Decks awash benefits

[Nedlam]

Has anyone tested if decks awash only decreases dive time and does nothing to decrease your signature or whatever making it harder for the nme to find you?

Either this is dumb luck or it does both:

28NOV46
BF26
18:40 hrs
Light fog, calm seas

Two Spitfires passed over us at 600m and acted like we where not even there I was running at about 6m (decks awash).

Now the has just set sun (beautiful sunset btw :) ) and maybe the light fog had something to do with it. But they where at 600m and passed right over us?!?! Basically that 600 m was their altitude I think. :) Actually crossed over us at about a 30 degree angle.

For once I'm glad my flak gunner didn't fire the gun!

[rulle34]

Testing has been done to ships, showing that running with decks awash or not gave the same distance where you were detected.

I haven't made, or heard anything about tests against aircraft. Maybe you have found something there :P

About diving time it really goes faster with decks awash. You can clock your self :-j

[Nedlam]

Well, I've been making it a habit since I have the option to run on the surface with decks awash in places like the English Channel so I can dive in a hurry.

I've been messing with different ways to deal with airplanes: dive at first sighting, maneuver and dive after the first bomb runs. Stay up and fight is still not an option :)

The example above they caught my watch sleeping! I ordered flank speed, hard to port and man the flak gun. Oh yeah, and say a prayer!

Looks like it was answered.

[Greentimbers]

Does running at 6m slow you down or do you still get 16 knots or so?

[rulle34]

Does running at 6m slow you down or do you still get 16 knots or so?

It slows you down running with decks awash :yep:
I think with max engine upgrade on VIIC, max speed is reduced to about 15kts. , figures is from my memory, maybe not fully accaurate, but close :smug:

You mensioned 6m. :hmm: What submarine are we talking about here? If we talk about a VII, then 6m is not much of decks awash. You should set depth to about 7-8 meters. (of course depending on your settings in your subamarine.cfg file) Default for VII is 5.8m

[Nedlam]

I'm in a lil IIA. :)

[ReaperJester]

I experiemented with it and have had plenty a chance on my last patrol to the Americas. It most certainly has an effect on aircraft spotting you as I've had AC come as close as 2000m with no sign of attacking. Correct me if someone has better results but this is personal experience for 25 some days around some very heavy air cover near south carolina.

That's running at just below 8 meters depth, so the conning tower is the only thing poking above water. It has its negatives though, sometimes the flak operators refuse to do their job if you are spotted, chances are though, you'll either not be spotted unless you hang on the surface with them coming practically on top of you.

[rulle34]

I'm in a lil IIA. :)

Ahh.. that makes sense :P

[rulle34]

That's running at just below 8 meters depth, so the conning tower is the only thing poking above water. It has its negatives though, sometimes the flak operators refuse to do their job if you are spotted, chances are though, you'll either not be spotted unless you hang on the surface with them coming practically on top of you.

I guess that if you are so low in water so your coningtower is splashing over with water, the AA gun maybe become not operational during these circumstances. Same as with deckgun when decks are washed with water. It freezes until water has gone away from the deck. This is just a guess though :roll:

[Nedlam]

I experiemented with it and have had plenty a chance on my last patrol to the Americas. It most certainly has an effect on aircraft spotting you as I've had AC come as close as 2000m with no sign of attacking. Correct me if someone has better results but this is personal experience for 25 some days around some very heavy air cover near south carolina.

Since running decks awash reduces your speed it leads to the question:

What's better running slower and (possibly) less detectable in the dangerous area longer which means your there longer and have more time to get spotted

or

Running faster and esposed (for lack of a better term) but getting out of the area quicker... :hmm:

[ReaperJester]

Oh yeah of course, running low enough that at times the water's lapping the lower platform of the flak wintergarten so im sure thats the problem at times. Usually it's that or mostly a tossup between ai deciding that some flak guns aren't going to fire, surfaced fully or not ;). I suppose I run a little deeper than would be usually done, 7.8 meters or so, keeps the deck below well in fair weather.

Personally, granting the fact that I patrol certain areas for weeks at a time, find that running decks awash even with the worse fuel consumption is a decent exchange for being able to dive quicker simply because im not traveling, im patrolling, hoping to see something while not really tring to make good time to get somewhere.

Even if your spotted I've found that even in the IX's i can get below 10 meters in around 20-24 seconds so that alone makes it worth it for me (I've found it's essential to cross Biskaya in a IXD2 later in the war :().

It's really up to you and your experience, I find that the initial spottings result less and less in aircraft that are coming straight at you and more in planes that are still just patroling and unbeknownst to them found your bubble. From there, you have plenty of time to decide to dive or even remain surfaced if their course doesn't bring them near enough that they might spot you.

For what it's worth it's only really usuable when the seas area fairly calm else your engine crews keep switching from diesels to electrics :). Oh, and it's of course a good way to charge batteries if your trying to run submerged as much as possible as it was for me on my last patrol to the Eastern US.

[P_Funk]

I experiemented with it and have had plenty a chance on my last patrol to the Americas. It most certainly has an effect on aircraft spotting you as I've had AC come as close as 2000m with no sign of attacking. Correct me if someone has better results but this is personal experience for 25 some days around some very heavy air cover near south carolina.

Since running decks awash reduces your speed it leads to the question:

What's better running slower and (possibly) less detectable in the dangerous area longer which means your there longer and have more time to get spotted

or

Running faster and esposed (for lack of a better term) but getting out of the area quicker... :hmm:
Thats debatable and even back in the real war what to do (run away or hide) was not always certain. I remember reading that Kretchmer actually was sunk and captured because one of his less intelligent Watch Officers called for a crash dive when he spotted a destroyer when they were near a convoy at night but that they weren't detected until, by chance, their hull came directly into the area of detection for that destroyer's ASDIC beam. Essentially Kretchmer would have maybe gone on to get 300K if his dumb-ass WO hasn't dived but been smart (apparently Kretchmer later said that he would have remainbed surfaced and not dived if he was on the bridge).

Its all a matter of experience I suppose.

[ReaperJester]

Exactly, it's gamble but one that can pay off handsomely in light of the fact that they now need to rely on their eyeballs to spot you :).

I've found that I can close significantly more even in dusk/dawk conditions before being spotted when running decks awash and aside from the warning that you'r given that we've been spotted :shifty: I think personal experience can teach you volumes about how well you can use that style of movement to your advantage.