Type XXI? The saviour? - Page 2

AVGWarhawk · 11-24-06, 08:35 AM

What we know of the outcome of the war, I can only speculate that the XXI would have PROLONGED the war but the end results would have been the same although more deadly to the general German population. The A-bomb probably would still have been used against Japan at the time it was and probably Germany would not have surrendered at this point. After the A-bomb was utilized in Japan, I believe the Germans would have laid down their arms at that point. No doubt the XXI for the time was a nasty weapon. Rubber coated sides to avoid sonar and asdic, snorkel, two 4000 hp diesels, six forward firing tubes full of acoustic torpedos. This makes for some really bad times for the Allies and Britian's struggle would have been much worse if not a total loss!

Respenus · 11-24-06, 08:50 AM

Nice to hear the info on the subject, but like I said, it's "What if...?". You need to look at the bigger picture.

Maybe if the Germans occupied England, it might have been posible, that they would have certain industrial advantage (starve them out, then bomb all but their industry; not really possible, but hey, you can never trully know).

MarshalLaw · 11-24-06, 11:51 AM

Would not have mattered if it was the XXI or VII series boats, Numbers at the beginning would have made a huge difference. If Hitler would have sided fully with Dornitz and embraced the subs instead of siding with the Surface fleet admirals, vaste resources that were wasted on the Bismark and Turpiz, could have raised the number of uboats ready for sea to 200-300 by Sept 1939. By closing the gaps that they could not in reality with 50-60 boats. The British would have been starved for supplies by 1940. With little oil getting through, the Battle of Britian would have been won and Operation "Sea Lion" would have gone ahead. By the end of 1941 England would have surrendered or been close to it.

As for The US the line of thinking at the time was it's a european affair and we need not get involved. Plus Hitler was no fool, he would have done or said anything to delay the US getting involved as long as possible.

One small decision on who to back with resources could have made things quite differant indeed.

Tachyon · 11-24-06, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Respenus

Nice to hear the info on the subject, but like I said, it's "What if...?". You need to look at the bigger picture.

Maybe if the Germans occupied England, it might have been posible, that they would have certain industrial advantage (starve them out, then bomb all but their industry; not really possible, but hey, you can never trully know).

Hm..well, even if Germany attempted to occupy England via the sea route , it'd be nearly suicide since they never did have air superiority , all those troop transports would be RAF fodder.

And in my opinion, sure Type XXI would have made a difference, atleast when it came to sub_losses:tonnage, but as others have pointed out, the no. of subs was more important, sometimes you can overwhelm the enemy through sheer numbers (just like the Russians or on a more colourful note, the Zerg in StarCraft).

An interesting "What If" scenario this has been, and I thank all of you for sharing your opinions. Godspeed Herr Kaleun!

11-24-06, 08:35 AM	#1
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 28,274 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	What we know of the outcome of the war, I can only speculate that the XXI would have PROLONGED the war but the end results would have been the same although more deadly to the general German population. The A-bomb probably would still have been used against Japan at the time it was and probably Germany would not have surrendered at this point. After the A-bomb was utilized in Japan, I believe the Germans would have laid down their arms at that point. No doubt the XXI for the time was a nasty weapon. Rubber coated sides to avoid sonar and asdic, snorkel, two 4000 hp diesels, six forward firing tubes full of acoustic torpedos. This makes for some really bad times for the Allies and Britian's struggle would have been much worse if not a total loss! __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

11-24-06, 08:50 AM	#2
Respenus Ace of the Deep Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 1,169 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Nice to hear the info on the subject, but like I said, it's "What if...?". You need to look at the bigger picture. Maybe if the Germans occupied England, it might have been posible, that they would have certain industrial advantage (starve them out, then bomb all but their industry; not really possible, but hey, you can never trully know). __________________

11-24-06, 11:51 AM	#3
MarshalLaw Navy Dude Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Orlando Fla USA Posts: 174 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Would not have mattered if it was the XXI or VII series boats, Numbers at the beginning would have made a huge difference. If Hitler would have sided fully with Dornitz and embraced the subs instead of siding with the Surface fleet admirals, vaste resources that were wasted on the Bismark and Turpiz, could have raised the number of uboats ready for sea to 200-300 by Sept 1939. By closing the gaps that they could not in reality with 50-60 boats. The British would have been starved for supplies by 1940. With little oil getting through, the Battle of Britian would have been won and Operation "Sea Lion" would have gone ahead. By the end of 1941 England would have surrendered or been close to it. As for The US the line of thinking at the time was it's a european affair and we need not get involved. Plus Hitler was no fool, he would have done or said anything to delay the US getting involved as long as possible. One small decision on who to back with resources could have made things quite differant indeed.