Prior to the attacks on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, The United States sought to support it's allies by stressing it's industrial muscle to provide them with arms and equipment in order to aid in the effort to contain the forces trying to devour Europe and the world.
In the summer of 1941, as the Nazi Wehrmacht made a move eastward toward Russia in operation Barbarossa, The American President and British Prime Minister met in Washington DC in order to discuss the Strategy that they would employ if the Soviet Union were to succumb to the Nazi Blitzkrieg. There were plans by the war committee to expand the American support of the war with the mobilization of a mass of combat air groups and armored divisions. The Victory Program, as it was christened, was an emergency measure in the event that the Soviet Union succumbed to the German attack. A full mobilization of America’s industrial might was planned; tens of thousands of arms, airplanes and tanks were to be produced in 1942 and 1943.
As the Red Army barely held its ground however, the United States got an unpleasant Surprise from Germany’s ally in the orient. On December 7th 1941 the American military base at Pearl Harbor was subject to an aggressive attack by Japanese forces. The next day The United States declared war, and soon after was declared war upon by Japan’s allies in Europe. The U.S. was now in a two front war it was poorly prepared for.
Because America found itself at war much sooner than it had expected it required a rapid mobilization of its armed forces. The line of command and its approach of directing a war were reorganized to better suit their time period and situation. Because of the scale at which the war was being fought; in three theaters, Africa, Europe, and the Pacific; the mobilization of supplies became a crucial part on the road to an absolute victory by the western powers. The Versatility of their tools had to be considered as well. In the case of the Quonset hut (designed prior to this Emergency need) the design was perfect. The hut could be easily transported anywhere in the world, and built in any climate (with slight modifications). Much like the Jeep and the aircraft, the hut became a trademark of American presence wherever they went.
The United States faced a serious threat from Japan in the early months of the war. Alaska and Hawaii were both within reach of the Oriental Empire. The Quonset hut allowed for rapid set up of defense posts in these locations, and later elsewhere as the U.S. began to counterattack. Because of the nature of the Pacific theater, where the Japanese had taken countless islands, the counter-attack tactics of the United States involved a considerable amount of island hopping. Supplies had to be easily distributed, and then moved if necessary, quickly and efficiently. The same was the case in the European theatre, and later, the African theater. Products of American ingenuity and industrial might, such as the Quonset hut, were crucial in the West’s waging an effective war against the Axis powers.
http://www.history.army.mil/books/AMH/AMH-20.htm
http://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-P-Strategy/index.html
-Miguel Sanchez Enkerlin
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