The Germans, historical Bad Boys or just really cool guys?

[Mike Oberly]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>We are assuming that Germany had not fought Russia and had had 4 years to prepare for D-Day. Given

this assumption, there would have been plenty of fuel left.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Oh,I didn't realize we were dealing with sheer fantasy.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Are you familiar with the stats on the Type

XXI U-Boat? It certainly would have changed the nature of the Atlantic war if sufficient numbers could be

produced. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'm extremely familiar with the Type XXI.It 'could have changed the nature of the Atlantic war if sufficent numbers were produced' in '42-by '45,when it was manufactured in minuscule numbers,it would have changed nothing.Even if it were abundant in '45,and there were great stores of fuel to sail them,it would still have made no difference,as the Germans had bigger problems at that point than sinking a few freighters.Or are we still in this fantasy zone where the German army is completely intact and is sitting behind their impregnable Atlantic wall in '45?

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Which would be the case given 4 years without fighting the Russians.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Okay,we *are* still in the fantasy zone.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>As for the stealth fighters and bombers being humourous... Have you ever seen a HO-229? Have you

ever seen a B-2 Spirit? Notice any similarity? Is it merely a coincidence that engineers from Northrop

Grumman spent several months at the Smithsonion Institute studying the HO-229 while they were

designing the B-2?

I suggest reading "The Horten Brothers and Their All-Wing Aircraft" and "Secret Aircraft Designs of the

Third Reich" before you find Germany's stealth aircraft to be so humourous. I'm sure you'll be quite

surprised at how far ahead of their time many of the German aircraft designers were.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Similarity or not,it is ludicrous to call it a 'stealth' fighter,as there was nothing 'stealthy' about it,as the term is now used.

These sort of arguments are really tiresome,because they throw historical realities out the window,and hence are sheer fantasy.I could just as easily argue that Roosevelt could have put the USA on full war footing in '39,and developed more and better 'super weapons' than the Germans could have.

[This message has been edited by Mike Oberly (edited 10-11-2000).]

[Guest Big Time Software]

OK, I am locking this one up. My gut instinct was to do this after the first post, because I knew where it would wind up. "What if" posts always wind up with people arguing very passionately about scenarios that could never have happened except in some Star Trek epidsode (with Spock being uncomfortable with his long ears ).

So please, nobody take offense by me slapping the padock on this. I am doing everybody a favor. This thread will never, ever die unless I close it up tight. Trust me

Steve

P.S. Also looks like our Forum problem earlier really did a number on this one!