Faster Libertys in '44

Planning well ahead for next year, Maritime Commissioner Admiral Emory S. Land last week explained to the House Appropriations Committee the details of his $5 billion budget to finance the streamlined 1944 shipbuilding program. For this sum Shipbuilder Land promised 2,161 new and faster ships.

Quantitatively this is no more than shipyards, now approaching their maxima of slightly better than five ships a day, will deliver in 1943. But qualitatively Land's program--if it pans out--will represent a big improvement over this year's record. Half of the 2,000-odd ships planned for 1944 are to be faster (15 knots), costlier (over $40 a ton), larger and more efficient than the present Liberty. Ship for ship, the new Libertys should deliver up to 50% more cargo a year than their forerunners.

All this sounded fine on paper. But shipping men saw at least two reasons to fear that it would be hard to achieve. The new ships may take two or three weeks longer to build than the average 55 days it now takes to slap together an old-style Liberty ship (though once in production shipyards may snap back to present building time). And it will take much larger and more powerful reciprocating engines to push a Liberty's speed up from the present 10 knots to 15. Besides, even 15 knots is no match for the 21-knot surface speed of some of the newer submarines.

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