Wolf pack - Definition and Overview

This article describes the system of submarine warfare. For other meanings, see wolfpack.

The term wolf pack refers to the mass-attack tactics against convoys used by the submarines of the United States Navy against Japanese shipping in the Pacific Ocean and by the U-boats of the Kriegsmarine during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II.

Karl Doenitz used the term Rudel, meaning "pack" or other group of animals, to describe his strategy of submarine warfare. The pack is specified to be "wolves" only in English.

With the opening shots of the 2003 invasion of Iraq in March 2003, the term wolf pack was brought back into use to describe the fleet of American and British nuclear submarines which operated together in the Red Sea to fire tomahawk missiles at Iraq. USS Providence (SSN-719) was the first boat to fire its entire load of missiles and earn the nickname "Big Dog of the Red Sea Wolf Pack."

Example Usage of Wolf