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Is it possible for both to be true? Development and testing programmes use a lot of engines and all planes need a number of spare ones.This is a matter of contention between a few factions.
Somewhere between 250 and 300 are claimed to have built. However the number of airframes that actually flew with them are about the number of fingers on one hand.
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Is it possible for both to be true? Development and testing programmes use a lot of engines and all planes need a number of spare ones.
One mystery to me is what Adolf and his people were thinking about? The Russian winter is well known, anyone who has heard of Napoleon knows about it, and Germany has winters too. I was in East Germany when it regularly got down to -20C and a couple of occasions -30 while in the West on the old border it was sub zero Celsius for 4 months. Leningrad, Stalingrad and Moscow are (were) not secret places, it is easy to find out how far they are away from Berlin and how far they are from each other. How did they plan to spend the winter?I just looked at the first question again.
"Had by Dec 1940 Hitler, the general staff and RLM been fully aware of the size of the Soviet forces and their production capacity once war was declared, how could the Luftwaffe be better prepared for Barbarossa? The RLM and Luftwaffe has six months to sort out a plan. "
1. LW be better prepared just internally, for its own sake.
or
2. LW be better prepared to contribute to the total war effort.
1. Ignore those "optimists", employ common sense and historical and geographical knowledge... And get ready for the prolonged campaign at vast territory with poor infrastructure in harsh weather conditions.
2. Do everything as above. Study intelligence on the Soviet industry (Germans were well informed since their engineers built a large part of it in the 1930s). Beef up your bomber force and prepare it for the raids against the factories, POL storage sites, power stations, etc. As in real life (raids against Gorky, Yaroslavl, etc. in 1942-1943 or Eisenhammer which never happened) but starting earlier and more intensive and prolonged. Obtain permission to bomb oil production in Grozny and Baku as soon as the range allows.
Well, they didn't think that they had to plan to spend the winter in the outskirts of Moscow or Leningrad or Sebastopol.One mystery to me is what Adolf and his people were thinking about? The Russian winter is well known, anyone who has heard of Napoleon knows about it, and Germany has winters too. I was in East Germany when it regularly got down to -20C and a couple of occasions -30 while in the West on the old border it was sub zero Celsius for 4 months. Leningrad, Stalingrad and Moscow are (were) not secret places, it is easy to find out how far they are away from Berlin and how far they are from each other. How did they plan to spend the winter?
That was Adolf and Herman's theory in the Battle of Britain.Well, they didn't think that they had to plan to spend the winter in the outskirts of Moscow or Leningrad or Sebastopol.
The mood in the highest command was more "when the panzers start rolling, the soviets start shitting" and the whole USSR would colapse.
That was Adolf and Herman's theory in the Battle of Britain.
The mood in BoB think it was more the kind: "You are alone against our rampant armies, spearheaded by the almighty Luftwaffe, so must surrender. And the sooner the better for all" in the belive that the UK goverment will end the pursuit of war, as the had done with the remilitarization of the Rhineland, the born of the Luftwaffe, the Anschluss, the occupation of the Sudeten, the occupation of the rest of Checoslovakia.That was Adolf and Herman's theory in the Battle of Britain.
The land victories were spectacular, but at heavy cost to the LW. By July 1940 after just over 2 months of action Herman had lost half of his LW to various causes. Land victories were taking areas too big for the LW to defend. When the BoB wasn't successful did they stop for a second to think why?The mood in BoB think it was more the kind: "You are alone against our rampant armies, spearheaded by the almighty Luftwaffe, so must surrender. And the sooner the better for all" in the belive that the UK goverment will end the pursuit of war, as the had done with the remilitarization of the Rhineland, the born of the Luftwaffe, the Anschluss, the occupation of the Sudeten, the occupation of the rest of Checoslovakia.
And frankly, after the overwhelming defeat of France, I think they had reasons to belive that way.
The spectacularity of those victories blinded them and the short nature of these campaigns made that attrition affordable.The land victories were spectacular, but at heavy cost to the LW. By July 1940 after just over 2 months of action Herman had lost half of his LW to various causes. Land victories were taking areas too big for the LW to defend. When the BoB wasn't successful did they stop for a second to think why?
They did. The British really had no reason to fight after France fell in 1940, assuming the Germans are willing to provide generous terms. The Germans and British were in a complete stalemate barring another power joining the war to tilt the balance.And frankly, after the overwhelming defeat of France, I think they had reasons to belive that way.
To pull this off Germany needs to defeat France and seek peace terms with Britain before May 1940 when Churchill becomes PM. Chamberlain may accept an olive branch from Hitler, but Churchill will tell him to stick it up his ArschlochThey did. The British really had no reason to fight after France fell in 1940, assuming the Germans are willing to provide generous terms. The Germans and British were in a complete stalemate barring another power joining the war to tilt the balance.
Churchill came to power when France and Belgium were invaded.To pull this off Germany needs to defeat France and seek peace terms with Britain before May 1940 when Churchill becomes PM. Chamberlain may accept an olive branch from Hitler, but Churchill will tell him to stick it up his Arschloch
Churchill came to power when France and Belgium were invaded.
Yeppers. That's my thinking, Hitler needs to skip the phoney war and go straight into France as soon as his manpower and logistics allow.I think that's Beez's point: once Churchill came to power, compromise was not an option. They had to defeat France during Chamberlain's tenure.
Or, to borrow a phrase, they "missed the bus".
If the Germans can make peace with Britain and set up a puppet Vichy government in France this will force at least four big changes.They did. The British really had no reason to fight after France fell in 1940, assuming the Germans are willing to provide generous terms. The Germans and British were in a complete stalemate barring another power joining the war to tilt the balance.
But whatever date they decided to act would be the date that showed Chamberlains policy was wrong and Churchill would have been installed. Germany did a lot of re arming between Sept 39 and May 40.Yeppers. That's my thinking, Hitler needs to skip the phoney war and go straight into France as soon as his manpower and logistics allow.
Ahem, P pbehn
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Chamberlain's policy was clearly wrong on Sept 3, 1939. You think only on the invasion of France the Commons began to wonder? I do not share your view that Churchill's ascendency was guaranteed no matter the date.But whatever date they decided to act would be the date that showed Chamberlains policy was wrong and Churchill would have been installed. Germany did a lot of re arming between Sept 39 and May 40.