A hypothetical question.

[Rockin Robbins]

Originally Posted by Admiral Halsey

WW2 wasn't like WW1 in regards to the submarine force. If Dönitz had the 300 subs he wanted from the outset Germany would have most likely won the Battle of Atlantic. Plus the American public was super isolationist.(If the Panay incident didn't make them go to war what makes you think that a couple of accidental sinkings of American merchants would?)

To actually hurt Britain they would have had to sink HUNDREDS of American ships, not just a couple. Do the math: 300 subs, all at sea (impossible--at most 100 could have been out at a time) against a 1000 ship convoy swarming with escorts. Huge battle with spectacular success for the Germans and half the ships are sunk (highly unlikely).

Now there are no subs left to engage the next 1000 ship convoy leaving in 7 days. Even during the most spectacular success the Germans had we produced more shipping than they sank. They were destroying incredible tonnage and were losing ground horribly. Read Admiral Daniel Gallery's book on capturing the U-505. The math never worked for the Germans.

The only possible loser was Germany. Not only that but the wolfpack method itself was a fatal flaw, broadcasting the positions of every submarine on a daily basis. It was child's play to stay away from most of the submarines, so it would have been impossible to attack a 1000 ship convoy with 300 subs. They would have been scattered all over the Atlantic to be sunk, one by one, or if all together would have been easily avoided.