Type XXI U-Boat "Elektroboote" operating by 1942

[DMA]

What if the dreaded German Type XXI U-Boat "Elektroboote" started development earlier in the Second War World. Say development of this advanced submarine started when war began in 1939. As a result, not only could they enter production earlier, but where actually deployed & began combat missions en masse by late 1942.

Would such a U-Boat have a significant impact upon the War in the West? Would D-Day, for instance, be delayed if not scraped altogether? Or could Britain be starved into submission?

And what of the overall progress of the War?

Anything else?

Discuss.

 

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Late 1942 is a bit too late for the "happy time" of U-boat submarine warfare. By 1943, you're facing an integrated system of antisubmarine warfare. Even the type XXIs need to surface every now and then, and they're still going to be vulnerable from conventional ASW as well. You might buy Nazi Germany a few extra months of life, but in the end, Germany can't build enough of the more complicated type XXIs to do the damage needed.

 

[Riain]

The t21s were prefabricated, and thus built relatively quickly and if mass production started in 1942 they would have been built with much higher quality materials and personnel.___________ Tactically the main thing about the t21 is that it operated in a completely different way to conventional Uboats, nullifying most of the lessons learnt and equipment used up to 1942. The war would still be won on the eastern front, but the contribution of the west would be limited by the need to counter this new menace.

 

[M79]

Well, much of the Russian equipment was from the US, and I doubt that we will hand Europe over to the Communists so easily. Type XXI u-boats in numbers could play heck with the Atlantic operations, especially in 1943, and I wonder if the UK would hold out.

 

[ledeper]

They would create havoc in the Atlantic,as their underwaterspeed was higher than most of the allied corvettes and frigates,and their torpedo reloadtime was only ten minutes in comparision too the type VII which had a reload time at nearly 40 min.My scource is the now departed Kplt Carl Topp.

 

[Riain]

Apparently Britain was never actually in danger of starving, but the shipping losses meant that offensive operations couldn't be conducted. Another happy time in 1943 due to t21s would delay offensive operation again, perhaps Italy wouldn't be invaded, or overlord postponed.