Watching a Biography on Carnegie last night, I learnt quite a bit about the American steel industry. Also the way in which US Steel came about as a purchase of Carnegie's concerns for a record price etc.

Anyway, the figures that I've been thinking about since are those quoted as the major manufacturing feats during WWII in the States (not forgetting, UK and Commonwealth people, that the war was beginning '42 till Aug. '45 for th U.S.).

Apparently, during this 3 year and 8 month period, 297,000 military aircraft were made. Also, just as mind boggling, if not more, 71,000 ships (including merchant).

My God! I wonder if Yamamoto, who warned about and feared the great industrial might of the US, even had an idea of this kind of capacity.
He guaranteed Japan 6 months of victories without American interference and after that he said, unless Japan had reached and acheived all goals by then, they would eventually lose. Your not wrong, with figures like that.
I knew that the US had basically supplied the Allies with the majority of large equipment, in any great numbers, but I had no idea of this kind of scale.

Looking over some sites I now have an idea of exactly how many .50 cal machine guns were made, how many Garrands and M1 carbines, how many Jeeps etc.
Really amazing. 

Not to mention all the Weapons, Ammunition, and the personal gear that was mass produced!

The History chanel has done shows on the Willow Run Plant and on Henry J Kaiser's Liberty ships. Look for them - they are quite interesting.

As a matter of fact, the 83 Jeep that I am working on was designed and introduced as a Kaiser Jeep and then became Jeep. With only minor changes - mostly cosmetic and a few different engines it was produced from about 1966 to 1996. So he is still affecting our industries.