The Southland Times FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1941. Ships That Help to Bring Victory

Southland Times, Issue 24592, 14 November 1941, Page 4

The Southland Times FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1941. Ships That Help to Bring Victory

MR CHURCHILL has always stressed the vital importance of the Battle of the Atlantic, and he has constantly warned the British people against the magnitude of its problems. His speech to the House of Commons, reported this morning in messages from London, contained more precise information than he has been able to give for some time; and the news was generally encouraging. “In the four months ending with June,” he said, “we lost just over 2,000,000 tons of shipping, or an average of 500,000 tons a month. In the last four- months, ending in October, we have lost less than 750,000 tons, or an average of 180,000 tons a month.” These figures support the view that the worst phase of the sea battle is over, especially when they are placed alongside the Prime Minister’s reference to the building of new ships. When allowances have been made for replacements the net loss to the merchant fleet “has been reduced in the last four months to a good deal less than a fifth of what it was in the previous four months.” Behind this announcement is the story of an achievement which, although not yet completed, promises to be one of the industrial triumphs of the war. It is a triumph in organization, jn inventiveness and in collaboration; and its settings are shipyards in the United States as well as Britain. The Prime Minister stated that America “is building merchant ships on a scale many times what we could do in this island.” But the American programme is still in its preparatory stages. Some months ago, while America was producing ships at the rate of 10,000 tons a week, Britain's output was more than 20,000 tons a week, in spite of heavy bombings sustained by the shipbuilding areas. British figures are certain to be even better now that the yards of the Mersey and the Clyde are seldom visited by German raiders. It is true, however, that while British production must be nearing its maximum rate, the Americans are only just getting into their stride. According to The New York Times, the Maritime Commission hopes to complete 1153 new ships of 12,410,000 deadweight tons by the end of 1943. “These include 395 standard modern carriers of orthodox design: the remainder will be of the ‘ugly duckling’ variety more recently dubbed ‘Liberty Ships.’ ” The orthodox models are intended to become permanent units of the American merchant marine. But there is also a third and revolutionary type, designed for mass production, and ali ready known as “sea otters.” These little vessels (they carry 1500 tons of cargo) are to be driven by batteries of petrol motors similar to motor-car engines. They are so low in the water that submarines will have difficulty in “spotting” and attacking them, and it is claimed that they can be built very rapidly at small inland yards. Naval engineers have reported favourably on the sea otters. They do not represent America’s sole contribution to the shipping effort; but they promise to be an interesting and valuable experiment, a bold attempt to meet the special requirements of war-time trade. Many months may pass before the effects of the American programme are felt on the sea routes. Mr Churchill mentioned 1943 as the year when “the freedom Powers will be possessed of large quantities of ships . . . which will enable overseas operations to take place utterly beyond British resources at the present time.” The ships are being built, and Britain’s success in coping with enemy raiders makes it seem certain that the intervening period can be passed safely. It should then be possible to detect the long-awaited offensive spirit in British strategy.