During WWII, what was more dangerous----a Submariner or in the Air Corps?

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - During WWII, what was more dangerous----a Submariner or in the Air Corps?

Posted: 8/26/2005 9:39:47 AM EDT

Does anyone have an answer to this question?

There is a difference, of course, between being a casualty vs. KIA, etc. Then too, I am sure that there is a real difference between being in the Air Corps and actually being in a plane, as compared to being groung support. However, is there any source of data or reliable statistics as to which service was more "dangerous" to one's longevity-----or am I completely wrong, and the title belongs to someone like the Marines(?).

TIA, CBR

Posted: 8/26/2005 9:41:17 AM EDT

[#1]

air corps.

besides. if your in the air corps, you get "shot down"

in the silent service your "on eternal patrol"

Posted: 8/26/2005 9:49:49 AM EDT

[#2]

22% of all U.S. submarine crewmen never returned from battle in WWII. It was by far the highest KIA/MIA rate in any U.S. service branch during the war. The TOTAL casualty rate for the airforce was lower than the KIA/MIA rate for the submarines.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:03:21 AM EDT

[#3]

Quoted:
22% of all U.S. submarine crewmen never returned from battle in WWII. It was by far the highest KIA/MIA rate in any U.S. service branch during the war. The TOTAL casualty rate for the airforce was lower than the KIA/MIA rate for the submarines.

Interesting, but I am going to have to check into that. I thought that about 10% of all US forces killed in WWII were from the 8th Air Force, but I could be wrong (imagine that).

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:06:36 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
Quoted:
22% of all U.S. submarine crewmen never returned from battle in WWII. It was by far the highest KIA/MIA rate in any U.S. service branch during the war. The TOTAL casualty rate for the airforce was lower than the KIA/MIA rate for the submarines.

Interesting, but I am going to have to check into that. I thought that about 10% of all US forces killed in WWII were from the 8th Air Force, but I could be wrong (imagine that).

If I remember right flying bombers in the 8th and 9th USAAF in Europe was by far the most dangerous assignment of WWII. I believe probability of finishing a 25 flight bomber tour in 1943 was something less that 40%

I will try and dig up the data.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:09:35 AM EDT

[#5]

You wanna talk about dangerous, try being a German aviator or submariner.

Or maybe a Japanese aviator during the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:14:57 AM EDT

[#6]

Submerged Air Corps.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:22:56 AM EDT

[#7]

8th AF had more KIA than the entire USMC did.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:29:27 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
Quoted:
22% of all U.S. submarine crewmen never returned from battle in WWII. It was by far the highest KIA/MIA rate in any U.S. service branch during the war. The TOTAL casualty rate for the airforce was lower than the KIA/MIA rate for the submarines.

Interesting, but I am going to have to check into that. I thought that about 10% of all US forces killed in WWII were from the 8th Air Force, but I could be wrong (imagine that).

The TOTAL casualty rate (KIA/MIA/WIA/Captured) for the 8th was 13% (47,000 out of 350,000) , and that was the highest for any U.S. Air Force unit of the war. 405,000 servicemen in all branches died in WWII. There were 26,000 KIAs in 8th Air Force, about 6.4% of total U.S. casualties.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:33:22 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
8th AF had more KIA than the entire USMC did.

True. 8th AF: 26,000 KIA/MIA. Marines: 24,500 KIA/MIA. And the fatality RATE was over twice as high in the 8th: 7.4% versus 3.6%.

Still, the KIA/MIA rate for the silent service was 22%. No one else comes close.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:33:47 AM EDT

[#10]

IIRC the Sub force had a higher % of casualties, but the 8th air force had far more in total number.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:34:29 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Quoted:
8th AF had more KIA than the entire USMC did.

True. 8th AF: 26,000 KIA/MIA. Marines: 24,500 KIA/MIA. And the fatality RATE was even higher in the 8th: 9% versus 4%.

Still, the KIA/MIA rate for the silent service was 22%. No one else comes close.

thanks for giving us the numbers, do you happen to have a link?

Did some googling but no luck

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:37:41 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
8th AF had more KIA than the entire USMC did.

True. 8th AF: 26,000 KIA/MIA. Marines: 24,500 KIA/MIA. And the fatality RATE was even higher in the 8th: 7.4% versus 3.6%.

Still, the KIA/MIA rate for the silent service was 22%. No one else comes close.

thanks for giving us the numbers, do you happen to have a link?

Did some googling but no luck

There is no single link with all this data in one place. You need to search for casualty figures by service branch, by specific unit, etc. and do the math.

Posted: 8/26/2005 10:44:15 AM EDT

[#13]

NOTHING comes close to the German U-boat death rate--72.8%. The crackiing of the German enigma code made finding the U-boats very easy. We knew where they would be at specific times, whether for resupplying or hunting merchant ships.

An excellent book for info on U-boats was written by one of the few survivors of the war--U-boat captain Herbert Werner--his book is entitled (very appropriate) "Iron Coffins"

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - During WWII, what was more dangerous----a Submariner or in the Air Corps?

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