Officia! sources here indicated today that the Administration intends as soon as possible to place the American aviation industry on a mass production basis similar to the American automobile industry, with the object not only of preparing for a possible war time emergency, hut also promot-possible world wide exports of planes.
The real objective of the President's expected recommendation to Congress for the construction of thousands of new planes, it was indicated, is that it will provide the domestic aviation industry with sufficient orders to assure mass production.
Military authorities here privately discount the possibility of any immediate international situation in which the United States Army would require 10,000 planes and the Navy 2,500 planes, but said that such comparatively large orders would enable factories to train thousands of new Workers, a valuable asset to the nation in time of war.
Aviation industry leaders anticipate that under mass production the United States could manufacture sufficient planes at costs which would assure large sales in other countries, similar to the current widespread sales of American motor cars.
Meanwhile the President was understood to be drafting a separate message to be sent to Congress shortly after the opening session next week. The President's message will ask for special appropriations for national defence in view of the "extraordinary" international situation.
The President's defence programme will involve not only the construction of the most powerful navy in the world, but the construction of between 12000-13000 modern fighting planes, including scores of long-range "Flying Fortresses."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.