The British Channel

[gord96]

i am new to the game and am on my 5th patrol in my first try at a career. Alot of my patrols take me south west of Britains shores so I head through the channel alot. It has been some good fun so far. Lots of traffic and nice targets, but it is so shallow that if a destroyer gets a sniff of you it can be hard to avoid him. In the later game is the Channel something you should avoid? Seems as time goes on there are more and more destoyers there and as soon as you attack something the repsonse times of the PB's, aircraft or destoryers is very quick. Is it safer to go around Scotland? Or should I just suck it up and enjoy the fun and challenge that attacking ships in the Channel brings?

Thanks :)

[HunterICX]

The English chanal is not a place to be when the British Escorts and Destroyers are advancing in Detecting devices. the English channels is shallow so when you get spotted you cant dive deep to shake of the DDs.

Early war its oke to take the risk

but try to avoid it, soon it will be a place thats hell itself . I lost many subs in that channel.

Go around England to get to your asigned grid. its deeper and near Scapa there is good traffic and in early war there are juicy Convoys heading towards Ireland.

[TarJak]

i am new to the game and am on my 5th patrol in my first try at a career. Alot of my patrols take me south west of Britains shores so I head through the channel alot. It has been some good fun so far. Lots of traffic and nice targets, but it is so shallow that if a destroyer gets a sniff of you it can be hard to avoid him. In the later game is the Channel something you should avoid? Seems as time goes on there are more and more destoyers there and as soon as you attack something the repsonse times of the PB's, aircraft or destoryers is very quick. Is it safer to go around Scotland? Or should I just suck it up and enjoy the fun and challenge that attacking ships in the Channel brings?

Thanks :)

After 1939 I'd be very nervous about going through the channel too often. Historically the channel was very rarely used by u-boats other than some early war minelaying operations which were of dubious effect.

To answer your question, if you like the buzz and challenge then go for it. If you play dead is dead then be very very careful about where and what you attack if you want to have a long war career.

[Warmonger]

I'd avoid the channel at all costs like the guys before already said. Just too dangerous. By going ahead 1/3 or even slow you can get everywhere even taking the long route around.

[Biggles]

I've never tried to take that route after summer 1940, because then I'm transferring to Brest, where my missions is mostly outside Ireland, so what's the point.....

But it's okay to travel there in 39, some merchants, and the destroyers seems to be driven by a bunch of drunk teddybears from time to time, so they're a good target too.

[Respenus]

I tried once in a campain in '44!

Chaos! And I was luckly only two destroyers discovered me! But my sonar man had a lot of contacts all the time, so we went surface the boat, dive the boat, surface the boat, and again and again, so when I finally arrived a few grids from the Spanish coast, I let my guys rest for 24 h, as they were completely down!

I msu say that I was lucky, some people aren't! So try too keep away from the British channel, unless it's the only was and REALLY THE ONLY WAY to do sth.

[The_Blockade_Runner]

Biggles, can you please explain your sig to me:huh:

[gord96]

Thanks for the input guys. It is Febuary 1940 right now and I think this will be my last trip through the Channel. My fourth patrol almost killed me. I did manage to take 2 destroyers out and alot of cargo ships but I can see every time I go though it there is more and more warships. When I was plotting my course for this patrol I was planning on going around Scapa Flow but at the last minute changed to the channel. Took out a coastal merchant and within 5 minutes had two destoyers closing in. Got away fine but it makes u mighty nervous when the navigator tells u it is only 23m deep where u are. Thanks again guys.

[HunterICX]

Thanks for the input guys. It is Febuary 1940 right now and I think this will be my last trip through the Channel. My fourth patrol almost killed me. I did manage to take 2 destroyers out and alot of cargo ships but I can see every time I go though it there is more and more warships. When I was plotting my course for this patrol I was planning on going around Scapa Flow but at the last minute changed to the channel. Took out a coastal merchant and within 5 minutes had two destoyers closing in. Got away fine but it makes u mighty nervous when the navigator tells u it is only 23m deep where u are. Thanks again guys.

I,m an The Grew Wolve user and in that supermod , the chanal is heavily mined so...dont matter what time of the war, I avoid it.

[Sailor Steve]

As Hunter just said, in the stock game the Channel is way too easy. If you use one of the supermods you will find it much more as it was during the war, i.e. if you go there you die.:dead:

[Torvald Von Mansee]

I never bothered w/the Channel. If I have the fuel, I'll avoid it. And getting through it would take forever, I'm guessing, because you could never stay in TC for too long before something happens.

[tycho102]

I never bothered w/the Channel. If I have the fuel, I'll avoid it. And getting through it would take forever, I'm guessing, because you could never stay in TC for too long before something happens.

Exactly. Plan around it, always.

If you do have to venture (because of damage or fuel), it's going to be one hell of a rough trip. Use very low time compression, use your batteries during the day as deep as you can get, provide as minimal profile as you possibly can to closing contacts, and don't fight it out with planes --- just hit the gas, dive, and change course.

[Captain_Stabbing]

Its kinda funny.... I hear all these nightmare stories about the channel from folks on here. So I decided to run it at the start of every campaign that I befin in 39 and see nothing but tugs and trawlers, which I send to the bottom like little rocks (tonnage is tonnage.....)
I have also run it in 42 with no problems at all too..... surface at night, submerge an hour before dark and till an hour after, go slow ahead, and no problems at all.
(Grey Wolfs mod)

[AVGWarhawk]

Sounds to me like you do not have the GW mod installed correctly. The channel was controlled by the British...period. If you are not spending a great deal of time getting through the channel with the GW something is wrong. I avoid it now because it just takes too long to get through with submerging all the time.:nope:

[Jimbuna]

As said so often in the past..."IF YOUR USING GW...STAY AWAY!" :know:

[mookiemookie]

I,m an The Grew Wolve user and in that supermod , the chanal is heavily mined so...dont matter what time of the war, I avoid it.

Quoted for truth. Last time I tried it in '40 or '41, my career ended on patrol 1 witrhout me ever firing a shot. Dang mines...

[AVGWarhawk]

Well, there you have it...Mookiemookie nailed it on the head...mines/warships/aircraft....a mean mixture of death!:o

[NightCrawler]

I thought i can do it without any problem... WRONG, lot's of mines... lot's of escorts and DD... i called Brittish Channel is a DEATH-TRAP.. go around AN14...

[Captain_Stabbing]

oh trust e.... gw is fully installed correctly. 2 computers running the mod, and narry a problem. Its like staying on the surface from Norway to Scapa, then sitting on the surface there for 2 days without seeing a single plane.
Kinda makes a guy get flustered with the game

[Torvald Von Mansee]

Hmmm....I seem to recall reading about the Germans trying to transfer some destroyers or other ships from bases in France to Germany via the Channel. I remember the Germans were careful in their planning, w/air cover and the like, and the ships in question still got pwned.

[Hartmann]

I never go through the english channel

only in my first patrol i use it

i spoted a small merchant at night and when i was with the deck gun, appears a destroyer with search lights and firing shells, i ordered crash dive,but the boat hit the bottom and i lost the initiative, the results after a depth charge attack was a several hull integrity down and one member of the crew death :dead: .

i think that is better use the north route along scotland and scapa flow, no its too shallow and less dangerous.

[Mauser KAR98K]

I too went throught part of the channel with GW. Never again...read my account...


http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=98904

[Steeltrap]

Hmmm....I seem to recall reading about the Germans trying to transfer some destroyers or other ships from bases in France to Germany via the Channel. I remember the Germans were careful in their planning, w/air cover and the like, and the ships in question still got pwned.

I think you're referring to the infamous "Channel Dash" by the Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, Prinz Eugen and a bunch of destroyers/E-boats in Feb '42. They got through, causing a great deal of embarrassment to the British (for example, they weren't spotted until the Straits of Dover, when they'd been in the Channel for 11hrs - they left port at midnight - and then bomber command conducted 242 sorties against them without achieving anything!!). The most damage was caused by mines, with 1 BC hitting 1 and the other hitting 2. Prinz Eugen made it through without a scratch.

[andy_311]

I've done it once in 44 useing GW even took out a convoy just SW of dover don't think I'll be doing it again.

[Biggles]

There is CONVOYS in the channel????:o

[andy_311]

There is CONVOYS in the channel????:o

Sure are well in GW anyway

[Hueywolf123]

I went through there several times in SH-III vanilla, but tried only once in GW and that career finished two days out from Willhelmshaven

[Hybris]

My idea to use the channel is to hug the French coast line (HUG IT TIGHT!) You run the risk in rough weather of bottoming out (I said hug it!) but in calm weather you should be able to avoid most of the trouble pretty late into the war. (In theory)

[Torvald Von Mansee]

Hmmm....I seem to recall reading about the Germans trying to transfer some destroyers or other ships from bases in France to Germany via the Channel. I remember the Germans were careful in their planning, w/air cover and the like, and the ships in question still got pwned.
I think you're referring to the infamous "Channel Dash" by the Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, Prinz Eugen and a bunch of destroyers/E-boats in Feb '42. They got through, causing a great deal of embarrassment to the British (for example, they weren't spotted until the Straits of Dover, when they'd been in the Channel for 11hrs - they left port at midnight - and then bomber command conducted 242 sorties against them without achieving anything!!). The most damage was caused by mines, with 1 BC hitting 1 and the other hitting 2. Prinz Eugen made it through without a scratch.

I don't recall any cruisers being involved. I thought it was all destroyers and fairly small craft, what I'm thinking of. This is all a foggy recall, for me.

[Burzum]

I've never found anything bigger then medium/big cargo ships:cry:

[GT182]

Using vanilla SHIII and I stay away from the Channel. Got curious in January of 43 and almost was sunk by a combination of 8 Destroyers and Corvettes. Not fun at all. Besides there are more than enough targets out in Grid BE, with Sections 62 thru 68 being very good.

[Hybris]

Yeah besides if you go the northern route you can always do a drive by of Scapa and maybe find a capital ship or two. (Once found both the Ark Royal and the King George V sitting there fat dumb and happy 12 torpedos later they both rest in the harbor in two pieces... or more.)