there are obviously other submarines of WWII bu these are the few that just came right off the top of my head...
Being from Chicago, I had to pick the Gato Class. The most decorated US sub of WW2 was the USS Silversides. The Skipper was a Chicagoian. The Sub was dock at Navy Pier, Chicago for many years. I recall seeing it every time we drove down "Lake Shore Drive". Her and the U-505 are the two submarines that I hold dear. (The U-505 is still in Chicago. on display an the Museum of Science and Industry. The USS Silversides is on display in Michigan)
I go for Surcouf. There is one in the WWCC, with both bow and stern torpedoes armed. Very impressive ship when kept in good repair. The skipper has let things slide recently, and just a few days ago tried installing a Futaba FASST 2.4ghz radio in it... That was amusing to watch
She is a dynamic diver, which is what made it so amusing to see. Dive a couple inches, then fail-safe kicks on and she comes back up. This boat once sank me in a friendly-fire incident when I was driving a cargo boat in my first year battling. Still, I prefer the I-400. Solidly Axis, and a very interesting ship. There are two in the WWCC that have performed well in the past, and a couple hulls waiting to be built.
I like the gato as well. I lve in Wisconsin so I like the gatos that were built there. Second highest scoring boat was build there, the USS Rasher. I have to find the book I have on her and read it. It just came to my mind.
I go for the Uboat. Amazing sub for the job it had to do. Can' t beat the infamy of the sub. Asking anyone about a sub and the first thing they think of is a U-BOAT. It leaves a lasting impression and is so menancing. Most movies contain a U-boat. The Classics with Robert Mitchem against the Uboat Commander or how about teh classic DAS BOOT movie. Yep the U-Boat is the epitomoe of undersea menacing.
Argonaut was the closest to my favorite the USS Nautilus. The Gato and the UBoat Type IX are tied for second.
My favorite is th Surcouf. The CRUISER submarine. The other subs were cool too. For various reasons. Service history, looks, museums, and many others. Although the Surcouf didn't see a lot of action, she was built with a purpose in mind, and she had a lot of very cool stuff. She was very big. I think only the I-400 class was longer, but Surcouf displaced more than most all of the subs in that period. She was designed for long range commerce raiding, and could stay out for 90 days. She also had a floatplane to help locate targets. Whereas most subs had bow and stern tubes only. The Surcouf had 4 tubes in the bow, and 4 tubes in the stern, that were 21.7" standard torps that were fast, with good range. But she also had a quadruple traversing mount for some fast but shorter range 15.7" torpedoes for use against merchant ships. She also had a twin rotating watertight 8" gun turret forward, with the same model guns as most of the 8" gun heavy cruisers. So she could stand off and pound on her targets. Her design reminds me of the German pocket-battleships in some ways. Very cool little boat. Mikey
Interesting. I have not had much interest in subs but this one seems interesting. Not from a battling sense, but historical curiousity.
I vote for the U-boat. Being a Submariner myself, I appreciate a well built boat. No one builds a submarine like the German's, then and now. J
Except for the US. I'd put a prewar USN Gato against a German U-boat any day. Give a German U-boat ace the kind of firepower that a USN sub carried, the extra range, etc, and the Germans just might have won the battle of the Atlantic.
Gatos were a good boat and they were as good or better than some of the early U-boats but as the war progressed, the U-boats were improved. Once they came out with the XXII and XXIII, it's game over. They were far superior to any other submarine in the world. Prewar is ok, but that is like comparing the ME109 to the F4F or the P-40. they were good planes but outclassed, and when you say 'best fighter of WWII" people think of P-51, F6F, or my personal favourite, the Corsair. Most people think of the Type XXII Electroboot when you ask about U-boats, at least here at SUBSQN we do. J
Oh yeah, I forgot about the torpedoes. We all know how effective the US torpedoes were early in the war. I read an article on the battles at Savo Island and Guatalcanal and was amazed by how many torpedos, both from ships and subs were fired and were duds. I forget which ship it was that was hit by two torpdoes for a US sub and the Sub Capt heard the CLUNCK but no BOOM. J
When I think about U-boat, I think the type VII and the type IX. IIRC the Elektroboots didn't be come operational until too late in the war, and never sunk a ship. I could be wrong on that. They were certainly revolutionary though. Another advantage of the USN ships was the height of the periscope. IIRC the German subs attacked from a periscope depth of 37 ft, while the USN ships attacked from 44 to 46 ft. The 10 tube battery to the 5-6 tube battery is also a major USN advantage. If you take torpedoes into account though, until 1943, it's U-boat all day every day. US fish were just garbage at the beginning of the war.
There was actually a sub captain that fired something like 6 torpedoes individually into a Japanese merchant ship. All 6 hit. None exploded. Nautilus hit Kaga at Midway with a dud. The only torpedoes that actually worked were the old Mk12's from WW1 that the old S-boats were still shooting. They were slow and short range, but at least they detonated when they hit.
