Editing Jerrycan (section)

=== American adaptation ===
[[File:"... women employed at Savannah Quartermaster Depot, Savannah, Georgia.", ca. 1943 - NARA - 522887.jpg|thumb|right|upright|US-style jerrycans at Savannah Quartermaster Depot, Savannah, Georgia, 1943]]

In 1939, American engineer Paul Pleiss had built a vehicle to journey to India with his German colleague. After building the car, they realised they did not have any storage for emergency water. The German engineer had access to the stockpile of jerrycans at [[Berlin Tempelhof Airport]] and managed to take three of them. The German engineer also gave Pleiss complete specifications for the manufacture of the can.<ref name="daniel" /> Pleiss continued on to [[Calcutta]], put his car in storage, and flew back to [[Philadelphia]], where he told American military officials about the can. He could raise no interest.<ref name="daniel" /> Without a sample, he realised he could not get anywhere. He eventually shipped the car to [[New York City|New York]] by a roundabout method, and sent a can to [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]]. The War Department decided instead to use [[World War I]] {{Convert|10|usgal|adj=on|spell=in}} cans with two screw closures, which required both a [[spanner]] and funnel for pouring.<ref name="daniel" />

The one jerrycan in American possession was sent to [[Fort Holabird|Camp Holabird]], [[Maryland]], where it was redesigned. The new design retained the handles, size and shape, but is most easily distinguishable from the German original by the simplified 'X' - stiffening indentations in the sides of the can. The US can could be stacked interchangeably with German or British cans. The German recessed welded seam was replaced with rolled seams which were prone to leakage. For fuel cans, the lining was removed and a spanner and funnel were required.<ref name="daniel" /> A similar water can was also adopted, with a flip-top lid and enamel lining.

The US-designed jerrycan was widely used by US Army and Marine Corps units. In all overseas theaters, fuel and other petroleum products represented about 50% of all supply needs, measured by weight.<ref name="green">{{Cite web|url=http://www.history.army.mil/html/books/007/7-3-1/CMH_Pub_7-3-1.pdf|title=Logistical Support of the Armies|access-date=2010-08-03|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073005/http://www.history.army.mil/html/books/007/7-3-1/CMH_Pub_7-3-1.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the European Theatre of Operations alone, over 19&nbsp;million were required to support US forces by May 1945.<ref name="green" />

The jerrycan played an important role in ensuring fuel supply to Allied operations. A single  standard US 2.5 ton truck could carry {{convert|875|USgal|L}} of fuel loaded in jerrycans.<ref name="green" /> US logisticians requested over 1.3&nbsp;million per month to replace losses; these cans were provided by US and British manufacturers, but supply could not keep up with demand.<ref name="green" /> Loss of jerrycans in units was severe, with 3.5&nbsp;million reported 'lost' in October 1944, for example.<ref name="green" /> At one point in August 1944, lack of cans (caused by losses) limited the supply of fuel that could be brought forward to combat units, even though the fuel was available in rear areas.<ref name="green" />

The US design was slightly lighter than the German can ({{Convert|10|lb}} vs. {{Convert|11.5|lb|abbr=on}} for the German version).<ref name="green" />{{failed verification|date=December 2023}}  These fuel containers were subsequently used in all [[Theater (warfare)|theatres of war]] around the world.<ref name="daniel" /> Such was the appreciation of the cans in the war effort that [[Franklin D. Roosevelt|President Franklin Roosevelt]] noted, "Without these cans it would have been impossible for our armies to cut their way across [[France]] at a lightning pace which exceeded the German [[Blitzkrieg]] of 1940."<ref name="amazing">{{Cite web|url=http://www.thinkdefence.co.uk/2012/08/the-amazing-jerry-can/|title=The Amazing Jerry Can|publisher=Think Defence|date=2012-08-01|access-date=2013-08-27|archive-date=6 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306121546/http://www.thinkdefence.co.uk/2012/08/the-amazing-jerry-can/|url-status=dead}}</ref>