And make a deal with Russia for oil instead of trying to take it. Produce no surface Naval Fleet, all subs. The tons of steel in the Graf Zeppelin, Tirpitz and Bismarck would have made a lot of U-Boats, with those England would have been cut off. As it was it was a near thing, the Germans almost managed to strangle England. I have to admit they got good mileage from Bismarck but in reality that was a lot of wasted tonnage.
Incorrect about the Graf Zeppelin. It was a duralum (aluminum) frame for weight reduction. Very important for a lighter than air ship. Plus Zeppelins didn't have any really practical
strategic value in WW2. Too easy to shoot down. Although the blimps were used for submarine patrols and I'm aware of a rescue at that time by word of mouth.
An old guy had this godawful hideous scar in his lower left leg. Asked him how he got it and told me how he was a pilot before the war in 41 and was training in Bell P39's.
Was flying in a group on the west coast by San Francisco. He got a plane that was just overhauled, took off and was climbing when he said the plane snap rolled to the left,
he stomped on the right rudder pedal fed in right aileron and nothing. He said was just above 3000'AGL, pulled the door quick release and got out asap. He believes his lower leg
contacted the wing or part of the tail. Yanked the ripcord and just managed to have a good canopy just before he hit on an ocean mud flat. Took stock of himself, saw he had an open
compound fracture of his left lower leg and realized he wouldn't be walking out of there. Says he was a mile offshore and was able to wave to his buddies who dipped their wings
and called for help. Shortly he saw military trucks onshore about a mile away. To make matters worse, the tide started to come in. The mud was too soft for anyone to come after him
on foot. I was like, "How in the world did they get you out?" He said, "You won't believe me." I replied, "Try me." Well, they called a nearby naval air station and out came
a blimp to pick him up! The pilot hovered just off the mud flat, three corpsman jumped out with a litter and then loaded him on the blimp for the ride back.
Turned out he developed a bone infection in the open fracture and in the pre-antibiotic era sat out the entire war in a VA hospital as the infection became chronic.
This was pre-internet days but I eventually checked some of the facts and the P39 arrived in 1941 and was used for training. Chuck Yaeger wrote about flying them. The Navy did have blimps before the war and it's plausible that this fellows account is true. Lord knows that hideous scar on the lower tibia certainly could have been from an open fracture and resultant osteomyelitis.
Kurt