1. Battle of the Atlantic
Hodder CEW c3s6, pgs

2. Battle of the Atlantic

3. Longest Campaign of the War
Sep 9, 1939 – May 8, 1945
Thousands of ships
More than 100 convoy battles
Maybe 1000 single-ship encounters

4. Sep 1939 – May 1945 British Royal Navy Royal Canadian Navy
Allies
Axis
British Royal Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
US Navy (after Sep 1941)
Allied merchant shipping
German Kriegsmarine
U-boats
German Luftwaffe
aircraft
Italian Royal Navy (after June 1940)

5. Goals Allies Axis Blockade Great Britain
Blockade Germany
Keep Britain supplied w/ over 1 million tons per week
Deliver war supplies to USSR
Carry out longest amphibious invasion in history (from US to North Africa, 1942)
Defeat the U-boat threat (considered requisite for turning the tide of the war)
Blockade Great Britain
Use surface ships and U-boats to raid Europe-bound convoys
From 1942, prevent the buildup of Allied forces for invasion of Europe

6. Costs Allies Axis Germany ~30,000 sailors killed 783 submarines lost
36,200 sailors killed 36,000 merchant seamen killed 3,500 merchant vessels 175 warships 741 RAF Coastal Command Aircraft lost in anti-submarine sorties
Germany ~30,000 sailors killed 783 submarines lost
Italy ~500 killed 17 submarines lost

8. Battle of Rio Plate, Uruguay
12 Dec Pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee vs. 1 heavy, 2 light Royal Navy cruisers
German ship damaged, unable to find port for repairs; scuttled off Montevideo
German tactical victory, Allied strategic victory
Reinforces Hitler’s low opinion of surface fleet
Captain Langsdorff commits suicide in Buenos Aires, Dec 19
Churchill’s reputation enhanced

9. The Wolfpack

10. Wolfpack Command and Control
Older, slower wolves set pace for pack
Group of strong Betas are positioned to respond to threats
Leader follows, controlling the group, deciding where to go, anticipating threats, imposing a spirit of mutual aid, and providing reassurance that no member will be left behind

11. Works the same, on water and on Land

12. German “Rudeltaktik”
Kriegsmarine develops Rudeltaktik for attacking convoys with subs
Subs in regular contact w/ HQ
Pickets locate convoys
Sub Commander decides if and when to assemble a rudel (pack); determines rendezvous point
On-scene commander decides if there are enough U-boats in the rudel for an attack
WEAKNESS: Heavily dependent on secure radio communication

13. US Adaptations
US Navy later uses similar “wolfpack tactics” vs. Japanese in the Pacific
Sailed in 3-boat groups that had considerably more freedom to act than their German counterparts
Tactics abandoned during Cold War
better weps meant attacking in force no longer necessary (or wise)
Soviets adopted “Bastion Strategy” for fielding and defending ballistic nuclear subs
Basically, they operated in closed seas, like the Arctic

14. Fighting the Subs: Convoys

15. Convoy Routes – “Air Gap”

16. Fighting the Subs: Depth Charges

18. Undated; Destroyer Escort dropping Depth Charges

19. Fighting the Subs:
Convoy Escorts

20. Fighting the Subs: Destroyers & Destroyer Escorts
Destroyers could be configured in many different ways
Troop carriers
Armed supply ships
Minesweepers
Anti-Submarine
Destroyer Escorts: small, fast ships designed to protect larger or more valuable ships

21. Fighting the Subs: Aircraft

22. Aircraft Carriers
Developed in 1920s-30s – the first ones were, um, rather ungainly…

23. George Washington Parke Custis, US Civil War, 1862
Imperial Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi in Osaka in She will be lost at the Battle of Midway in 1942

24. IJN Honsho, 1922
USS Birmingham, 1910
HMS Argus, 1918
USS Saratoga, 1935

25. Carrier Escorts
Purpose-built or converted merchant ships to protect convoys
1/3 the size of fleet carriers
20-30 planes, mostly anti-sub
Over 100 constructed or converted during war

26. Project Habakkuk British plan to create a gigantic,
unsinkable aircraft carrier made of ice
reinforced with wood pulp (“Pykerete”)
Initial enthusiasm wanes as costs become apparent and Churchill secures use of Portuguese bases in the Azores; no longer pursued by end of 1943