Naval warfare played a decisive role in deciding World War II. In this new study, naval historian Bernard Ireland reveals the critical elements that determined the war at sea. He investigates how German U-boats came perilously close to snapping Britain's Atlantic lifeline and why the submarines were eventually defeated. By contrast, American submarines inflicted such devastating losses on Japanese merchant shipping that the Japanese war economy collapsed. In Europe and the Pacific, the Allies had to develop new techniques of amphibious warfare if they were to defeat their opponents. Airpower came to dominate the naval war: growing from a useful adjunct to fleet operations, it became a decisive weapon in itself, relegating the great battleships to subordinate roles.
Crammed with technical artwork, complete specification, tactical diagrams and weapon data, this is the ultimate guide to the men, the ships and the tactics of the greatest naval war in history.
