Here is a short YouTube film that deals with the German quest to develop, build, and carryout rocket attacks on the eastern seaboard of the United States using their U-boats as launch platforms. Whether it would have been enough to turn the tide of the war is debatable. I believe it was too little too late. Still, the strategy and tactics of warfare were forever changed as these diesel/electrically powered submarines were the forerunners of the large "boomers" that played a vital role in the Cold War and beyond.
On its own, these subs would not have made much difference other than to extend the war another year or two as the civilians on the coasts would demand Army and Navy units be recalled to defend our home soil. Japan tried this as well, shelling an amusement park (I think) with no casualties on either side and sending bombs on balloons via the jetstream into the Pacific Northwest (several civilian casualties, the incident was covered up by the US Govt to prevent a panic). Hitler lost the war mainly due to....Hitler. Had he given Rommel the troops/supplies he needed, the Med and Suez would've been Germany's, along with Egypt's oil. Had he delayed invading Russia, the British Isles would've been Germany's, although there would've had to have been a lot of troops for occupation as the Brits weren't the type to just sit back and mope. Had he put the ME262 into full production as a fighter, the skies would've been Germany's and given him time to pick off the Allied armies one at a time, as well as developing other terror weapons, rockets, and the Ho229 'stealth' bomber....the Horton brothers, designer of the 229 and the 262, were working on plans for a strategic bomber that had the stamina to cross the Atlantic, bomb the eastern seaboard with impunity, and cruise on back to Europe (Red Skull's plane in the first Captain America movie was based on this design). Hitler, however, ignored or shot his best generals and did his own thing. Thankfully.
The Nips actually built aircraft carrier subs to raid the Panama Canal.
ReplyDeleteOn its own, these subs would not have made much difference other than to extend the war another year or two as the civilians on the coasts would demand Army and Navy units be recalled to defend our home soil. Japan tried this as well, shelling an amusement park (I think) with no casualties on either side and sending bombs on balloons via the jetstream into the Pacific Northwest (several civilian casualties, the incident was covered up by the US Govt to prevent a panic). Hitler lost the war mainly due to....Hitler. Had he given Rommel the troops/supplies he needed, the Med and Suez would've been Germany's, along with Egypt's oil. Had he delayed invading Russia, the British Isles would've been Germany's, although there would've had to have been a lot of troops for occupation as the Brits weren't the type to just sit back and mope. Had he put the ME262 into full production as a fighter, the skies would've been Germany's and given him time to pick off the Allied armies one at a time, as well as developing other terror weapons, rockets, and the Ho229 'stealth' bomber....the Horton brothers, designer of the 229 and the 262, were working on plans for a strategic bomber that had the stamina to cross the Atlantic, bomb the eastern seaboard with impunity, and cruise on back to Europe (Red Skull's plane in the first Captain America movie was based on this design). Hitler, however, ignored or shot his best generals and did his own thing. Thankfully.
ReplyDeleteA-Bombs anyone
ReplyDelete