MISSION TO U.S.

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23802, 23 November 1942, Page 6

MISSION TO U.S.

AUSTRALIAN DIRECTOR OF ORDNANCE TECHNICAL DATA FOR WAR INDUSTRIES (O.cf) SYDNEY, Nov. 10. The Australian Director of Ordnance Production (Mr L. J. Harnett) has returned to Australia after having led a successful Australian munitions mission to the United States and Canada. He was away four months, during which he visited many war factories in America. He negotiated important business on behalf of the Commonwealth Government and Australian armament industries. “American and Canadian war production is, to say the least, spectacular,” said Mr Hartnett, in Sydney. “There is no doubt about the New World’s will to help to win the war. Their war factories are beginning to give astonishing results. When this great and growing production, added to the already formidable production of Great Britain and Russia, and, to a lesser, though significant extent, that of Australia, can be moved in big quantities into the field of battle, there will be a striking transformation in the fortunes of the Allied nations. “The news from Egypt is the first fruit of this great combined Allied effort. It is a foretaste of what can be dealt out to the Axis when our fighting men are given the weapons to match their courage—the guns, tanks, and aeroplanes they have so long and so patiently been waiting for. In this tremendous business of supply, the United States and our sister Dominion, Canada, are now playing a major and decisive part.” Mr Harnett said that his task in America was to gather technical data to help Australia’s munitions effort. All the information sought was provided willingly and enthusiastically. It was pleasing also to have been able to make some small contribution to American and Canadian technical problems by passing on practical information based on Australian war manufacturing experience.