March 31, 1921. The Royal Australian Air Force founded.

Australian military aviation goes back to the Great War, but it was largely disbanded with the peace. After the war, it was recreated as part of the Australian Army, and then on this day, it was made a separate service as the Australian Air Force. King George V would approve the "Royal" title later that year.

Royal Australian Air Force standard.

 

March 29, 1921. Standing by the biplane.

A photograph taken on this day in 1921.  I believe the airplane is a Curtis Jenny.

 

Lex Anteinternet: March 28, 1941. Ford's Willow Run plant commences operations.

Lex Anteinternet: March 28, 1941. Royal Navy victory in the Mediter...: 

March 28, 1941. Royal Navy victory in the Mediterranean, manufacturing victory in Detroit.

B-24s being built at Willow Run.

Ford Motor Company began building B-24s components at Air Force Plant 31 in Michigan. The plant is better known as the Willow Run plant.  Ultimately it would construct entire aircraft, something that was not foreign to Ford which had manufactured civilian aircraft prior to the war.  The facility was actually leased, rather than owned, by Ford, which had an option to purchase it.  It would decline that option post war.

The plant was taken over by Kaiser after the war, a Ford competitor, which manufactured automobiles there until the Korean War, at which time it also manufactured C-119 cargo aircraft.  Kaiser was formed in July 1945, so it was a post war startup, and was originally the Kaiser-Frazer Company.  It technically lasted only until 1953, but it didn't disappear at that time but merged with Willys Overland, whose forte at that time were its 4x4 vehicles, lead by the Jeep.  It sold Willys to American Motors in 1970, but retained a minority interest in that company.  American Motors continues in operation today, contrary to the common assumption, as AM General, the manufacturer of the military and civilian variants of the Hummer.

It was a bad day for the Italians in the Battle of  Matapan as a heavy cruiser and two destroyers were sunk by the Royal Navy.  More on that here:

Today in World War II History—March 28, 1941

Italian fleet surprised at ‘The Battle of Matapan’

On the same day, the Italians suffered further losses in Eritrea.

Day 575 March 28, 1941

King Peter assumed the Yugoslavian throne to cheering crowds.

Lex Anteinternet: March 28, 1921. The Australian Department of Civil Aviation was formed as the Civil Aviation Branch of the Australian Defense Department.

Lex Anteinternet: March 28, 1921. Empires coming and going.: 

March 28, 1921. Empires coming and going.

The Australian Department of Civil Aviation was formed as the Civil Aviation Branch of the Australian Defense Department.

Lex Anteinternet: March 19, 1941. Training, threatening, and planning.

Lex Anteinternet: March 19, 1941. Training, threatening, and planning.:  

March 19, 1941. Training, threatening, and planning.

 Camp Beauregard, Louisiana.  March 19, 1941.

The British government formed a Battle of the Atlantic Committee on this day.   The German, and as we recently saw Italian, U-boot campaign against shipping was the single greatest threat to the British war effort at the time, and the Battle of the Atlantic was the longest battle of the war.

The Germans gave Yugoslavia an ultimatum to join the Axis, or face war with it.  

An interesting aspect of the German war effort was that at this point it was tied up trying to save the Italians in North Africa and massing troops in Bulgaria, which it has muscled into an alliance, in preparation for invading Greece to save the Italians there. The British, in the meantime were outfighting Italy everywhere, except in the North Atlantic, and had landed troops in Greece to assist that country.  In spite of this, however, the Germans were preparing to invade the Soviet Union.  Logic, or at least caution, would have dictated rethinking that.

While here seems to be some confusion as to the date (it was either today, or the 22nd), this date is frequently attributed as being the activation date for the 99th Pursuit Squadron.  It was activated without men assigned to it, which was common.  It soon had them however, and this was notable as it was an all black pilot unit.  The unit went on to become the famous Tuskegee Airmen.

First 99th class in 1941.   The trainers are Vultee BT-13s.  Note the B-3 flight jackets which are frequently, but in accurately, principally associated with bomber crews.

Lex Anteinternet: March 10, 1941 Lend Lease, War Production, and Lo...

Lex Anteinternet: March 10, 1941 Lend Lease, War Production, and Lo...: 

March 10, 1941 Lend Lease, War Production, and Long Lived Actresses.

An already weary looking FDR signs the Lend Lease Bill on March 11, 1941.

President Roosevelt signed the Lend Lease Bill, which we've written about previously, and it became law.

More on that here:

Today in World War II History—March 11, 1941

The law stated:

AN ACT 

Further to promote the defense of the United States, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate add House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as "An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States".

SEC. 2. As used in this Act -

(a) The term "defense article" means -

(1) Any weapon, munition. aircraft, vessel, or boat; (2) Any machinery, facility, tool, material, or supply necessary for the manufacture, production, processing, repair, servicing, or operation of any article described in this subsection; (3) Any component material or part of or equipment for any article described in this subsection; (4) Any agricultural, industrial or other commodity or article for defense.

Such term "defense article" includes any article described in this subsection: Manufactured or procured pursuant to section 3, or to which the United States or any foreign government has or hereafter acquires title, possession, or control.

(b) The term "defense information" means any plan, specification, design, prototype, or information pertaining to any defense article.

SEC. 3. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, the President may, from time to time. when he deems it in the interest of national defense, authorize the Secretary Of War, the Secretary of the Navy, or the bead of any other department or agency of the Government -

(1) To manufacture in arsenals, factories, and shipyards under their jurisdiction, or otherwise procure, to the extent to which funds are made available therefor, or contracts are authorized from time to time by the Congress, or both, any defense article for the government of any country whose defense the President deems vital to the defense of the United States. (2) To sell, transfer title to, exchange, lease, lend, or otherwise dispose of, to any such government any defense article, but no defense article not manufactured or procured under paragraph (1) shall in any way be disposed of under this paragraph, except after consultation with the Chief of Staff of the Army or the Chief of Naval Operations of the Navy, or both. The value of defense articles disposed of in any way under authority of this paragraph, and procured from funds heretofore appropriated, shall not exceed $1,300,000,000. The value of such defense articles shall be determined by the head of the department or agency concerned or such other department, agency or officer as shall be designated in the manner provided in the rules and regulations issued hereunder. Defense articles procured from funds hereafter appropriated to any department or agency of the Government, other than from funds authorized to he appropriated under this Act. shall not be disposed of in any way under authority of this paragraph except to the extent hereafter authorized by the Congress in the Acts appropriating such funds or otherwise. (4) To communicate to any such government any defense information pertaining to any defense article furnished to such government under paragraph (2) of this subsection. (5) To release for export any defense article disposed of in any way under this subsection to any such government.

(b) The terms and conditions upon which any such foreign government receives any aid authorized under subsection (a) shall be those which the President deems satisfactory, and the benefit to the United States may he payment or repayment in kind or property, or any other direct or indirect benefit which the President deems satisfactory.

(c) After June 30, 1943, or after the passage of a concurrent resolution by the two Houses before June 30, 1943, which declares that the powers conferred by or pursuant to subsection (a) are no longer necessary to promote the defense of the United States, neither the President nor the head of any department or agency shall exercise any of the powers conferred by or pursuant to subsection (a) except that until July 1, 1946, any of such powers may be exercised to the extent necessary to carry out a contract or agreement with such a foreign government made before July 1,1943, or before the passage of such concurrent resolution, whichever is the earlier.

(d) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize or to permit the authorization of convoying vessels by naval vessels of the United States.

(e) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize or to permit the authorization of the entry of any American vessel into a combat area in violation of section 3 of the neutrality Act of 1939.

SEC. 4 All contracts or agreements made for the disposition of any defense article or defense information pursuant to section 3 shall contain a clause by which the foreign government undertakes that it will not, without the consent of the President, transfer title to or possession of such defense article or defense information by gift, sale, or otherwise, or permit its use by anyone not an officer, employee, or agent of such foreign government.

SEC. 5. (a) The Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, or the head of any other department or agency of the Government involved shall when any such defense article or defense information is exported, immediately inform the department or agency designated by the President to administer section 6 of the Act of July 2, 1940 (54 Stat. 714). of the quantities, character, value, terms of disposition and destination of the article and information so exported.

(b) The President from time to time, but not less frequently than once every ninety days, shall transmit to the Congress a report of operations under this Act except such information as he deems incompatible with the public interest to disclose. Reports provided for under this subsection shall be transmitted to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of representatives, as the case may be, if the Senate or the House of Representatives, as the case may be, is not in session.

SEC. 6. (a) There is hereby authorized to be appropriated from time to time, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, such amounts as may be necessary to carry out the provisions and accomplish the purposes of this Act.

(b) All money and all property which is converted into money received under section 3 from any government shall, with the approval of the Director of the Budget. revert to the respective appropriation or appropriations out of which funds were expended with respect to the defense article or defense information for which such consideration is received, and shall be available for expenditure for the purpose for which such expended funds were appropriated by law, during the fiscal year in which such funds are received and the ensuing fiscal year; but in no event shall any funds so received be available for expenditure after June 30, 1946.

SEC. 7. The Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, and the head of the department or agency shall in all contracts or agreements for the disposition of any defense article or defense information fully protect the rights of all citizens of the United States who have patent rights in and to any such article or information which is hereby authorized to he disposed of and the payments collected for royalties on such patents shall be paid to the owners and holders of such patents.

SEC. 8. The Secretaries of War and of the Navy are hereby authorized to purchase or otherwise acquire arms, ammunition, and implements of war produced within the jurisdiction of any country to which section 3 is applicable, whenever the President deems such purchase or acquisition to be necessary in the interests of the defense of the United States.

SEC. 9. The President may, from time to time, promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper to carry out any of the provisions of this Act; and he may exercise any power or authority conferred on him by this Act through such department, agency, or officer as be shall direct.

SEC. 10. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to change existing law relating to the use of the land and naval forces of the United States, except insofar as such use relates to the manufacture, procurement, and repair of defense articles, the communication of information and other noncombatant purposes enumerated in this Act.

SEC 11. If any provision of this Act or the application of such provision to any circumstance shall be held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the Act and the applicability of such provision to other circumstances shall not be affected thereby.

Approved, March 11, 1941.

We've gone into this before, so we won't dwell on it here, but the amount of material supplied to Allied nations, starting before the US was an official Ally, was massive, and included everything from shoes and food to heavy weapons.

P40s being assembled in Iran for delivery to the Soviet Union.

Indeed, some of the equipment supplied became more associated, to some degree, with our Allies, than it did with the US, while other items were used, but not really liked.

P-39 in late war Italian service, after Italy had switched sides in the war.  Large numbers of P39s were supplied to the Soviet Union, which loved them.

And some items went on to such universal Allied use, that hardly any thought is given now to the items being supplied in this fashion.

Early British M4 Sherman (note the extra front firing machineguns.  The Sherman came to be one of the most common tanks in British service.

Soviet Sherman's in Brno, Czechoslovakia.

On the same day, something that didn't require U.S. aid  in any fashion, the Halifax bomber, went on its first combat mission.

Halifax bomber.

You can read more about that here:

First Halifax bomber mission

It was a short mission to Le Havre.

This is significant, however, in that it demonstrates that while the American role in supplying materials through Lend Lease was hugely significant, it was never the case that the other major Allies were without significant manufacturing capacity themselves, which always leads to the debate on whether the Allies could have won the war without Lend Lease.  It certainly is questionable that they could have, but even the UK, which is often portrayed as down and nearly out at this point in the war, was producing more aircraft than Germany and those of types which the Germans were not and never really would. And the UK and the USSR certainly produced their own armor and small arms as well.

Indeed, it's worth noting that massive amounts of arms were supplied by other means and by other countries. The British supplied significant amounts of armor to the USSR and all of the Commonwealth countries supplied material to the United States.

Stearman N2S-3 parked on the ramp, 11 March 1941.  This photo has nothing to do with Lend Lease, the plane simply happened to be photographed on this day in 1941.

On this day in 1941 Lotte Koch, Belgian-German film actress appeared on the cover of Die Junge Dame (The Young Woman). Born in Brussels in 1913, the then 27 year old actress' career had just taken off.  It's interesting in that we don't tend to think of daily life in wartime Germany in this fashion.  Germany may have been at war, but some Germans were buying magazines about young women.

Lotte Koch publicity photo.

Koch had not starred in any films with a Nazi theme, but would soon star in Attack on Baku, which was an anti British film.  Her big film would come in 1944, The Black Robe, in which she stared as a female prosecutor whose career puts in her in conflict with her neglected husband.  Indeed, a drama of that type is also something we wouldn't expect for Nazi Germany, but it had been found that Germans really weren't very interested in the late stage of the war in watching films that were disguised propaganda.  Indeed, a struggle over the issue had occurred within the German government with, surprisingly, Goebbels coming down on the side of escapist dramas, knowing that the German public was unlikely to go to see or to appreciate propaganda films by that point in the war.

Following the war she appeared in several "rubble films", a post war genera that emphasized the physical destruction of European cities for dramatic effect.  Often photographed with sort of a sad appearance, she may have been ideal for those sorts of films.  This is interesting as well as there would be sort of an assumption that having been in the film industry in Nazi Germany would have been a career ender, but it did not prove to be.

Married twice, to brothers, her first husband was a well known German film personality who had multiple wives during his life, Hollywood style.  Her second husband was a German army officer whose career was completed in the West German Army.  She lived to be 100 years old and was survived by her husband, but her career ended in 1953 which she gave up acting.  Given her very long life, only a small faction of it was devoted to that career.

Lex Anteinternet: Poster Saturday. See life from a new angle.

Lex Anteinternet: Poster Saturday. See life from a new angle.:  

Poster Saturday. See life from a new angle.