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Originally Posted by Brag
When it came to meet operational requirements of the time. the Type IX was probably the best.
I don't know how well would have the American Fleet type performed against the Royal Navy.
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A typical American Gato class would have fared poorly against the vaunted Royal Navy hunter-killers, especially later in the war. It's large size and slow dive time would have worked against it, but without that large size and habitability it would have been incapable of operating effectively against Japan all the way from Pearl Harbor. Different boats designed for different oceans.
The Type IX was a good long range boat, but the lack of air-conditioning and refrigeration made life hell for the crew in the tropics.