0
    U-boat Tactics in World War II

    U-boat Tactics in World War II

    by Gordon Williamson, Ian Palmer (Illustrator)


    eBook

    $10.99
    $10.99
     $11.99 | Save 8%

    Customer Reviews

      ISBN-13: 9781780969756
    • Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
    • Publication date: 06/20/2012
    • Series: Elite , #183
    • Sold by: Barnes & Noble
    • Format: eBook
    • Pages: 64
    • File size: 11 MB
    • Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.

    Gordon Williamson was born in 1951 and currently works for the Scottish Land Register. He spent seven years with the Military Police TA and has published a number of books and articles on the decorations of the Third Reich and their recipients. He is the author of a number of World War II titles for Osprey.

    Ian Palmer is a highly experienced digital artist. A graduate in 3D design, he currently works as Art Director for a leading UK games developer. Besides his artistic interests he is also a keen musician and motorcyclist. He lives in Surrey with his wife and daughter, and two cats.

    Table of Contents

    Introduction 4

    Basic chronology of the U-boat war in the Atlantic

    Convoy Night Surface Attacks 5

    The Kretschmer method, 1940-41

    The official doctrine, 1943

    Deck-Gun Attacks 14

    The theory: rules for interception of merchant ships

    The practice

    The official doctrine

    Solo Missions 21

    U-47 at Scapa Flow

    The Mediterranean: U-81 and U-331

    North American waters, 1942

    Far Eastern waters, 1943-44

    'Wolf-Pack' Attacks 29

    'Free hunting'

    Patrol/reporting lines

    Fast patrol lines

    The turn of the tide

    Kriegsmarine-Luftwaffe Co-Operation 37

    The Fw 200C Condor

    Combined air-sea strikes

    Associated Equipment 40

    Bachstelze ('Wagtail')

    Midget submarines

    Offensive Weapons 43

    Torpedoes

    Torpedo guidance systems

    Mines

    Defensive Equipment 49

    Radar decoys

    Sonar decoys

    Protective coatings

    Defensive Tactics 55

    Against warships

    Against aircraft

    Select Bibliography 63

    Index 64

    Available on NOOK devices and apps

    • NOOK eReaders
    • NOOK GlowLight 4 Plus
    • NOOK GlowLight 4e
    • NOOK GlowLight 4
    • NOOK GlowLight Plus 7.8"
    • NOOK GlowLight 3
    • NOOK GlowLight Plus 6"
    • NOOK Tablets
    • NOOK 9" Lenovo Tablet (Arctic Grey and Frost Blue)
    • NOOK 10" HD Lenovo Tablet
    • NOOK Tablet 7" & 10.1"
    • NOOK by Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 [Tab A and Tab 4]
    • NOOK by Samsung [Tab 4 10.1, S2 & E]
    • Free NOOK Reading Apps
    • NOOK for iOS
    • NOOK for Android

    Want a NOOK? Explore Now

    At the start of the war, German U-boat technology vastly out performed that possessed by the Allies, and under the pressure of the war continual development helped keep pace with wartime needs and improvements in anti-submarine weaponry. But it was not just the technology that had to change. German U-boat tactics evolved over time. Used in a variety of roles, from coastal patrolling through to the combined actions of convey-hunting 'wolf packs', the tactics used by U-Boats were diverse. This book analyses how the U-boats dominated the seas thanks to their innovative and daring tactical deployment, and how the cracking of the Enigma code effectively hamstrung them, greatly reducing their impact, a problem that even their advanced tactics failed to solve.

    Recently Viewed 

    From the Publisher
    This well-illustrated monograph describes the variety of tactics used by the Kreigsmarine's submarine force to attack Allied convoys and warships in the Atlantic campaign that did more to threaten Great Britain's survival than any other threat during the war. The author researched German documents and manuals to describe deck-gun and torpedo attacks, wolfpack tactics, cooperative operations with aircraft, anti-aircraft defense and the use of tethered unpowered gyrocopters for target spotting. He also details some of the technology — armor, anechoic coating, flak guns, homing torpedoes — that enhanced and changed the tactics as the war progressed.” —Seapower (June 2011)

    “In his book, author Gordon Williamson has a look at how submarines operated at various stages of the war. There are sections on associated equipment, offensive and defensive weapons/equipment, and various defensive tactics used. This latter was more and more important as the war went against the German submarine fleet. All of this is illustrated by a goodly selection of period photographs and that artwork of Ian Palmer, who shows some very well done charts of how both the submarines and Allied shipping dealt with the submarine war. It makes for a book I found quite engrossing and one that I can easily recommend to you.” —Scott Van Aken, Modeling Madness (November 2010)

    “...this book will give[readers] an understanding of why some boats were more successful than others and why the war was ultimately lost.” —Glen Porter, www.hyperscale.com (February 2011)

    “...provides a fine, narrowed history of u-boat tactics that uses wartime source material documents and manuals to explain operational tactics used by German subs during the war. Any collection strong in military strategy will consider this a key survey.” —The Midwest Book Review

    Sign In Create an Account
    Search Engine Error - Endeca File Not Found