WW2 Wasteful operations

[STEED]

My List as follows –

German, Kursk 43 and the Ardennes 44

British, Arnhem 44

American, Peleliu 44

Canada, Dieppe 42

Soviet, Seelow Heights 45

Western Allies, Cassino 44 (The first three)

Japan, Pearl Harbour 41

[Bort]

Dieppe was almost certainly the most pointless, basically an insane massacre, that everyone knew would fail.

[Abraham]

I would add:

The Battle of El Alamein; as bloody as your average WW I battle and totally unnecessary since the Allies were landing one week later 1.500 miles in Rommels back near his logistic base (Operation TORCH). Whether the battle would be won or lost or fought at all, the result was the same: Rommel would have been forced to withdraw. The Allies knew this of course, but a 'pure' British victory in the disasterous year 1942 was a political necessety to strengthens Churchill's negotiating position at the Conference of Casablanca. (Roosevelt had the Battle of Midway!).

The six months clearing of an irrelevant and doomed German Army in Tunesia (Dec. 1942 till May 1943).

The invasion of Sicily without blocking the German retreat route over the street of Messina (could otherwise have been a solid victory).

The invasion of Italy (Salerno) instead of France in 1943.

The attack on the Hürtgen Woods in Jan. 1945.

Actually the list is almost endless, but in my opinion the decision to knock Italy out of the war in 1943 instead of making France participate in 1943 is the worst.

[STEED]

Originally Posted by Abraham

The attack on the Hürtgen Woods in Jan. 1945.

Yes that has my vote nearly forgot that one.

[TLAM Strike]

Japan: Operation Ten-Go

[Abraham]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

Japan: Operation Ten-Go

Ten go?
Which means in normal English?

[Torplexed]

Ten-Go was the Yamato's final, fatal sortie towards the US landings on Okinawa.

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by Abraham

Ten go?
Which means in normal English?

One word (albeit a Japanese word)
Yamato

Edit; Beat me to it Torpelexed

[Torplexed]

My addition to the list would be the Japanese invasion of eastern India in 1944 and the battles of Kohima and Imphal. Might have been fruitful in drawing away Allied troops from other fronts in 1942...but by '44 what was the point?

[Kapitan]

the two wars them selves.

[TLAM Strike]

Another PTO battle.

The Japanese Invason of Kiska and Attu.

[Kapitan]

American day bombing in germany.

[AG124]

I read a book once that seriously suggested that the Germans would have benefited from sacrificing the Scharnhorst and Gneisneau to take over some of the Caribbean islands (don't remember the specifics). The author really couldn't understand why the idea was never thought of in WWII.

[Kapitan]

If the germans had done that then they could have based FW200 condors and other long range bombers there and bombed the east coast.

[STEED]

Originally Posted by xrvjorn

But wasn't the targeting of specific industries, like ball bearing plants, a success?

Yes at a high price.