AHQ: U-Boat Operations 1943-1945

The only chance the U baoats had would have been if the enraged Fuhrerbefehl to scrap the surface fleet after Barents Sea in December 1942 and diverting of all production in to U boats, would have taken place 1 1/2 years earlier.

This could only have happened if Bismarck and PE had both been sunk for no loss to the British in June 1941, then a livid Hitler accelerating Doenitz's promotion and putting all resources in to U boats, there might have been just enough new ones available and manned in action in the Atlantic by March 1943 to totally sever the supply line to the UK, thereby delaying D Day for months.
 
Accelerated development/deployment of P-61. Plenty of range, and good radar for the time. The chaff dumpers have to decide when to do it. The US/UK will rather quickly have fighter patrols over the Bay of Biscay, perhaps inside German fighter range perhaps not, P-61's would be outside of that. If you dump chaff to obscure radar direction of "close in" patrols then the P-61's and further out ship radars gotcha, save the chaff for P-61's & ships and you're vulnerable to the close in fighters under GCI. If the Germans devote "enough" resources to have more chaff dumpers &/or missile carriers available, then what are they not building (fighters to defend the Reich, a/c to try and fend of Russian tanks, panzers etc) - its the continuing problem of too many needs not enough resources, compounded of course by the gross inefficiencies of the Nazi economy for most of the war.

Also...a good number of the air to surface missiles will not make it to the target for one reason or another (like carrier a/c shot down), and this POD has the Germans devoting more resources to making more of these...see above for the problem.

The only way for the Germans to win the Battle of the Atlantic is to win it early, before the USA is in the war and cranking up production of ships (and of course materiel). IMHO its not totally ASB for the Germans to force Britain to the bargaining table before 12/7/41, without the unmentionable sea mammal. With more subs, and a willingness to make sure Britain was out BEFORE invading the USSR this becomes a possibility not needing ASBs. Of course this means more coordinated planning on the part of the Germans, a realization from the get go they can't win a 2 front long war, etc all of which is outside of Hitler's mindset.


How would the P-61 solve the problem? It has the range but it's performance isn't all that much better than the JU-88 itself; at worst the JU-88's would be forced to dump bombs and dive for the deck and end the sortie; their odds of being successfully engaged at altitude even with radar interception are not that high... the allies would be better served using mosquitos for interdicting
 
How would the P-61 solve the problem? It has the range but it's performance isn't all that much better than the JU-88 itself; at worst the JU-88's would be forced to dump bombs and dive for the deck and end the sortie; their odds of being successfully engaged at altitude even with radar interception are not that high... the allies would be better served using mosquitos for interdicting

JU-88 Max speed (no external load ~320 MPH
P-61 Max Speed ~360 MPH
Mosquito Max speed 360-400 MPH

If the JU-88 jettisons its load to make that speed the P-61 or Mosquito has a Mission success.

The Wildcat doesn't have to be faster than the JU-88. It is the job of CIC and fighter Control to put them in the right place. The convoys may have to increase the number and quality of escorts to be able to provide a good AA escort (similar to what was provided for Arctic convoys?)
 
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