One of the greatest problems which the Allies have had in the battle against the U-boats in the Atlantic has been air cover. This has been especially so in the area south-west of Greenland, the so-called "Black Gap".
The reason that the Black Gap has plagued the Allies for such a long time has been a shortage of very-long-range (VLR) patrol aircraft, because priority has gone to the strategic bomber forces. The British, Canadian and US air forces fighting the BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC have for some time been demanding more US Consolidated B-24 Liberator aircraft, which have a range of over 2,000 miles.
More Liberators are now available. Equipped with the ASV III centimetric radio-location system and armed with the Mark IX depth charge, they are formidable aircraft. Liberators are operating from bases in Newfoundland, Iceland and Northern Ireland.
No North Atlantic U-boat is safe from them.