1943 - In the middle

About November 1942, Mr. Churchill announced the Allied Powers had reached perhaps "the end of the beginning." And near the end of 1943, Mr Churchill announced the Allied Powers had reached the "beginning of the end" of WWII.

Several important developments occurred in this very significant year. ( My birth not being one of them. )

The battle for North Africa was won.

America war production hit its stride. For example, America launched in its first 7 months, more ships than Britain had launched during the entire war, and even more astounding, launched more ships than were being lost by all Allied forces. Thus the Axis powers were doomed, not by a few gifted leaders, but by America's greatest generation.

German U-boats had been sinking cargo ships at a rate which crippled supply both to Great Britain and Russia. But first, Britain obtained a Cypher machine (the 4 wheel one) and code books, and in March started presenting Mr. Churchill and his military with accurate decrypts. So in April, the number of lost ships decreased. This was the result of now knowing where the wolf-packs were waiting, and altering course so as to avoid them.

Also, during WWII Allied radar technology was constantly being upgraded, and in early 1943, Britain's radar took a big step toward clarity. By shifting to a higher bandwidth sufficient clarity resulted in the ability to "see" U-boats running on the surface or even partly submerged, even in poor weather. Thus a scout plan could radio the location and heading to anti-submarine bombers who would blow the subs out of the water.

By May, the combined affect resulted in a decrease in lost ships of over 85%. Thus the war of the Atlantic was also won.

And I would be remiss if I failed to mention one more "development." General Eisenhower, as commander to "Torch" (the Allied campaign in North Africa) had brought a poor (and doomed) plan forth at first. This caused the British military to conclude "Ike" was a good little organizer but lacked the command experience to be in command of large Allied efforts. After the debacle at Kasserine Pass, Ike studied the event and learned. He sacked the commander and put General Patton in charge, and told George to be "cold blooded" in getting rid of all the dead wood officers in the II Corps. Within weeks, Ike's Generals (George and Monty) developed into a winning force. But the good little organizer had more to learn.

Ike's plan for the invasion of Sicily was flawed. Weeks later as Allied forces were mired down in Italy, Ike realized he should landed behind Sicily and prevented nearly 60,000 enemy from escaping the island. Now as he thought about those same 60,000 arrayed against him, he also realized his conservative, risk adverse planing had been anticipated the the Axis military. But he learned and in less than a year, he would turn the tables on all those who underestimated the "good little organizer."

 

Did you see my 1942 thread?
1942 - Ebb Tide

 

One of the key differences in the command structure between Allied and Axis powers, is with American and British commands, groups provided input and often the consensus view was followed. Mr. Churchill argued and disputed with his "war" advisors but he nearly always followed their recommendations. And of course, Ike listen and relied upon many of his subordinates, such as Monty and Bradley.

In developing "Overlord" (the invasion plan of June 6, 1944) it was greatly improved using input from Monty and others.

One other example comes to mind concerning the use of the best idea, no matter the source. Britian approached NAA, and asked if they would build P-40 aircraft under license from Curtiss. North American said they could provide a better fresh design, and so Britian said, go for it. In just over 100 days, NAA developed the initial design of what would become the P-51 Mustang.

When the plane was tested using its Allison 1200 HP V12, it performed ok up to 15,000 feet, but above that elevation it lacked sufficient power. A Brit suggested the plane be fitted with the 1600 HP RR Merlin. This solved the power and high altitude problem, but because the new engine weight about 300 lbs more, the modification threw off the center of gravity. So the wings were moved forward, which then created enough room behind the pilot to fit an additional fuel tank giving the plane a very long range. One other synergy must be mentioned. The Merlin had a two speed supercharger so it could provide even more "boost" than the initial design number. By raising the boost, early P-51 could achieve around 1700 HP. And in Texas, the Sun Company came up with a way to extract the highest octane gas, so our aviation fuel sported a much higher octane than in enemy planes. By the end of the war, P-51's had HP ratings approaching 2000.

The P-51's started showing up in 1943, and became one of our best fighters.