Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:32:20-2:33:23

Ark Royal, ASW detection, and survivability

Counterflooding is identified as a probable means of saving Ark Royal, while local water conditions and tactical circumstances complicate blame for the missed U-boat contact.

Anti-Submarine WarfareDamage ControlHMS Ark Royal
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Question

Could Ark Royal have been saved, and should her destroyers have detected the attacking U-boat?

Short answer

Counterflooding probably could have saved her. The escorts' failure to detect the U-boat cannot be judged from theoretical ASDIC range alone because water conditions, speed, and skill affected the encounter.

Notes

Counterflooding probably could have saved Ark Royal after the torpedo hit. Whether her escorts should have detected the U-boat is a separate question. ASDIC performance on paper does not establish what happened in the local water conditions, where temperature pockets could prevent detection. Speed and the skill of both sides also matter, so an apparently possible contact does not by itself prove a failure by the destroyers.