[Fidd]

I don't know is the short answer. I think not to, would be an extraordinary decision, as the introduction of playable escorts, and the role of "Convoy commander" (CC) would hugely improve the replay-ability of the game, as the behaviour, persistence of hunt/dc attack and variability of "safe" approaches to the convoy would all become very different from one game to another.

For example, if a u-boat is detected, the most likely strategy for the CC would be to initially detach Tribals or Bitterns to force or keep the U-boat submerged, ideally at depth. The CC would then detach nearby Flower-class corvettes to prosecute the more prolonged DC attacks on said U-boat whilst the Tribals and Bitterns are sent haring back to the convoy to cover gaps in the screen. This also implies that the very act of detaching escorts to suppress a U-boat also open up oppurtunities for other U-boats, which in the ordinary game do not really occur. So right there you have a great gameplay mechanic and problem for the CC to contend with, ie how much do I detach to clobber this U-boat and for how long, without putting the convoy at undue risk due to the screen being degraded.

I envisage that having escort players able to "transfer" to and from AI escorts would be a very sensible mechanic, along with the AI escorts having a routine to follow to relocate back to their assigned stations around the convoy, without routing through any sea-area occupied by merchants. The transfer idea would allow the CC to detach a ship to an area he suspects a U-boat to be in, then for players to take it over once arriving at the area to prosecute searches/attacks on a more thorough basis than perhaps the AI can be coded to achieve; whilst not compelling the players to be onboard that ship until needed. As no U-boat can state with any certainty that an escort is, or is not, player controlled at any instant, they'll need to be more wary than they are currently.

Essentially it's a way of making the escorts a scarier and more effective proposition than they are currently, without having to code the AI to perform complex behaviours.