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Would Bombing New York City by Germany made any difference in WWII

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  • Would Bombing New York City by Germany made any difference in WWII

    I was watching the history channel the other day and they have a show on that hitler was facinated with bombing new york city during WWII. They even were trying to design bombers to reach it. My question is since there were really no weapons factories and the US is so vast if they would have accomplished it would it have changed the outcome any and why would he think that it would so much?

  • #2
    Bombing New York would have been like bombing London. But it was more then likely defended rather well as you had many shipbuilding companies located there that were producing the battleships, carriers,cruisers and destroyers. The East coast and West coast were building ships,planes, tanks and everything else on a mass scale.
    Fortitude.....The strength to persist...The courage to endure.

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    • #3
      Not in this universe! They barely put a dent on England and that was their best shot.
      All those who are merciful with the cruel will come to be cruel to the merciful.
      -Talmud Kohelet Rabbah, 7:16.

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      • #4
        I don't think it would have made any difference at all, except perhaps to stiffen the resolve of Americans, much as the bombing of London stiffened the resolve of the British. Also, for much of the War the east coast of the US was relatively undefended, as demonstrated by the success of the U-Boats during Paukenschlag; U-Boats were able to attack & sink ships within sight of the US mainland, with little or no threat of retaliation until later in the War.

        However, even IF Germany had been able to send long-range bombers all the way across the Atlantic in 1944-45, the bombload they could carry was relatively insignificant, so any successful attacks the Germans could have carried out would have been more of a psychological victory, rather than a military victory.
        "There is never enough time to do or say all the things that we would wish. The thing is to try to do as much as you can in the time that you have. Remember Scrooge, time is short, and suddenly, you're not there any more." -Ghost of Christmas Present, Scrooge

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        • #5
          Bombing NYC in WW2

          I hope that this doesn't sound too anti-American. It is not intended to be.
          Perhaps the Nazis were right, that the bombing of NYC would have engendered severe panic although it would not have made any difference to American desire to prosecute a war.
          ON 9/11/2001 New York WAS attacked. Just under 3000 people were killed in a one-off attack and the US still beats its breast and believes that it was the worst thing in the world. In the 1940/1941 Blitz there were some 150,000 casualties in Britain including some 60,000 plus civilian deaths. The bombing went on day after day, night after night. The Germans reaped the Whirlwind and Anglo-American bombing killed perhaps 410,000 civilians between 1942-1945. neither the British, nor the Germans would 'give-in' to bombing and many had the benefit of air raid shelters, bunkers and planned facilities. The US did not.
          Americans have and had no less fortitude than Europeans, but they do have a 'panic-mode' press (vide Orsen Welles 'War of the Worlds' radio show)
          The American press would have shat themselves and be running sob-stories to this day. Ordinary Americans would have just got angrier.

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          • #6
            diodetriode

            Go spread your screed elsewhere. There are adults here.

            Ask the people of 2 cities in Japan how they dealt with the American retribution for hitting US soil.

            If Germany had bombed New York, a B-29 would have been under control of the 8th Air Force instead of the 20th Air Force.
            “Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
            Mark Twain

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            • #7
              New York City was hit but not by air but by sea. The U-Boat Happy Times I & II campaigns did more damage than Pearl Harbour.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Officer of Engineers View Post
                New York City was hit but not by air but by sea. The U-Boat Happy Times I & II campaigns did more damage than Pearl Harbour.
                Also California and Oregon were shelled by Japanese Submarines.

                Then there was the "Great Air Raid on Los Angeles". A humanitarian type news reporter (the late Ralph Story) gave a whole half hour show about it. And the general opinion is that it was a test to see if Americans would respond properly, go in a panic or something like that.

                Well, one of my co-workers was here during that "raid". He and his father spent the next morning picking up shrapnel from the 90mm AA air bursts in their yard and off their roof.

                As for panic? He said, "Hell no. We stood out in our front yards watching the searchlights and shell bursts and yelling 'GET THE G-D D-MN B-ST-RDS'"
                Able to leap tall tales in a single groan.

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                • #9
                  Albany Rifles

                  Originally posted by Albany Rifles View Post
                  Go spread your screed elsewhere. There are adults here.

                  Ask the people of 2 cities in Japan how they dealt with the American retribution for hitting US soil.

                  If Germany had bombed New York, a B-29 would have been under control of the 8th Air Force instead of the 20th Air Force.
                  Did I interrupt your whiskey time-- Adult?
                  Read the post.

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                  • #10
                    diodetriode

                    My bad...I conflated your post with another one from another thread. Shouldn't have had 2 windows open concurrently.

                    My apologies.

                    And I don't drink whiskey;)
                    “Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
                    Mark Twain

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                    • #11
                      If anything had ever come of the Amerika bomber project (one reason Hitler didn't push Franco too hard was he wanted the use of Spanish Atlantic naval and airbases), the intention was to go for nineteen industrial targets, rather than NYC per se ... bottlenecks in aircraft production, rather than civilians, was the plan.

                      Amerika Bomber - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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                      • #12
                        C'mon people, c'mon! The Americans had been hoarding their 90mm for precisely this unlikely event. Where on God's green earth are the Germans find all that gasoline?
                        All those who are merciful with the cruel will come to be cruel to the merciful.
                        -Talmud Kohelet Rabbah, 7:16.

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                        • #13
                          Of course, Triple C, either the Middle East or the Caucasus oilfields had to be taken.

                          When Barbarossa failed, plans for an air force and navy to take on Britain and even the USA had to be postponed. The army, after having whacked a sleeping bear on the head with a shovel then watched in horror as it picked itself up off the floor, now had to receive priority for finance, steel and manpower.

                          The overambitious German naval plan was originally to have ten super-Bismarck battleships, four aircraft carriers, 55 cruisers, 68 destroyers and nearly 250 U-boats by 1944.

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Stitch View Post
                            I don't think it would have made any difference at all, except perhaps to stiffen the resolve of Americans, much as the bombing of London stiffened the resolve of the British. ...
                            I agree with this, perhaps more so than the British, mainly because of the size of the US.

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Triple C View Post
                              C'mon people, c'mon! The Americans had been hoarding their 90mm for precisely this unlikely event. Where on God's green earth are the Germans find all that gasoline?
                              Exactly why St.Paul, Minneapolis, Milwaukee and Chcago had air raid drills. The Germans could fly over the arctic from Norway and have enough fuel to bomb Allis Chalmers (a mile south of our front door). Milwaukee would have been the most likely target as it was much more industrial than even Chicago (except for the Loop, stock yards and Union Station). As I mentioned before; Milwaukee also had Cutler Hammer, Chain Belt, Falk Foundry and Harley Davidson.

                              For morale busting they could have hit Schlitz, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Miller High Life, Blatz and Gettleman breweries. Pabst was one of the biggest suppliers of beer to USO's as well as having their own farms of dairy cattle and grains such as hops and barley for their beer. Even during the Viet Nam War, I would see pallet loads of Pabst being ready for loading aboard ship to Saigon and Dah Nang.
                              Able to leap tall tales in a single groan.

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