Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 1:50:29-1:51:23

Could submarines matter more than in the world wars?

Submarines could again be decisive, but it is difficult to exceed their near-war-winning impact in the First World War.

Battle of the AtlanticConvoysNuclear DeterrenceSubmarines
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Question

Could submarines have a bigger impact in a future world war than they did in the first two?

Short answer

They could again be extremely important, but surpassing their First World War impact would be difficult.

Notes

The German U-boat campaign posed its greatest danger in 1917, while convoys and other countermeasures contained the Second World War campaign more effectively. SSBN use belongs to nuclear escalation on an entirely different scale. Launching a ballistic missile at even a naval target could be misread as the opening of a wider strategic strike.