Tonnage_Ace
05-02-06, 05:51 AM
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/2522/55qi.jpg
I was coming down from Toulon in my IXC. It was December 25, 1943, it was 10:20hrs. and my men had finished exchanging small gifts and chatting about the setbacks we had begun to face over the course of this dire year. All of a sudden, I hear the sound of my watch officer bellowing down the conning tower into the officer's mess, where some officers and I were sitted.
"Possible Task Force sighted sir," he continued,
"Large cruisers, could be battleships!"
Racing up the ladder, I grabbed my binoculars and spied through them: smoke visible on the horizon, rising above large superstructures.
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/8046/62ws1.jpg
To my surprise, however, this was not any Task Force I had seen before: three ships travelling in a straight line, asking to be torpedoed. I estimated a northerly course and plotted my course accordingly: 90 degrees, ahead flank!
Once I was satisfied we had come within 8km of his course, staying well out of his visual range up until this point with the help of my watch officer's range estimates, I ordered persicope depth. We waited for what seemed days for the ships to come close enough to be identified, it seemed he was moving at a medium speed, judging by my sonar operator's keen ears, curious for a Task Force and not just any Task Force, but one that was moving in a straight line!
At last, with the ships within identification range, I made my visual checks with the attack scope. Two Heavy Cruisers, followed by a Destroyer Escort. Truly pitiful.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2477/18xh.jpg
If anything, I would've had the escort ahead of the beasts, swaying this way and that scanning the seas ahead with my sonar. I knew that by the end of the day, two captains and their crews would be dead and someone would be discharged. Their fault, however, and I will exploit it. Beginning observations...
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/223/77nx.jpg
Italian! It seems I will take revenge for their cowardly surrender to the approaching Allies in Deutschland's name! This explains the Task Force's column configuration: it is true what they say, Italians are lovers, not fighters.
Earlier I had taken the ships for Italian Battleships, how I would love to bag a couple of 42,000 tonners...but it seems that they are indeed Cruisers, 19,000 tonnes each should do fine.
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/4470/24ft.jpg
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/489/30tw.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3167/48qm.jpg
After I had reached persicope depth, I set speed for ahead slow, so as not to draw attention to myself, the seas were naturally calm for the Med. Being that I was using the T1 torpedo, I knew the only chance of scoring hits in daylight and calm weather would be to set the speed for 44Kts, so as not to allow the ships time to evade. After coming within 5km of their course I adjusted the speed for 1 knot to remain buoyant and calmly rocked just below the waves, waiting for the ships to get into position.
Nine knots! Incredible! Someone may have to speak to their British allies on how to organize themselves! At this speed, it may just be the slowest Task Force I have come in contact with. No matter, I have decided that I will aim the first two fish at the lead ship at 355 gyro angle and the second at 005. Range 4500m, speed fast, impact, depth 3.8m(2m above keel line) is the order of the day. I won't use the salvo option because at one degree of seperation, the fish seem to spread out too far if aiming at something further than 3000m, I will manually select and fire the eels for maximum accuracy.
LOS!!! All I can do now is hope and pray...
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/8910/86zl.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/4305/92sm.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3701/103kx.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/8342/119bi.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/4853/126xq.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/1557/168yl.jpg
Merry Christmas Badoglio!
I was coming down from Toulon in my IXC. It was December 25, 1943, it was 10:20hrs. and my men had finished exchanging small gifts and chatting about the setbacks we had begun to face over the course of this dire year. All of a sudden, I hear the sound of my watch officer bellowing down the conning tower into the officer's mess, where some officers and I were sitted.
"Possible Task Force sighted sir," he continued,
"Large cruisers, could be battleships!"
Racing up the ladder, I grabbed my binoculars and spied through them: smoke visible on the horizon, rising above large superstructures.
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/8046/62ws1.jpg
To my surprise, however, this was not any Task Force I had seen before: three ships travelling in a straight line, asking to be torpedoed. I estimated a northerly course and plotted my course accordingly: 90 degrees, ahead flank!
Once I was satisfied we had come within 8km of his course, staying well out of his visual range up until this point with the help of my watch officer's range estimates, I ordered persicope depth. We waited for what seemed days for the ships to come close enough to be identified, it seemed he was moving at a medium speed, judging by my sonar operator's keen ears, curious for a Task Force and not just any Task Force, but one that was moving in a straight line!
At last, with the ships within identification range, I made my visual checks with the attack scope. Two Heavy Cruisers, followed by a Destroyer Escort. Truly pitiful.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2477/18xh.jpg
If anything, I would've had the escort ahead of the beasts, swaying this way and that scanning the seas ahead with my sonar. I knew that by the end of the day, two captains and their crews would be dead and someone would be discharged. Their fault, however, and I will exploit it. Beginning observations...
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/223/77nx.jpg
Italian! It seems I will take revenge for their cowardly surrender to the approaching Allies in Deutschland's name! This explains the Task Force's column configuration: it is true what they say, Italians are lovers, not fighters.
Earlier I had taken the ships for Italian Battleships, how I would love to bag a couple of 42,000 tonners...but it seems that they are indeed Cruisers, 19,000 tonnes each should do fine.
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/4470/24ft.jpg
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/489/30tw.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3167/48qm.jpg
After I had reached persicope depth, I set speed for ahead slow, so as not to draw attention to myself, the seas were naturally calm for the Med. Being that I was using the T1 torpedo, I knew the only chance of scoring hits in daylight and calm weather would be to set the speed for 44Kts, so as not to allow the ships time to evade. After coming within 5km of their course I adjusted the speed for 1 knot to remain buoyant and calmly rocked just below the waves, waiting for the ships to get into position.
Nine knots! Incredible! Someone may have to speak to their British allies on how to organize themselves! At this speed, it may just be the slowest Task Force I have come in contact with. No matter, I have decided that I will aim the first two fish at the lead ship at 355 gyro angle and the second at 005. Range 4500m, speed fast, impact, depth 3.8m(2m above keel line) is the order of the day. I won't use the salvo option because at one degree of seperation, the fish seem to spread out too far if aiming at something further than 3000m, I will manually select and fire the eels for maximum accuracy.
LOS!!! All I can do now is hope and pray...
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/8910/86zl.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/4305/92sm.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3701/103kx.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/8342/119bi.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/4853/126xq.jpg
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/1557/168yl.jpg
Merry Christmas Badoglio!