U-BOAT LOSSES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 August 1943, Page 4

U-BOAT LOSSES

EXCEEDING NEW BUILDING TWICE OYER ACCORDING TO NAVAL EXPERTS FACTOR OF AIR BOMBS. INCREASES IN ALLIED SHIPPING. (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) (Received This Day, 11.35 a.m.) WASHINGTON, August 16. The Allies are sinking U-boats twice as fast as Germany can build them, says naval experts, commenting on the statement by President Roosevelt and Mr Churchill that 90 U-boats have been sunk in the past three months.

The Germans' building capacity had previously been estimated at between 15 and 25 U-boats a month, but because of the Allied bombardment of Gorman shipbuilding yards and engine plants, naval authorities believe that the present production is less than 15 a month and that probably it will decrease further under more intense air attacks. They also believe that the present U-boat reserve is less than 300.

The naval correspondent of the London “Daily Express” declares that Germany still has 500 U-boats and Italy and Japan less than 100 each. The “Daily Telegraph’s” naval writer enumerates four significant points:— (1) We have been destroying Axis submarines faster than they are being built.

(2) We have been building up a vast reserve of shipping. (3) We have inflicted losses on trained submarine personnel amounting to between 15,000* and 20,000 officers and men.

(4) We have learned that invasion can be carried out at a loss in shipping far lower than we had expected. The “Daily Express” naval correspondent says Allied merchant shipping is now at least 5,000,000 or 6,000.000 tons stronger than at the beginning of the year. This is due, apart from the successes against U-boats, to the United States having doubled its merchant shipping tonnage—6.ooo,ooo tons were delivered this year —and to the freeing of two million tons of supply shipping by the reopening of the Mediterranean rente.