Hunting

[LostDream]

Ein sehr guter Tag für euch alle!

How do you guys hunt?

I usually cruse no more then 120 the next one up. Run underwater at Ahead-Slow until my batteries are %50 dune, then surface and place a Watch Officer until Im fully recharge. Rinse and Repeat. This is heading into my patrol area, as well as when Im just doing a grid search for targets.

Do you always follow the shipping lanes or pick a random course and see what you get? I have read about the "good" grids, AM51-52, BF I think its 14 or so, by the mouth of the channel. Do you just run those grids or really hunt for targets in the big blue ocean?

Just wanting to know what the rest of my Wolf Pack is doing so I can adapt and maybe bring back to port and xtra 20-30 tons.

:salute:

[Jimbuna]

Ein sehr guter Tag für euch alle!

How do you guys hunt?

I usually cruse no more then 120 the next one up. Run underwater at Ahead-Slow until my batteries are %50 dune, then surface and place a Watch Officer until Im fully recharge. Rinse and Repeat. This is heading into my patrol area, as well as when Im just doing a grid search for targets.

Do you always follow the shipping lanes or pick a random course and see what you get? I have read about the "good" grids, AM51-52, BF I think its 14 or so, by the mouth of the channel. Do you just run those grids or really hunt for targets in the big blue ocean?

Just wanting to know what the rest of my Wolf Pack is doing so I can adapt and maybe bring back to port and xtra 20-30 tons.

:salute:

I generally pick a patrol grid via SH3 Commander (but not always) and spend a week skulking about then, if no or little success I go to an adjoining grid, but no further because I consider that slightly unrealistic.....the Kaleun never had the option or the fuel to travel worldwide.

[Paul Riley]

I'll give you an example of my last hunt.My initial patrol orders were to patrol grid BF17 for 24hrs (a waste of time I know),which covers roughly the western approaches into Britain,just south of Ireland.After 24 hrs I decided to patrol my own sector,and decided I needed to find the main lanes a bit further to the west away from Britain and in deeper water,directly south of the south western tip of Ireland,this was and IS a major trade hub for shipping coming from Canada and USA.

First,I decided to head for BF14 and when I reached the southern edge of the grid I would head north onto the northern edge of BF11 (roughly a 200km patrol corridor) moving submerged for most of the patrol (roughly 6-7 hours submerged) at 4kts.Moving submerged at about 30m you can pick distant contacts up a lot further than if you were relying on your watch crew.When the batteries had drained to 10% I surfaced and ran for about 4hrs or so at ahead standard while charging the batteries,which expended approx 200km or so of fuel,from a total of well over half the tank to start with.I had enough fuel at this rate to cover the short surface run for well over a week,and possibly more!.I also recorded how much fuel I would need for the return journey back to Wilhelmshaven,approx 2000km worth taking the short cut through the channel (very risky,but I made it through at the beginning of the patrol,but this will be the last time as patrols are increasing in that area now).
After heading into the northern sector of BF11 I would again head south back into BF14 submerged,and recharged as neccessary when the batteries had drained to 10%.
In this time I spent almost 2 weeks in the area and managed to sink 6 ships for a total of just under 37000 tonnes,including a very juicy whale factory ship for 12000 tonnes!.

Thats the way I do it,pick an area that you expect to have high traffic (ideally at chokepoints and not too far from your initial 24hr patrol orders),usually this may cover one or more grid squares to patrol,then stick to your plan.And in my case I would only attack incoming ships,and ignore the outgoing,as my intention was to cut off supplies HEADING for Britain,and not going back to Canada.This adds to the realism factor.I am now about to enter the channel again after spending 17 days in total at sea with 2 stern torpedoes left and 150rds of HE ammo.

You will realise the greatest threat from this method of patrolling is fuel,but if you work out how mank kms you cover surfaced while recharging for a 24hr period,deduct it from your current total of fuel left,then work out the surface totals for a week,and maybe two,you should have enough fuel to cover it,if your fuel notes and calculations are correct.It is better to dynamically patrol an area than to remain in one spot and hoping for traffic to come to you,the oceans are too vast for that approach.But once you are certain you have found a lane frequented by many ships you can then afford to hang around just off the track and wait for them to arrive :D
You will certainly need patience,persistence,foresight and luck to patrol like this,but its very rewarding when it works.

Good hunting!

:arrgh!:

[JohnnyBlaze]

Hi, Paul!

I don't mean to bash your patrolling technique, but don't you think it's a bit dangerous to drain the battery 90% before recharging?
What if a task force enters your area when you only have 10% of your batteries left?

Let's think of a scenario when an aircraft carrier based fighters sweep the area and spot you on the surface right after you've surfaced to recharge and force you under. With no power in the batteries, you can't change position submerged and you know that them destroyers are coming..

Happened to me once in 1943 and yes the bastards found me. :dead:

Just a heads up, you know :yeah:

-JB

[Paul Riley]

Hi, Paul!

I don't mean to bash your patrolling technique, but don't you think it's a bit dangerous to drain the battery 90% before recharging?
What if a task force enters your area when you only have 10% of your batteries left?

Let's think of a scenario when an aircraft carrier based fighters sweep the area and spot you on the surface right after you've surfaced to recharge and force you under. With no power in the batteries, you can't change position submerged and you know that them destroyers are coming..

Happened to me once in 1943 and yes the bastards found me. :dead:

Just a heads up, you know :yeah:

-JB

VERY good point sir,and yes,I am fully aware of that.I will just have to trust in lady luck,and keep away from the buggers if they appear :salute:

[Snestorm]

Usualy I'll try to reach my patrol grid via a short route, reasonably free of aircraft (IXaholic).
I stay on the surface as much as possible, and will respond to convoy reports issued via radio.

Once my time in grid is done, I MAY move closer to the nearest enemy port or coastline.

If there are still torpedoes available my route back will generaly be longer, crossing promising lanes. (If I've had a dud patrol off Afrika, I may make a pass towards the Gibralter area.)

Sometimes I find nothing. So be it.

[Jimbuna]

Usualy I'll try to reach my patrol grid via a short route, reasonably free of aircraft (IXaholic).
I stay on the surface as much as possible, and will respond to convoy reports issued via radio.

Once my time in grid is done, I MAY move closer to the nearest enemy port or coastline.

If there are still torpedoes available my route back will generaly be longer, crossing promising lanes. (If I've had a dud patrol off Afrika, I may make a pass towards the Gibralter area.)

Sometimes I find nothing. So be it.

You usually cannot fail when lurking 250km west of Gib http://www.psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/wolfsmilies/pirate.gif

[tankeriv]

VERY good point sir,and yes,I am fully aware of that.I will just have to trust in lady luck,and keep away from the buggers if they appear :salute:

Personally I love to encounter a task force.
Especially those to meet head on and those early war.

The early ones contain fleet carriers or capital ships. Love to throw a bunch of torps at them and try to sink them.

Then get as deep as possible in my Type VII or Type IX and put down my speed to 2 knots. Never keeping a straight course. But to be honest. That usually works.

Unfortunately I do not have this all too often. But yes it does happen.

I once patrolled somewhere AL 91 or something and the sun was setting.
Suddenly I noticed some spots on the horizon. I quickly ordered my boat to dive and I went on recon myself with the "highly realistic" external camera. I saw three capital battleships and a bunch of destroyers and a cruiser.

They set course straight towards me.

So I plotted a course and rammed out two electric torpedoes. Still my rig was not running at all.
Straight away they started zigzagging after the two torps struck. (I was so happy they weren't duds!!!! (Early War Type IX boat and early electric torps)) Then when they came closer I rammed home four steam powered torpedoes and they all struck target with a big bang a revenge class went up into smokes! Immediately as they knew my position now I ordered crash dive and as I reached 100 metres I enabled silent running.

At a 120 metres I cut down the power to a two knots and that enabled me to slip away undetected.

I returned to the spot 12 hours later to find one enemy battleship disabled and listening heavily to port still on the spot.

So of course generously as I am I gave the guy another two torps ending its misery.

So that concluded that patrol finishing off two capital battleships.

Nice performance imho!!

:arrgh!:

[Paul Riley]

Personally I love to encounter a task force.
Especially those to meet head on and those early war.

The early ones contain fleet carriers or capital ships. Love to throw a bunch of torps at them and try to sink them.

Then get as deep as possible in my Type VII or Type IX and put down my speed to 2 knots. Never keeping a straight course. But to be honest. That usually works.

Unfortunately I do not have this all too often. But yes it does happen.

I once patrolled somewhere AL 91 or something and the sun was setting.
Suddenly I noticed some spots on the horizon. I quickly ordered my boat to dive and I went on recon myself with the "highly realistic" external camera. I saw three capital battleships and a bunch of destroyers and a cruiser.

They set course straight towards me.

So I plotted a course and rammed out two electric torpedoes. Still my rig was not running at all.
Straight away they started zigzagging after the two torps struck. (I was so happy they weren't duds!!!! (Early War Type IX boat and early electric torps)) Then when they came closer I rammed home four steam powered torpedoes and they all struck target with a big bang a revenge class went up into smokes! Immediately as they knew my position now I ordered crash dive and as I reached 100 metres I enabled silent running.

At a 120 metres I cut down the power to a two knots and that enabled me to slip away undetected.

I returned to the spot 12 hours later to find one enemy battleship disabled and listening heavily to port still on the spot.

So of course generously as I am I gave the guy another two torps ending its misery.

So that concluded that patrol finishing off two capital battleships.

Nice performance imho!!

:arrgh!:

Nice work :salute:

[sergei]

Good work Tankeriv.
In my two years of playing this (on and off), I have only managed to sink one capital ship.
Getting two in one patrol is fantastic :up:

[Snestorm]

You usually cannot fail when lurking 250km west of Gib http://www.psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/wolfsmilies/pirate.gif

You are so right, but I usualy follow temptation, and make a single pass up into the bottleneck. Then I head for the southwest corner of Spain on the way home.
(Some of my IXBs have done early war round trips into The Med. Although it's challenging, the number of warships about means most of the patrol must be done in real time. By the time I'm on the way out SH3 has exhausted me.)

ALWAYS, at 120 miles west of Gibralter, the lookouts are told to keep an eye peeled for Jimbuna's IXB. One day I'm going to meet you there.

[Jimbuna]

ALWAYS, at 120 miles west of Gibralter, the lookouts are told to keep an eye peeled for Jimbuna's IXB. One day I'm going to meet you there.

Looking forward to it Kaleun http://www.psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/wolfsmilies/thumbsup.gif

[Didd]

200 to 250 kms west of Gibraltar is rapidly becoming a firm favourite of mine too. Last patrol I bagged 4 of those large merchants - 48,000 tons from 8 eels. I was quite pleased with that.

[Snestorm]

Last patrol I bagged 4 of those large merchants - 48,000 tons from 8 eels. I was quite pleased with that.

As well you should be. Good work.

[LostDream]

Thank you all for the great advice and tips. I will make corrections to my SOP ASAP!

[Jimbuna]

200 to 250 kms west of Gibraltar is rapidly becoming a firm favourite of mine too. Last patrol I bagged 4 of those large merchants - 48,000 tons from 8 eels. I was quite pleased with that.

SINK EM ALL!! http://www.psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/wolfsmilies/pirate.gif

[pickinthebanjo]

Good to know I've been working that area north of Ireland a little to hard, and my next patrol is down that way

[brett25]

paul riley, i follow a similar tactic with one major difference-i will cruise at 2 knots submerged for long periods, above this and the batteries drain too quickly. While submerged my goal is not to cover distance but to remain under water long enough for ships to cross my path. This way my batteries will not go below 50% and I can remain under for 12 hours or so at a time.

also cruising above surface at optimal speed ( for fuel consumption) makes a huge difference as far as range is concerned. There is a good mod -decks awash that has a good number for ahead 1/3 which will make for the most fuel efficient speed (usually 8 or 9 knots). I will spend the extra time to get out to my grid and have loads of fuel for hunting

[Paul Riley]

paul riley, i follow a similar tactic with one major difference-i will cruise at 2 knots submerged for long periods, above this and the batteries drain too quickly. While submerged my goal is not to cover distance but to remain under water long enough for ships to cross my path. This way my batteries will not go below 50% and I can remain under for 12 hours or so at a time.

also cruising above surface at optimal speed ( for fuel consumption) makes a huge difference as far as range is concerned. There is a good mod -decks awash that has a good number for ahead 1/3 which will make for the most fuel efficient speed (usually 8 or 9 knots). I will spend the extra time to get out to my grid and have loads of fuel for hunting

brett25,
I am thinking of dropping my sm'd speed to 2kts at the moment.My inital plans were speed,and 4 kts seemed the most economical without draining the batteries TOO quickly,rather than endurance,hopefully increasing my chances of bumping into something,but endurance is probably a wiser option,and with the slower speed the sonar man may have an easier time detecting contacts also.
The problem with large patrol patterns is this,imagine a ship has passed somewhere behind you as you return northward on your north/south patrol line,there is really no way to know it was even there unless on the southerly return head on a more south easterly course,forming a |\| patrol pattern,and then reversing the whole process on the return to your original starting point on a |/| completing the loop,however this will consume too much fuel and prevent you from patrolling effectively for say a week or more.The north/south (over a rough 200km stretch) seems the best patrol pattern :yep:


brett25,feel free to share any other patrol tactics you develop,and I will do the same if I develop any new ones :up:

[desirableroasted]

Until late 1940, anyway, I make it a point to go through the Hebrides Strait on the way out (and on the way back if I have fish). If I have halfway decent hunting weather, I nearly always bag 10-20k tons, sometimes with deck gun alone.

You need to keep a good eye out for planes of course, and there is the usual lot of torpedo boats and ASW trawlers out there, but if you keep it low and slow, they won't notice you.

Just keep an eye on depth under keel.... it really can vary in the strait, and quickly.

I, too, am growing to love 250 west of Gibraltar. On last patrol, at one point, I had an ore carrier, a large merchant and a passenger cargo all sinking within 10km of each other. Happy time, indeed!

(Playing GWX 3.0, 86%)

[Paul Riley]

Until late 1940, anyway, I make it a point to go through the Hebrides Strait on the way out (and on the way back if I have fish). If I have halfway decent hunting weather, I nearly always bag 10-20k tons, sometimes with deck gun alone.

You need to keep a good eye out for planes of course, and there is the usual lot of torpedo boats and ASW trawlers out there, but if you keep it low and slow, they won't notice you.

Just keep an eye on depth under keel.... it really can vary in the strait, and quickly.

I, too, am growing to love 250 west of Gibraltar. On last patrol, at one point, I had an ore carrier, a large merchant and a passenger cargo all sinking within 10km of each other. Happy time, indeed!

(Playing GWX 3.0, 86%)

Yeah Gibraltar is the perfect chokepoint due to the extreme narrow width of the entrance,herding the sheep into a funnel of death :rock: