Could an Italian submarine have attacked New York?

Could the Italian submarine Leonardo da Vinci have mounted a serious attack on New York?

Possibly, because it had the range and a strong combat record, but its success came in a less protected theatre and the American coast posed a much harder operational problem.

Leonardo da Vinci had the range required for a distant operation and was the highest-scoring Italian submarine of the war. Much of that success came in the Indian Ocean, where anti-submarine resources were thinner and shipping was less consistently convoyed. Those conditions do not prove that a raid on New York was impossible, but they make the boat's record an uncertain guide to performance off the American coast. A credible assessment must combine endurance with local defences, convoy practice, and the difficulty of reaching and attacking the target area.