Evening star., 1941-01-02

By TIE Associated Press.
The Army got ready today to ask
the new Congress for an additional
S3,0O0,000,0 900 to further its "all-out"
armament program.
The sums to be asked after the
new session opens tomorrow were
reported approximately as follows:
,000,000,000 for the production of
$500 more bombing planes from
parts made largely in existing auto
mobile factories and assembled in
four Midwestern plants operated by
aircraft companies.
s1,6O0OOO,0O0 for guns, tanks,
planes and other material to round
out equipment for an army of 2.000,-
900 men.
$400,000,000 for the construction of
additional munitions plants to give
the country sufficient reserve ca
pacity to supply land forces of 4,000,-
900 men in an emergency.
To Push Total Past 20 Billions.
Plans call for maintenance of the
munitions factories on a standby
basis, similar to the role of BritaiE's
shadow plants" prior to the out
break of war with Germany. These
new plants would be in addition to
the "a factories or special facilities
provided for under the 100000 900
appropriation which Congress voted
for the purpose last summer.
Roughly rs per cent of the total
of Sc GOO, 900 900 appropriated for the
Army last year has been obligated
to date and, insofar as new NUM-
tions facilities are concerned, 95 per
cent of available funds are obligated.
The first of the new powder plants
built under this program is sched-
uled to come into production in
June, or possibly sooner.
The S3,000,000,000 to be requested
of the new Congress will push past
$4,000 100000 the total national de-
fense expenditures authorized since
the beginning Of 1910.
Regular Appropriations Needed.
In addition, more than S., 900, ,000,-
900 of production for the British is
pending or in prospect; part of 1t
for British cash. part under Presi-
dent Roosevelt's "lease-lend" plan.
Congress also must make regular
appropriations for Army and Navy
salaries and the other routine ex-
penses of the next fiscal year.
Furthermore, there has been spec
ulation that the Navy might ask
authority to expand its current de-
stroyer construction program.
Altogether, the armament outlays
already authorized by Congress or
to be submitted to that body total
about third as much as the esti-
mated national income for 1910.
Some of the authorized expenditures,
however, such as that for the two
ocean Navy, will be paid out over q
period of four or five years.
There were hints yesterday that
American industrys tremendous
backlog of armament orders might
be further increased by expanded
assistance to China under the lease
lend plan which President Roose-
velt intends to submit to Congress.
Although the plan was designed
to aid Britain, Secretary
Morgenthau said it might apply"
to China and Greece This assertion
led to talk in Government circles
that several hundred fighter planes
might be released to China in the
spring.
China needs the planes, it was
said, because japanese bombers
which have been marrying China's
Burma Road lifeline. are faster
than any fighters the Chungking
defenders can put in the air.
Might Be Fitted In.
- Discussing the possibility, officials
said that production of several
hundred fighters for China might
be sandwiched in next spring be-
tween the completion of an existing
British order and start of pro-
duction on an improved pursuit
model for the United States Army
Air Corps.
The prospective appropriations to
round out the United States Army's
armament program will be in addi--
tion to funds sought for aid to Brit
ain under the Presidents lease-lend
plan.
If some production under the
Army plan should be released to the
British, as considerable plane pro-
duction for the Army has been in the
past, the American forces probably
would accept later deliveries and the