Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)

• • Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)
• Why did US want control of Atlantic?

  • industrial production would've been irrelevant without control of shipping routes across atlantic to britain and USSR
  • enabled all key supplies to be sent to allies - keep war going
  • allies don't surrender: germany at disadvantage
• Control achieved through bitter struggle at high cost
• Through lend-lease agreement:

  • US supplied vast amounts of food, fuel and equipment - help war efforts against hitler - supplies to B and USSR transported via merchant ships + grouped into convoys with naval escorts (protection against G's U-boats)
• What did US provide USSR with?

  • >500k motor vehicles
  • 1.9k locomotives
  • 1/2 of US' rubber tyres and copper supplies
  • Significance: soviets now had 10x more tanks than G + more aircraft, artillery and other weapons (e.g. rocket launchers)
• Benefit of sheer scale and speed of US industrial production:

  • US shipyards began building liberty ships - carry cargo
  • in 1943: 3 built daily - US built more ships than U-boats could sink