Where do these contacts come from?

[bossfrog]

I'm confused. I have realism set to 93% (everything except the external turned off) and I'll be traveling on course when all of a sudden, a red or green contact gets drawn on my navmap. They don't update or anything. They just sit there and gradually fade. They're drawn at a range of up to 180 km away with no explanation. My sonar guy isn't detecting them. They're WAY beyond visual range. I don't have radar. What gives? Am I supposed to believe some guy in a canoe paddles his way up to my boat unseen and tips me off to the location of some juicy prospects? Even if I got a radio call or something, that would make sense of it, but nothing. They just spontaneously get drawn on there. Can someone explain?

Thanks.

[Umfuld]

They say (whomever they are ?) just consider it a radio contact, even though you don't actually get said radio message.

I think that's what 'they' say anyway.

[bossfrog]

Yeah, that's pretty much what I've been doing, just considering them radio contacts. It just seems like there's a glitch of some kind where maybe the program was supposed to have mentioned a new radio message or something but it doesn't do it.

[Puster Bill]

You could consider them 'broadcasts', ie., to all boats at sea, whereas a 'radio message' is addressed directly to you. I've just figured that they aren't really 'contact' reports, per se, but intelligence from B-Dienst, broadcast to all u-boats.

Whatever floods your negative, I guess.

[Heibges]

You can ask the radio operator for updates on these contacts. From German DF equipment I believe.

[andy_311]

I know it's a wild shot but have you ever tried to Intercept the contacts? I have Intercepted a few but I also missed a lot due to stupidity and bloody ignornace.

[Flying Dutchman]

Most of the time I find the contacts right where I calculated they would be after interception.
Varying between small tugboats and T3 tankers.

[tbarak]

Well I guess you can "imagine" they're from a lot of sources. For example other u-boats or German ships or maybe even spies. I think I read somewhere they were actually "dev helpers". The developers had a fear people may sail around without ever encountering anything so now and again you get these mysterious contact reports. No complaints from me since seeing those nice convoys appear on the map seems like a God-send.

[TangoShadow]

Hi,

I think radio contacts would be better e.g.:

To: BROADCAST
Message: Convoy spotted GM13 (or even a lat/lon position), heading W, speed slow

That is all it needs to do. Then you can plot it yourself. No magic updates.

--TangoShadow

[andy_311]

They can also be ships that have broken radio silence, and roughly had there speed and course estamated buy other ships.

[Heibges]

There are two seperate types of contacts.

One gives you the box. I think supposed to be contact reports.

One gives you the bearing lines. I think supposed to be radio intercepts.