Da Pwnzlord
Banned
Usually in discussions about Spain entering WWII on the side of the Axis, the point comes up that the Canary Island would have fallen to Britain in short order and would have been put to use in the Battle of the Atlantic as an anti U-boat base. What if the Kreigsmarine dispatched a couple powerful surface ships and U-boats to the Canarys upon Spain's DoW on the Allies? Say, the Scharnhorst and the Gneisenau (in France during the time frame) try to make it out into the Atlantic and are interned in the Canarys in the days before Spain's entrance into the war. Those ships, combined with cruisers Spanish Navy and backed up by land-based aircraft would make taking the Canarys a significant challange to the Royal Navy, at least in 1941, probably well into 1942. The Royal Navy is mostly tied down in the Med and blocking surface raiders from Germany, and certainly lacks carrier projection that was so often used in island camaigns in the Pacific. It's also worth noting as a corollary that Britain probably doesn't Gibralter anymore.
Then again, it may be too risky to try running the ships there. I have no idea about whether the ports of the Canarys could support capital ships for an extended period. There may not be enough suitable airfields or airplanes to make a good defense. What do the experts think?
Then again, it may be too risky to try running the ships there. I have no idea about whether the ports of the Canarys could support capital ships for an extended period. There may not be enough suitable airfields or airplanes to make a good defense. What do the experts think?