CANT CATCH THEM

[grandpacharlie]

i DONT GET IT.. I hear them coming and I head toward them and then dive to periscope depth but then they turn and head away faster than I can chase. Can I assume this is because they detect me? Any suggestions?

[faamecanic]

Yep...sounds like your getting too close. A better way (the way I do it) when my sonar guy finds the contact, I surface and head on the bearing he gave me. I also have a FULL watch crew (one of my officers rated in Watch qualification, as well as a Warrant Officer rated in watch and three crewmen) on the bridge. Usually your watch crew will spot the merchant before they spot you.

I then try to plot a intercept course, usually run about 3000- 4000 m para. to the ship until I can comfortably get in front of them and turn 90 deg so I am set up for a nice shot abeam to the ship.

hope this helps

[grandpacharlie]

Thanks fo the reply.. Any idea how fast/deep I can run before they hear me when I head toward them?

[Muto]

Grandpa,

From your original post it appears that you are running at the surface with only one or two watch crew ... if you can 'hear' the contact while surfaced then you are WAY too close. Also, most merchants can't outrun you on the surface, at least not if you're in a Type VIIb or better.

The way I do it is I run ahead slow at the surface at night with a full watch crew ... including one Watch Officer, an NCO with Watch specialization, one veteran seaman, and two 'ordinary' seamen. If my watch crew spots something, I will confirm bearing and range with the Watch Officer ... weather conditions determine whether I will submerge or not. The key to getting a good shot is making sure the target does not detect me, so if it's clear, I want to stay outside of 4000 meters on the surface. If stormy with low vis, you can get in pretty close, even 1500 meters, and they won't see you. Inside of those ranges, I dive to periscope depth and use the scope to determine range, course and speed of target, then adjust my course and speed to sail parallel to the target and get ahead of it into firing position.

During the day, I run submerged, and only surface if I detect a Merchant running medium or faster at long range and moving away, so I need the surface speed to catch him. A range of minimum 2000-2500 meters is the best stalking distance where they usually do not spot your periscope, but even so, keep your scope above the surface as little as possible ... only for your time interval checks to confirm bearing, range, course and speed of target. As faamecanic stated, 3000-4000 meters is a safer distance, but that means you'll have more distance to close to your firing position in order to guarantee a kill shot.

Merchants cannot 'hear' you no matter how fast/deep you run. They are not equipped with hydrophones.

Now, if you're talking about DDs, I recommend you avoid them altogether like a real U-boat Captain would. DDs do have hydrophones and SONAR, so at anything faster than ahead slow (3 knots submerged), they can pick up your engines. And once they hear a contact, they will start pinging you to determine exactly where you are, and then you're in big trouble. 3 knots is too slow to 'sneak up' on a destroyer, so I recommend you completely avoid them. If they are escorting a convoy your are stalking, you MUST run submerged, and it is a balancing act between running fast enough to keep up/get ahead of your target while maintaining a safe distance (i.e. >2000-3000 meters) so the DDs can't spot your periscope when you raise it every five minutes to confirm your position relative to the convoy. Running faster increases the likelihood a DD will 'hear' you, but its usually the only way to get into a good firing position.

Welcome to the dilemmas of U-boat captainhood.

[grandpacharlie]

Ok thanks for the help..
Here is what I do and you can tell me what is wrong.
I see on the map a red circle and head toward that. Now I dive when I am close, but long before I actually see them, I listen. I then try to move toward them using the hydrophone to figure their direction and checking with the scope to visually see them. I try to get within 1000 meters..but they always seem to catch on and sail away. I cant catch them submerged. If I chase them on the surface they shoot at me and if I dive they get away..
and one more thing..what is the meaning of the red and yellow and green arrows in the scope.. I wonder why the manual didnt explain this.
This is not like the old days when we used to just shoot the cloth out of their sails!!!

[Muto]

How long do you keep the scope above water while "checking to visually see them"? I am on my fourth patrol of a new career and decided to stalk the waters nw of ireland ... came across a convoy last night, clear night with calm seas, so I stayed 3000 meters from the outer destroyer protecting the southern (starboard) flank of the convoy. I checked twice with the scope, leaving it up for 10 seconds each time, just to try and get a fix on the convoy's heading. With the third scope check, I wanted to confirm for sure convoy's range and heading ... left the scope up for 20 seconds, and then noticed the destroyer turning toward me from a range of 3300 meters! I've spent the last 90 minutes alternating flank speed and ahead slow at 130 meters depth, rigged for silent, dodging depth charge attacks, taking some minor damage. It will now take me forever to set up for any kind of attack.

So it all goes to show ... you gotta keep a safe distance until you figure out where that convoy is headed, then you need to move well out of visual range of the convoy to surface and zoom ahead of the convoy's course for an hour or two, then park yourself along the convoy's path to be 2000 meters abeam, then spread 4 torpedoes at 2 of the juiciest targets and get the heck out of Dodge.

[faamecanic]

Ok..here is how I usually run an intercept.

I get a "Report" of a ship on my map (the ship shows up on the map and is a distance away from me). My watch crew didnt spot this ship....its a radio report of ship in the area.

I then take my handy speed/distance calculator (PM me your email addy and I will send it to you if you want) and take my straight ruler on the nav map and draw a anticpated course line in the distance he will travel in 1 hour, 3 hour...or however long I think it will take for me to intercept him, at a distance slightly ahead of his course.

I then make sure I have the above mention watch crew statioined on the bridge.

Once I get to where I think he should be (or should be shortly) I submerge and listen. If he isnt there visually, then I can usually catch him by surfacing, and heading in his direction. Again make sure you have your full watch crew up.

If I have to hunt him down.... my watch crew usually spots the merchant, so I go to my nav map and plot a paralell course to set me up for a good bow/stern shot.

Day or night I run surfaced, and keep about 4000+ meters away. Once Im at my intercept I submerge. Works 99% of the time.

I DID have a bad accident last night.... my watch crew spotted a warship (TWO tribal Destroyers)... it was stormy, night time, 15m/s winds and high waves. Well....my watch crew "spotted" these destroyers about 500m away from me!!!! Needless to say even with a crash dive....they rammed my Uboat. My next crew will all have eye doctor appointments!

Also....check the main site of Dom's..... he has a good intercept manual posted there.