Naval histories often count ships sunk and submarines destroyed while overlooking missed interceptions and attacks prevented. A submarine report may record a distant convoy it could not reach, while an escort record may never show that an aircraft forced the boat underwater before visual contact. An aircraft that makes a submarine dive can therefore achieve the convoy's immediate objective even though it has no dramatic sinking to report. This distinction between platform destruction and mission success shapes the later discussion of convoys, patrol aircraft, and anti-submarine escorts.
Notable Point · 6:06-8:45
Why sinkings alone distort submarine warfare
A mission kill can protect a convoy even when no submarine is sunk, so headline statistics miss much of the operational contest.