E-boats (WW 2) - Germany: Books - History (1/2)

German E-boats 1939-45 (Osprey)

By the outbreak of World War II, Germany had done much to replace the Kaiser's High Seas Fleet, which was scuttled following their surrender at the end of World War I. Forced to build anew, the Kriegsmarine possessed some of the most technically advanced warships in existence.
Although the heavy units of the fleet were too small in number to pose much of a threat, Germany was particularly well served by her Navy's smaller vessels, in particular the U-Boats and the S-Boats. Known to the allies as the E-Boats ('Enemy'), they performed sterling duties in the Black Sea and English Channel, where they became a particular scourge.

Contents: Introduction - Developmental Details - General Description - Armament- Powerplant - Colour Schemes - Radar - Organisation of the S-Bootwaffe - Operational use - Bibliography - Colour Plate Commentary - Index.

Schnellboot Type S-38 and S-100 (Super Drawings in 3D)

E-Boat Threat

While land based aircraft could carry out offshore operations by day and destroyers and cruisers patrolled deeper waters, the ideal craft for use in coastal waters were motor boats armed with torpedoes and light guns. But with the exception of Italy, none of the major powers had more than a handful of these boats operational at the outbreak of war.

From a small beginning, large fleets of highly maneuverable motor torpedo boats were built up, particularly by Britain, Germany and the USA. They operated mainly at night, because they were small enough to penetrate minefields and creep unseen to an enemy's coastline and fast enough to escape after firing their torpedoes.
They fought in every major theatre of war, but the first real threat came in the North Sea and English Channel from German E-boats, crossing to attack Britain's vital convoys. Ranged against them in the 'battle of the little ships' were British MTBs and MGBs and, later, American PT boats.
They often fought hand to hand at closer quarters than any other kind of warship in a unique conflict that lasted right to the end of the war.

"E-boat Threat" describes the development of these deadly little craft, the training of their crews who were usually volunteers and the gradual evolution of tactics in the light of wartime experience.
Methods of defence are also related, which included the use of aircraft and destroyers as well as motor gunboats, sometimes acting under a unified command.

German S-Boats (Ship Craft)

The subject of this volume is the Second World War German Navy's motor torpedo boats called Schnellboote, known to the Allies as E-Boats. One of the most effective coastal attack craft of the time, the type was built in large numbers and constantly improved as the war progressed, giving many variants to interest modellers.

With its unparalleled level of visual information - paint schemes, models, line drawings and photographs - this is simply the best reference for any modelmaker setting out to build one of these famous boats.

The 'ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, highlighting differences between sister-ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly-detailed line drawings and scale plans.
The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the ships, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit.
This is followed by an extensive photographic gallery of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references - books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.

Schnell- und Torpedoboote - Deutsche und alliierte Einheiten 1939-1945 (Typenkompass)

Schon vor dem Ersten Weltkrieg entwickelte die Royal Navy kleine Boote, die als Beiboote von Kreuzern zum Einsatzort an die Küste gebracht werden sollten. Während des Krieges sollten sie durch ihren geringen Tiefgang die Minenfelder vor der deutschen Küste überfahren können. Die Schiffseinheiten trugen so einen wesentlichen Teil des Kriegs zur See in küstennahen Gewässern bei.

Ingo Bauernfeind stellt in diesem Band deutsche wie alliierte Schnell- und Torpedoboote im Zweiten Weltkrieg vor. Kompakt aber detailliert, beschreibt er ihre Entwicklung, Einsatzgeschichte und technischen Besonderheiten.