What mistakes did United States make during world war 2?

Answer 1

Sanctions against Germany were so great that it caused overwhelming financial distress to the people, yet left the country enough autonomy and population that they were able to raise another army. They were desperate enough that they followed a madman (Hitler) into battle in an attempt to control Europe and resolve their financial problems. At the end of WWII, Germany was divided into 3 parts to assure that there would not be enough resources for the Germans to start another war.

Answer 2

1. Extremely faulty US torpedoes.

2. Extreme under-estimating of the enemy: resulting in the disastrous Battle of Savo Island (4 Allied Heavy Cruisers lost during a surface gun action).

3. Extreme under-estimating of enemy tanks (armor) by the Allies during the Battle of Singapore in 1942.

Another Answer: I agree with #1 # 2 above. For #3, the US was not involved in the defense of Singapore. The big mistake at Singapore (by the British) was having poor land defenses from attacks coming over-land from Malaya.

The US was slow to correctly estimate the real military power & capabilities of the Japanese (mostly naval & naval air). This includes not assessing the Japanese capability to deliver a successful major naval air attack against Pearl Harbor. It also includes not realizing that the Japanese had superior night surface combat capabilities or superior naval air strike doctrine. Also the Japanese had superior "long-lance" torpedoes. The US was slow to understand the strengths & weaknesses of the Japanese Zero fighter.

The US was slow to improve security and protection of North Atlantic shipping against the German U-Boat. The US was slow to adopt many British anti-sub practices or relook at WW1 lessons learned.

The US had some weapon systems that were inadequate or poor performers at various times during the war:

The US Torpedoes were poor in the first half of the war. This was primarily torpedoes used by aircraft and submarines.

The US Sherman tank was effective in North Africa, Sicily and somewhat in Italy during the period 1942-1943, however it was inadequate when facing modern German Panzers in 1944-1945. Its two largest flaws were with the main gun and the engine. The gun & ammo were not powerful enough to penetrate German frontal armor from any reasonable distance. Also the tank's engine used highly flammable (high-octane) gasoline that made the tank more vulnerable to German weapons. The tank was generally adequate for fighting in the Pacific. The US was very slow to field a better tank. The much better Pershing tank arrived in small numbers in spring 1945.

US anti-tank (& anti-bunker) weapons used by the infantry were inadequate late 1943-1945. The 2.75" diameter bazooka was a very popular and effective weapon for the US ground soldier when it was first introduced in 1942. However it was not improved to give it better lethality against thicker armor at longer ranges. The 3.5" bazooka would not be fielded until the Korean War in 1951.

US early carrier-based torpedo bombers were very poor (compared to the Japanese Kate) in 1941-1943. They were too slow, had a short range, and had only light defensive weapons. However they were still superior to many British weapons. Remember the standards for the carrier's naval aircraft were higher in the Pacific war.

The US in the air war in Europe, were slow to realize that long-range bombers such as the B-17 & B-24 needed escort fighter protection from German fighters. Also the US was slow to improve the capacity of the P-47 fighter to fly greater distances to escort the bombers.

The US & (especially the British) were relatively slow to determine which German targets should have the priority to be bombed to have the most effect in winning the war in Europe.

The US was slow to figure out that it was not logistically possible to mount an air offensive campaign against the Japanese home islands from China. This is because China was virtually cut-off from US & British supply channels. At first the US tried to airlift supplies over the Himalayan Mountains from India to China in sufficient quantities to support long-range bombers in China. Eventually by 1944 this effort would be ended in favor of using captured Pacific islands as bases.

In the Pacific, the US should have bypassed Peleliu island, instead of invading in September 1944. It was costly & took 2 months to capture. It was not really a critical target.

In the north Pacific, the US failed to know that the Japanese had evacuated the Aleutian island of Kiska in July before it launched its unnecessary landings in August 1943.

In the war in Italy, the allies should have better planned and supported the 1944 landings at Anzio. The Germans were caught unprepared, however the US & British forces were not large enough to expand the beachhead to good defensive positions.

In northern Europe, following the liberation of Paris, the US should not have agreed with the British plan for Operation Market-Garden. The plan was flawed. US & British resources were wasted on partially failed operation.

In late 1944 northern Europe, following Operation Market-Garden, the US & British intelligence activities failed to notice the German build-up for the German offensive in the Ardennes in December 1944 (Battle of the Bulge).

After the defeat of Japan, the US & British failed to aggressively pursue the prosecution of Japanese war criminals. Japanese war crimes were especially barbaric, plentiful & widespread throughout Asia & the Pacific.

Answer 3

The events that led to World War 2 was: We treated Germany badly, they had to take full blame of WW 1, and the had a depression and Hitler came to power