I'm an OK HOI4 player but an absolute noob with the Total War mod. As Germany, playing on Easy, I tried to lure the British subs into the East North Sea. This worked but my airforce (absolute fighter dominance and a mix of Nav, Tactical Bombers and Close Air support) consistently failed. On a good encounter, I would lose 20 aircraft to get one sub. Later, my subs were just as dismal as my aircraft had been. I generally failed to sink anything but could lose many subs against an unescorted transport. If I bumped into an escort, I lost much more. This is all in 1939/40! My naval techs were up to date.

It's probably a waste for Germany to put any effort into the Navy but, on "Easy" shouldn't these fights be going my way? Is there a secret to naval combat or should it just be avoided?