U-Boat Commander

[swsig]

Two more submarine book recommendations:

Japan had an excellent submarine force in WW2, whose "Long Lance" torpedoes were the best of any Navy's. Yet, with a few spectacular exceptions, they accomplished relatively little. A very interesting book, "Sunk", about the Japanese submarine service, was written by Mochitsura Hashimoto, one of the few surviving Japanese submarine captains. It's a great read if you have any interest in the Pacific naval war.

Another fine book about WW2 U.S. subs, is the Navy's semi-official (published by the U.S. Naval Institute) "United States Submarine Operations in World War II" by Theodore Roscoe. It's a very detailed history of the submarine war from start to finish.

 

[Onomea]

For you WWII sub book fans, try abebooks.com. The Cremer book, for example, is available for about five bucks.

 

[Dingotech]

Two more submarine book recommendations:

Japan had an excellent submarine force in WW2, whose "Long Lance" torpedoes were the best of any Navy's. Yet, with a few spectacular exceptions, they accomplished relatively little. A very interesting book, "Sunk", about the Japanese submarine service, was written by Mochitsura Hashimoto, one of the few surviving Japanese submarine captains. It's a great read if you have any interest in the Pacific naval war.

Look up "I-Boat Captain", if you're interested in another Jap perspective.

 

[S-W4EVER]

... Doenitz didn't do his sub commanders any favors by insisting that they report in all the time. Even before Enigma the British could DF their radios. Almost every warship had an HF/DF (Huff-Duff) antenna and specialized signals group who were almost not part of the ship's crew. Submarines depend on stealth. Bleating away on a radio every day isn't stealthy.

+1. My late father was a member of our Silent Service (out of Ballast Point) so I grew up understanding the importance of stealth. While I’m a post Vietnam War Army veteran, it is no secret that micromanagement was a hindrance (I suspect this is the case today).

Micromanagement is a stupid way to live.

 

[Rudi]

Another great U Boot book is Operation Drumbeat. About Hardigen and others operating off the East Coast. It was another happy time. There was no black out so they could silhouette the ships against the city lights. Listening to swing music on their radios. There were not enough escorts to cover everywhere. If Doenitz had had all the U Boots he wanted in 1940 they would have won the war. Lucky the Austrian Corporal did not understand undersea warfare very well.

 

[yaktamer]

Look up "I-Boat Captain", if you're interested in another Jap perspective.

I read it when it first came out in 1976. All I remember about it was that I thought it was really good. But I was only 15, so????