Aircraft Spotted!

[deadactionman]

I was wondering if there is a tried an tested defensive strategy when there are incomming aircraft? Was there a standard practice observed by RL captains? (except diving)

Not sure if I'm doing the right thing, but whenever Aircraft are spotted, I change course and speed. This is my attempt to make my sub a harder target... more often than not, I avoid taking direct dammage but this could just be blind luck.

[DeepSix]

Don't know if it's a true-to-life practice, but I also go to flank speed and turn hard. I try to time it so that I don't alter course until just before the plane dives.

[rogerbo]

i think it all depends on the situation, like the See is it calm or are the waves hig ??, in calm see to rais speed and change course can just increase your Profile where in high See this maight not be the case. It hapend a few times (Early years only !! ) that in high see i got the Warning but then the plains didn't spot me. Later on when they are equiped with Radar either shoot them or dive, you can try to evade them when they drop the bombs by speeding up and change course but that's a rather hard maneuver as your Sub does react slowly to such commands and you don't see the bombs realy falling.

[Heibges]

Also, editing the Visual Sensitivity in SH3/Data/CFG/Sim from .01 to .02 seems to make the watch spotting aircraft mechanic a lot more realistic.

[Myxale]

My tactic (not even a tactic, more like a motto)

ALARM! Always!

Dive, deep if there is time! Well if not man the Flak and hope the best!

:huh:

[slow_n_ez]

Usually if its too late to crash dive as susgested , I always go hard to port or starbboard at flank speed until I have boat TEE boned ( T ) to the incomming ( broad side ) ... They seem to miss alot that way except for their on board tail gunners ... they hesitate to drop anything until you dive....... BUT .....

If you let them come at you straight on from bow or stern ... you'll be mostly history ..... especially those fast little fighter bombers try to get a run on you from the stern ....

[deadactionman]

I had found that if you tell your flak gunners to hold fire until the closing aircraft are quite near, they seem to land more shots.

"wait for it... wait for it... wait for it........ FIRE!" :stare:

There is a slight delay, but if you time it right, this method seems to dispense with the troublesome aircraft more quickly.

I've also noticed that the little figher aircraft still hang about after dropping their payload (small bomb). They don't even try to engage with their MGs... they just circle about getting shot at.

[VonHelsching]

Usually if its too late to crash dive as susgested , I always go hard to port or starbboard at flank speed until I have boat TEE boned ( T ) to the incomming ( broad side ) ... They seem to miss alot that way except for their on board tail gunners ... they hesitate to drop anything until you dive....... BUT .....

If you let them come at you straight on from bow or stern ... you'll be mostly history ..... especially those fast little fighter bombers try to get a run on you from the stern ....

IMHO hard to port / starboard just slows you down for a long time; 20 degrees is sufficient. The only thing you want to do is to ruin it's attack run angle.

[tbarak]

I think in real life planes were to be avoided at all costs. They were prefectly suited for sub hunting and all accounts I've read said they were the most significant threat to u-boats.

In the game I guess it has a lot to do with what boat (and flak) you have and the weather. With winds >6 knots there's nothing to do but dive. When the weather permits using flak there's no reason to dive, you can pretty easily shoot down any planes that attack you. With an uprgraded gunner or two, and two twin 20 mm guns, you should be able to defeat the air threats. At least until late '43 I've found.