment of our own air corps.
Expansion of Industry.
Far from constituting an inter-
ference with the purchase of planes
by our Air Corps, the purchases
made in this country by Britain and
France in particular over the past
two years have been primarily re-
sponsible for the expansion that has
taken place in the aircraft industry
in this country.
AS a result of these foreign orders
the American airplane industry in
the latter part of 1889 and the year
1910 has expanded approximately
100 per cent. AS early as 1888 for
eign countries made available to our
manufacturers money for doubling
the productive capacity of aircraft
engines of the types currently useG
by our own Air Corps. Substantial
foreign orders placed over a year
ago for military planes enabled
American manufacturers to expand
their plant facilities in a fashion
which would have been impossible
under the congressional appropria-
tionS then current. In the early
part of 1910 additional substantial
foreign orders for engines and air
planes were placed which required a
continuation and broadening of
production facilities of the aircraft
industry and its subsuppliers.
Lack of Funds Cited.
1t was not until June. 1910, that
funds made available to the Air
Corps by congressional appropria-
tions were adequate in size to en-
able this country. acting alone, to
place sufficient orders to justify eX-
panSion of the aircraft industry.
Until that date it is an undeniable
fact that our Air Corps had not
had sufficient funds to permit rapid
Therefore, bearing in
mind that it usually takes from 18
to two years to develop
production of new aircraft motor
and about 16 to 18 months to de-
velop production of new model
airplane, you will realize that with
out the head-start given by the for
eign orders mentioned above we
would at the present time be in
very grave situation as to the plants
and facilities which we now need
for the pending emergency.
Within four to six months we eX-
pect accelerated deliveries on late
model combat planes on contract
for cur Air Corps These planes
will incorporate the latest develop
ments arising out of actual combat
In some cases where
more modern equipment can be
obtained by deferring delivery of
certain types for a few months, we
have felt it wise to do so in view
Of the fact that such action will help
prevent our Air Corps from being
furnished with planes which would |
be obsolete on the dates of delivery.
Cites One Example.
As an example of the benefits
which this Government is receiving
from what has been called a de-
'erment to the British, I need cite
only one example.
Last December we had on order