Béarn, heavy cruisers, smaller escorts, and French submarines could cover Atlantic convoy routes or free British ships for other tasks. Britain could also reduce surveillance of French ports, although it would probably still keep an eye on them. French submarine strength would let the Royal Navy retain more T-class boats in the Far East instead of withdrawing them to the Mediterranean. Extra sloops and avisos would enter the escort force during the years when Germany's submarine arm was still expanding. Their equipment did not have to surpass British systems to matter because more escorts would deny easy approaches and increase the chance of an early U-boat loss. Losing even a few boats in 1939 or 1940 would remove experienced crews and future instructors from the force's training pipeline. The comparison with German destroyer losses at Narvik shows why early personnel losses can hinder later expansion.
Chapter · 47:41-52:00
Atlantic escorts and the U-boat force's early losses
French cruisers, sloops, avisos, and submarines would strengthen Atlantic escort work, where early U-boat losses could have disproportionate long-term effects.