Domestic Transportation in World War II: Lessons Learned
Abstract
The conduct of extended warfare by the United States anywhere on the globe is dependent on the ability of the American industrial base to support it. Such support is in turn dependent on the support of American transportation. In recent years the potential for an extended conventional war has increased. This has increased the need to make adequate plans for domestic transportation support of such a contingency. The objective of this research was to examine government management of domestic freight transportation in World War II and to draw from that examination any principles apparently applicable and helpful to current transportation planners. This research encompassed a literature review resulting in a description of the development of the five modes of domestic freight transportation through 1941, a brief examination of the conduct of the industrial mobilization supporting American participation in World War II, and an extensive examination of the management of domestic freight transportation by the Federal Government during the war. The successes and failures of government management of domestic freight transportation in World War II were subjected to an analysis which revealed a series of lessons apparently applicable to current planning for a similar contemporary contingency. Keywords: Industrial mobilization; National transportation system; Land transportation; Rail transportation; Transportation, Theses.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA229537
Entities
People
- Scott A. Maddox
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology