Three U-boats make the first controlled convoy attack
U-46 reports a northbound convoy of about twenty fast merchant ships. BdU brings U-37 and U-48 toward the contact, producing the first attack of the war in which several U-boats operate against one convoy under central tactical direction. German records credit the three boats with more than 25,000 gross tons sunk during 17 and 18 October, although torpedo failures and confusion limit the attack. Dönitz treats the operation as evidence that coordinated concentration can work. One boat finds the convoy; radio reports allow others to converge; the attack is then…
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