SURGE

America Is Dismantling Its Ability To Support The Military Here, At Home. America won World War II with its ovewrwhelming industrial capacity. Will America have the ability to ramp up its manufacturing base to meet new challenges in the 21st Century?

Other SURGE

The American Aircraft Industrial Base. Lt Col David R. King, PhD, USAF* examines the shrinking industrial base of the aerospace industry. (From the Spring 2006 Air and Space Journal) Read the article here 

Naval Shipbuilding

The U.S. shipbuilding industry is perhaps the most vivid example of a vanishing industrial base. After World War II there were over 1.2 million shipyard workers in the United States. Now only 200,000 are left. The job losses translate directly into a loss of maritime dominance.

Arsenal of Democracy

In 2003 the U.S. found themselves with a critical shortage of the most basic form of defense in this country - ammunition. The U.S. needed to immediately ramp up small-caliber ammunition production from 1.2 billion to 1.8 billion rounds a year. Where did the U.S. look for the extra ammunition? The government went straight to foreign suppliers in countries such as Israel, Taiwan and Britain.

Aerospace Dominance

The aerospace industry has seen a significant decline in both the number of military aircraft being produced and the number of skilled workers available to build those planes in recent years. In 1969, the U.S. produced a staggering 4,290 military aircraft. By 2003, that number dropped to 337. While the aircraft being built today are far more advanced, at some point there has to be a realization that, eventually, quantity becomes quality.

Latest Updates

Keep track of the latest news regarding America's industrial capacity.