Considering the effectiveness of the U-Boats during WWI....it begs the imagination to think they would be considered any less capable during the Second World War.
I believe you will find it was a competition for assets and resources that drove the decision making by the Admiralty and Air Ministry and not any really deep strategical thinking.....matter of fact all evidence would show the "strategic thinking" was flawed in the years leading up to the start of the War.
The American Military was no better equipped or prepared than the British for the onset of hostilities on a world wide scale. We at least had begun to ramp up production and grow our forces prior to the Pearl Harbor attack. Remember we had begun to escort Convoys prior to declaring war on Germany and had lost several combat vessels in that effort.
Look at the gross failure of the US Navy to heed the advice given by the RN re Convoys and inability to darken the lights along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts......killing how many hundreds of mariners. Our CNO was no great lover of things British as you may recall.
Montgomery and his "Bridge Too Far" adventure was yet another example of a Commander refusing to heed the input of his Intelligence Officers. We see how that turned out.
There were ample warnings of the Ardenne Offensive (Battle of the Bulge) that were ignored as well.
Some how I do not believe that an Officer upon receiving an Order takes the time to consider the factors that led to the issuance of that Order.....and way too many times Orders given from a great distance away from the battlefield seem to fly in the face of the tactical reality. Yet.....local Commanders obey the orders given from up the Chain of Command.....that is how the military operates.