Awesone WWII W Allied Wank Scenario

An Allied invasion of mainland Europe in 1942 was ruled out because the Allies were simply not ready. They lacked the forces and the skills required.
Yes, but not for the want of trying by the Americans. Who, wanted to land as soon as possible e.g. 1942. It seemed the was a running battle with the British over when it would be. The British wanted to spread the Germans about with diversions, so they wouldn't know where the next threat would really be, whilst the US seem to view that as mere distraction from having the major campaign in western Europe.
Hence, French North-Africa happened as a way of using US troops against the Germans in '42. It had been planned for earlier, with the expectation the the 8th Army would be almost on the Tunisian border, but shelved, to resurrected later. The Campaign, had the added bonus of bring France back into the war, with their additional troops.
Once the African shore of the Med had been cleared, to ensure safety of shipping Sicilly had to be taken. The US still thought, it was being diverted from a '43 D-Day - hence any reluctance to agree to 'what next'.
And incidentally, Eisenhower might have meant taking the Straits of Messina from both Sicilly and Calabria, as opposed to landing on the beaches of Sicilly and Calabria.

Recommend reading - Masters and Commanders by Andrew Roberts
 
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One problem regarding the Italy campaign-Mark Clark....jeesh.... if only Alexander had got shot of him the Allies would have swept through far more rapidly.
 

Cook

Banned
... incidentally, Eisenhower might have meant taking the Straits of Messina from both Sicilly and Calabria, as opposed to landing on the beaches of Sicilly and Calabria.

Eisenhower was acknowledging that the opportunity was lost in Sicily to trap the German Army there, instead they conducted an orderly fighting withdraw and it took far longer than the Allies had anticipated to take the island.

Had simultaneous landings taken place on the mainland the forces in Sicily would have been isolated, unable to withdraw and unable to be further supplied; it could have been another Tunisia for the Germans.
 
To get things moving in the Med you need more carriers to give air cover to a landing closer to Rome in September 1943. This would allow the allies to secure the Italian government and army who could then organize a better defence against the German reaction. The Italians would lose but it would buy time for the allies to set up a defence north of Rome and you trap some of the German units in the south.

Escort carriers could have been built much earlier and fast. A dozen for convoy support in the USN early on, possibly made available for the Med would have been huge.

In the Atlantic (convoy support) or the Med (providing aircover), they wouldn't have had to be fast, which was their biggest problem.

They could also have been built for transporting planes, too, and then used as actual carriers.


I think more carriers in the Med is entirely doable, as long as you don't need them to be fleet carriers.
 
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