Luftwaffe "sanity options 2.0", 1935-43

[mack8]

ScienceDirect.com says 17 MWh per tonne of aluminium to refine bauxite. Refining an extra 100,000 t needs another 1700 GWh.
How much would that tax the German power generation system?

It seems the answer is they need to burn around 10 million tons of coal for the electricity to make the 100,000 tons of aluminium. So roughly 100 tons of coal to 1 ton of aluminium.
See the discussion here (scroll down):

The Axis has plenty of oil (and other resources)

And since we are talking about steel, i found this very interesting discussion re german steel. So in theory as an exercise let's assume the extra steel saved can be targeted to any of the main military production categories like trucks, tanks, guns or subs. Which one would have the most...

www.alternatehistory.com

 

[thaddeus]

AIUI accumulating large stockpiles of strategic raw materials was the plan 1933-39 IOTL and insufficient reserves of foreign currency prevented Germany (and Italy and Japan) from making said stockpiles as large as they wanted. Furthermore, insufficient reserves of foreign currency also stopped Germany from running its manufacturing industry at full capacity 1933-39.

If Germany & Austria had been producing crude petroleum in the quantities suggested in the table imports could have been cut rather than increasing consumption. The foreign currency saved from reduced imports of oil could have been used to buy other raw materials.

(a little late reading your post) my speculation for a large tanker fleet around the Dithmarschen-class ships was partly to earn or barter for needed resources, primarily oil but if they did not pay for oil that frees up reserves for other materials.

an earlier annexation of Austria would be probably the single greatest POD for the German economy overall? IDK how that could have changed, guess it results in a neutral or even hostile Italy?

of course I'm of the view Germany could have occupied much/most of Eastern Europe and not invaded the USSR, then the German oil needs are reduced.

 

[tomo pauk]

course I'm of the view Germany could have occupied much/most of Eastern Europe and not invaded the USSR, then the German oil needs are reduced.

Bingo.

 

[tomo pauk]

Polish were offering the P.24 with a 90-rd drum for the Oerlikon FF a few years before the ww2: link
A German fighter with 90-rd drum on the MG FF (like the Bf 109E-3/-4) has 50% greater firing duration for it's cannons - handy if the mission in above enemy-held territory.

 

[mack8]

Do you know by any chance how much the 90-rd drums would have weighed comared to the 60-rd ones? Also, did all the Bf-109E models had 1000 rpg for the cowl guns, or just the MG-FF equipped ones? I don't seem to recall this info otoh now.

 

[mack8]

Polish were offering the P.24 with a 90-rd drum for the Oerlikon FF a few years before the ww2: link
A German fighter with 90-rd drum on the MG FF (like the Bf 109E-3/-4) has 50% greater firing duration for it's cannons - handy if the mission in above enemy-held territory.

Reading through the poster though, it seems the round numbers are total, rather than per gun. See how they list 1200 rounds for 4 MGs, ie 300 each. So 45-rd drums.

 

[tomo pauk]

Reading through the poster though, it seems the round numbers are total, rather than per gun. See how they list 1200 rounds for 4 MGs, ie 300 each. So 45-rd drums.

Yes, you are right, I've just reckoned it myself \:

 

[mack8]

I'm back from spending a few hours in spreadsheet hell. This is the result.

View attachment 878078
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So nickel wise, Finland and Greece are the key. No doubt the greek production was crippled due to the italian invasion. While Finland, it depends whether is possible to exploit their nickel reserves earlier. So the germans could perhaps get 50% more nickel than in OTL which will make a difference.

 

[NOMISYRRUC]

So nickel wise, Finland and Greece are the key. No doubt the Greek production was crippled due to the Italian invasion. While Finland, it depends whether is possible to exploit their nickel reserves earlier. So the Germans could perhaps get 50% more nickel than in OTL which will make a difference.

And Poland. or the parts of Poland that were German between 1919 & 1939. After uploading the table I did an internet search about the Polish nickel mining industry. I didn't find much and the little I did find suggested that the mines are in what was German Silesia.

 

[mack8]

Poland seem to have discovered/started nickel production after the war, hence not clear if it could have been discoverable with the 1930s tech. So i focused mainly on Finland and Greece (and Norway) as the biggest producers in the axis sphere.

 

[JasTysoe]

IMHO it gives Germany the opportunity to force Britain and/or the USSR out of the war before the USA could use its overwhelming industrial superiority. OTOH the USA might have used said overwhelming industrial superiority sooner ITTL.​

I'm late to this, but would more aircraft have forced Britain or the USSR out of the war? The range of LW aircraft meant that even if there had been more of them they couldn't have destroyed all of the UK or USSR's defences. The Sea Mammal is not going to work even if the LW rules the Channel, and given that the LW had control of the air in the early stages of Barbarossa isn't it reasonable to say that even greater control of the air is not going to change the outcome, given that (as with the the Unspeakable Sea Mammal) resources in other areas have to be reduced?

Thanks for the spreadsheets. It's great to see proper researched information.