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SAP bombs with a short delay were really required. Unfortunately the Luftwaffe did not have many such bombs in late 1940. The Sprengbombe Dickwandig (SD) ordnance only went up to 500Kg in late 1940. The Panzerdurchslags Cylindrisch (PC) ordnance was used against Illustrious in January 1941, but results for the 1,000Kg bomb were disappointing and the 1,400Kg version was developed later.
The He 111 only became operational with torpedoes in 1941, in 1940 the only aircraft capable of torpedo attacks in the Luftwaffe were the He 59 and He 112 floatplanes, and it should be noted that at one point in September 1940 the Luftwaffe only had 32 torpedoes in stock.We can forget the torpedo bombers, the He 111s of KG 26 were the only ones trained to do this, and their record even later, was woeful. It wasn't helped by the unreliability of the German torpedoes. The one thing that the RNs anti aircraft defences could hit was something coming in low (below 40 degree elevation) straight and slow.
On August 13 1940, the Luftwaffe had 311 Ju 87's in their OOB for the BOB, during the invasion of Crete they had approximately 230-250 availableThe RN will also see a lot more Stukas than they faced at Crete: the LW had almost three times as many for the BoB as they did for Crete. .
I think the claim goes back to Galland's recollection of the bombs available to the Luftwaffe in 1940 which must itself have been second hand. The source for many authors' claims about the doubt when the Germans introduced their SD and PC bombs, particularly the heavier ones, is probably "Air Power and the Royal Navy, 1914-1945" by G Till, published in 1979. I don't have a copy and don't know his source.
It's a bit of a moot point since even if the B-2 could in fact carry a 1000Kg weapon (contrary to my loading plan, but according to many reputable sources) it certainly couldn't carry anything larger. I'd have to check, but I don't think that the Jumo 211 D engined B-2 equipped most Luftwaffe Ju 87 units in September 1940 in any case . I can't find any pictures, after a quick look, of a B series JU 87 carrying anything bigger than a 500Kg bomb either, but I'll happily be corrected. The limited endurance of the Ju 87 (about 300Km) before the introduction of the R is also often overlooked by proponents of Sea Lion.
The first PC1400 bombs reported by the British were found in the Bristol area in 1942. The British surmised that the larger bombs were developed due to the inability of the 1000Kg version(s) to sink a large ship like HMS Illustrious despite several hits.
Given that the British usually found unexploded versions of new bombs or mines, and ordnance fitted with new fuses or timers within days or weeks (often days) of their deployment I doubt that they were in use much earlier. Certainly not in 1940.
Can anyone tell me how the Luftwaffe will deal with any RN battlegroups timing their attack so they are entering the Channel area at night ??????
On August 13 1940, the Luftwaffe had 311 Ju 87's in their OOB for the BOB, during the invasion of Crete they had approximately 230-250 available
Can anyone tell me how the Luftwaffe will deal with any RN battlegroups timing their attack so they are entering the Channel area at night ??????
Magic?
Big wide angle searchlights?
Actually, I would guess the KM will take up a blocking position. Depending on what formation the RN uses they may even last a few hours.
Hmm... the number I found in a quick search were (obviously) different - like 414 vs. 150.
Actually anti shipping bombs and mines were usually retrieved from the inter tidal zone after attempts to drop them on shipping or, in the case of mines, in shipping lanes. In the case of Bristol, it is the port with the biggest tides in England.
What is your source for the claim that a standard B could carry a 1000Kg bomb? None of my sources say that anything before the up engined B-2 could do this and the B-2 loading plan contradicts this. I still haven't found a picture of a "Bertha" with anything larger than a 500Kg bomb, as per the loading plan.
The first loading plan I have which allows a 1000Kg bomb is for the R-2 and it is this (being based on the B-2) which makes me wonder if this is why some sources say that the B-2 could also lift 1000Kg. They both used the Jumo 211 D.
Testing on the prototype R was carried out at Rechlin during April 1940 and the first order for 105 Ju 87 R-1s was placed in June 1940 so they certainly weren't available for the Norwegian campaign. I've seen claims that 1./St G 1 flew some in Norway but can't see how. The first order of R-1s which are just a B with added fuel tanks, were all delivered "by October" so some would have been available in the summer of 1940. Peter Smith's tables of Luftwaffe Ju 87 units deployed for the Battle of Britain show Bs and Rs. Two units with at least some Rs from a total strength of 36 serviceable aircraft. (Geschwader Stab St.G 1 and II./St.G.2)
The initial order was increased to 471 to be delivered by April 1941. 145 R-4s (with Jumo 211J) were ordered in March 1941. All irrelevant to Sea Lion.
Tough to block from Kiel and Trondheim. It might be the RN who takes up blocking positions to keep the KM from getting near the Channel. I am not sure how willing the KM was to run large ships though waters that contained British submarines, they might have done if pressed and they all may have made it through.... or several ships heavily damaged/sunk before they even made to contact with the RN surface ships. And the KM didn't have ANY ships larger than a destroyer ( and darn few of them) they could afford to loose at this point.
I will try to look at sources when available. Difference between the B-1 and B-2 was marginal.
Well according to the unit table of StG 1 they had clearly reequipped with Ju 87R between March - July 1940.12][/I]
Except for Sea Lion the German are proactive rather than reactive. They can tell the KM when to move, while the RN has to wait for it to happen. As far a big ships they can afford to lose, that's a command decision which will be weighed against the goal of the operation: is it worth losing some or all of you big ships in the interests of invasion?
And the RN will in all likelihood have to run a u-boat gauntlet, and ASW at this time was no where near what it was in '43, especially at night.
Regardless of the finer details, should invasion be attempted the Channel and maybe the North Sea are going to be redder than Stalin's pajamas.