Deleted member 1487
IOTL the Germans ending up building about 1200 strategic bombers, but due to technical issues they weren't ready for combat operations until 1944 and then only played a minor role in the war due to fuel shortages and lack of training/spare parts due to the success of the Combined Bomber Offensive:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He_177
What if it was ready for action in 1942 when it entered production IOTL? Let's say they don't add the dive bombing requirement and are able to get the troublesome DB606 engines to work, so by the beginning of 1942 they enter production and by Autumn 1942 there is a small Wing ready for action. Where do they do and what do they do? I'm assuming they probably are first sent to work against the Soviets, as there are many industrial/strategic targets that would be crucial in the East and that was the principle theater in 1942. By 1943-44 they could operate against all sorts of targets in both the East and West, but by late 1943-early 1944 Operation Eisenhammer would be the necessary one.
Germany of course is going to lose once the US gets involved, so that still happens, but what is the result of the USSR being even more damaged by German bombing in WW2, particularly in the wake of a successful Eisenhammer and badly disrupts Soviet production in late 1943? Could it mean that the resulting gap in production delays their 1944 offensives, leaving them further to the East? How does Yalta play out if the Soviets are still not into Poland or East Prussia? What if the war ends with the Wallies in Poland and liberating all of the Czech Republic and the Soviets still east of the Carpathians? I think given the US leadership they would still allow the Soviets an occupation zone in Germany, but could the circumstances be significantly different if the Soviets aren't the ones to take Berlin?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He_177
What if it was ready for action in 1942 when it entered production IOTL? Let's say they don't add the dive bombing requirement and are able to get the troublesome DB606 engines to work, so by the beginning of 1942 they enter production and by Autumn 1942 there is a small Wing ready for action. Where do they do and what do they do? I'm assuming they probably are first sent to work against the Soviets, as there are many industrial/strategic targets that would be crucial in the East and that was the principle theater in 1942. By 1943-44 they could operate against all sorts of targets in both the East and West, but by late 1943-early 1944 Operation Eisenhammer would be the necessary one.
Germany of course is going to lose once the US gets involved, so that still happens, but what is the result of the USSR being even more damaged by German bombing in WW2, particularly in the wake of a successful Eisenhammer and badly disrupts Soviet production in late 1943? Could it mean that the resulting gap in production delays their 1944 offensives, leaving them further to the East? How does Yalta play out if the Soviets are still not into Poland or East Prussia? What if the war ends with the Wallies in Poland and liberating all of the Czech Republic and the Soviets still east of the Carpathians? I think given the US leadership they would still allow the Soviets an occupation zone in Germany, but could the circumstances be significantly different if the Soviets aren't the ones to take Berlin?