Evening star., 1942-07-21
U. 5. Navy Program
Is Largest in History,
James S Reports
II Huge BottIeships Are
Under Construction or
Being Loid Down
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

DullQlng program Is Gne greatest
ever undertaken by any country.
This is the conclusion Of the edi-
tors of James Fighting Ships, en-
cyclopedia of world navies, the 1941
edition of which was issued today.
Six United States battleships of
As 900 tons and five of $1,000 tons
either are under construction or
in process of being laid down, the
encyclopedia explains. Six months
ago the first of class. Of six battle
cruisers, the Alaska, was laid down.
These will represent radically new
designs in fighting ships and prob
ably are intended to answer the
challenge by Japan, it is said.
A new type in the United States
Navy is the escort aircraft carrier
merchant ships converted into
carriers in about two months.
Destroyers Under Construction.
The Navy, James reveals, is be-
lieved to have under construction
lis destroyers Of 1000 tons, a greatly
improved type, and many other
1,70O-ton craft. There are ST new
submarines reported under con-
struction.
Japans navy, according 70 the
best information the encyclopedia
could obtain has good deal OF its
strength on paper
approximately 800 naval ships of
all classes have been sunk since the
war started, it is revealed. OF those
listed 353 are British, totaling about
three-quarters OF a million tons.
Five New Battleships.
Heading Japan's naval forces are
five new 4O,0O0-ton battleships,
either completed or nearing COM
pletion, it is reported. No of1icial
information concerning them has
been given out. 1t is not even GER
tain that they are battleships. One,
the Nissin, was completed last year.
It has been reported to be an air
craft carrier. Another, the Yoko-
suka, was due for completion early
this year. Reports have seeped out
of Japan that 1t is of the German
pocket battleship type.
Three others, the Mi, the Dwarf
and the Tosa, probably have not yet
been launched.
Just below these are the $4,000
ton Nagato and Muto, both dating
from 1920, and the 30,000-ton Ise
and Hyuga, both completed in 1917.
Also 30,000-ton battleships are the
Huso and Yamasiro. This COM
pletes the list of Japan's up-to-date
battleships. The Kongo and the
Hiei, built in 1912, have been used
as training ships. The Haruna and
Kirisima, launched in 1918, are of
the same type. One of the four,
generally reported to be the Haruna,
was sunk by American air attack
north of Luzon December 10.
One Nearing Completion.
Nearing completion are the Chi
chibu and two or three other ships
of from $4,000 to $1,000 tons, con-
cerning which the japanese have
been l,tfNsually secretiye. They are
believed to be the pocket battleship
type. Twelve-inch guns supposedly
wilfbe mounted in two triple turrets
and the speed will be about 80 knots.
The Japanese Navy is credited
with seven aircraft carriers at the
beginning of 1941, IL frst-class
cruisers and about % second class
cruisers. A total of 100 destroyers
and torpedo boats is listed. The
Japanese give these fighting craft
highly poetical names. Here are
translations Of some Of them: White
Clouds in the Morning, Mist Of
Flowers, New Moon, Divine Wind
and Dawn.
Japan's two-man submarines were
first listed last year and their ex-
istence was proved at Pearl Harbor.
1T was assumed last year." says
James editor, that they were a
purely experimental type and this
conclusion seems to have been borne
out by events. They would fall in
the same category as the half dozen
little torpedo boats that used to
be carried in H. M. s. Vulcan. Like
those craft, they have to be
launched from a depot ship when
called upon to operate.
Data Necessarily Incomplete.
Data on enemy naval strength is
necessarily quite incomplete. The
German Navy, 1t is claimed, has
done little or nothing to replace
its losses in capital ships. The num-
Der Of German submarines can only
be surmised, but reports Of recent
sinkings show that their identifi-
cation numbers run at least as high
as U-570.
This does not necessarily mean.
it is pointed out, that the total built
Is equal to this figure. During the
last war, however, $40 actually were
under construction and all but 226
of them were completed at the time
Of the armistice So probably q
total Of 600 today Is not far wrong.
It seems probable that half the
cruisers with which Italy entered
the war have been sunk, the volume
states, and there is little likelihood