Sink ships with flak???

[Kaleun_Saxi]

Ahoy buddies,

I am new to this forum and a big fan of submarine simulations ever since Silent Service I on my good old C64.

I browsed through the forum already, but I didn't find an exact answer on my question: can you sink ships with flak? I am playing in 1939, 1. Flotille, on U-1, class IIA sub. I have run out of torpedoes, and damaged a freighter. I followed the freighter (still moving) and shot 500 bullets into the freighter, destroying the lifeboats, freight and other stuff. The freighter is on fire but doesn't explode or sink.

So has anyone managed (or even tried) to sink a ship with flak fire? I know that you succeeded in SH II, what about SH III :hmm:

Thanks for your help!

[HunterICX]

Hi and welcome to subsim,

to answer the question, with the light flaks like on the II type boats you cant really do severe damage on the bigger ships (maybe a PT will work) but if you have a bigger submarine Ex: VIIC type with heavy flaks then you can inflict some severe damages, but mainly...use if for airplanes :up:

[Kaleun_Saxi]

Muchas gracias capitan,

I now have a VIIB on my third mission (damn expensive), I will give it another try.

Do you really use flak on fighters? Those Hurricanes are really fast, it's very difficult to get them, so I prefer to dive instead of fighting them. Maybe I'm a coward. But I save my ammunition. ;)

[The Munster]

Better to dive than to try and take on aircraft and watch out for Merchants later on in the war as they tend to have a 'sting in their tail' !

[Kaleun_Saxi]

Better to dive than to try and take on aircraft and watch out for Merchants later on in the war as they tend to have a 'sting in their tail' !
A sting? Like a unicorn? :o

[The Munster]

Nah like a gun and some of them are viscious ! I've just had a nasty experience with a Liberty Cargo that had guns on the rear, the sides and the front and he was hell-bent on trying to sink me.
Sometimes you'll end up with a Catch 22 situation.. when there's too much hot metal flying about and heading in your direction, you submerge to discover that in certain circumstances, you can't keep up with the enemy or even match it's speed.

Tip of the day.. try and get far ahead of Merchants or Convoy then lie in wait and let them come to you; it gives you time and options to maneouvre into position.

[Kaleun_Saxi]

That's exactly what I do. I calculate their course with the ruler and get into a 90 degrees angle about 700 meters away from me. When their bearing is less than 5 degrees to zero, I fire one torpedo per merchant and wait whether they sink. If not, I wait if they stop or can still make speed to escape. In this case I chase them and fire another torpedo in their back (difficult, 'cos they don't follow a straight course), if they stop I surface and fire my guns at them. Now that you say merchants can get armed lateron in the war, I may prefer staying submerged. Thanks for that hint :D

[Respenus]

Well I'm a BIG BAD BOY and I changed the power of my torpedoes and my deck guy (One shell=One split merchant:p). I have been thinking on modifing the power of the flak gun, but I believe it would be difficult to manuever into possition and get a good shot.

In general you might sink some, but it's a waste of ammunition and time.

Stick with good old eels or your deck get :yep: (that is before it gets to dicy to stay on the surface)

[_Seth_]

Welcome, herr kaleun!
:up:

[Kaleun_Saxi]

Well I'm a BIG BAD BOY and I changed the power of my torpedoes and my deck guy (One shell=One split merchant:p). I have been thinking on modifing the power of the flak gun, but I believe it would be difficult to manuever into possition and get a good shot.

In general you might sink some, but it's a waste of ammunition and time.

Stick with good old eels or your deck get :yep: (that is before it gets to dicy to stay on the surface)
I will. Now, on my third missions, I traded vor a VIIb, so I finally have a deck gun. On the last mission, with the IIb, I had no more eels, only my flak (or the chance to drive against the enemy, but that would demolish my nose... :doh: )

[HunterICX]

Well as an flak situation when I have a airplane spotted , and he's too close I man the flak asap! I go full speed making an high angle turn into his dirrection and try to blast the bugger out of the air , if he is still flying around making his bombing run I pray that he misses, if he misses and flys over I go Crashdive ALAAAAARM the plane will make a turn and that gives you plenty of time to hide urself (mostly the plane desperatly drops bombs on the last place he could spot you and then flys away)

after that you better have a VIIC boat with heavy flag mounted on it, because in those nasty years after 43 , they might come in handy.

[Jimbuna]

Welcome aboard :arrgh!:

Get the 37mm Twin when it becomes available...now that packs a punch :up:

[Respenus]

U-FLAK!!! :lol:

[The Munster]

I honestly don't know what the heavy flak job is for.. if there's an aircraft coming, I can't get past it to use the light flak gun. I see the grin on the face of the Liberator pilot when I get one stinking round off with the heavy flak gun and he drops two big ones on my head !

Limped back to St.Nazaire and swapped it for 2 light flaks [one a twin job]. AAAH..Das ist Besser :D !

[mookiemookie]

I've sunk a PT boat using the flak gun before, but that was in stock SHIII.

If you're running any of the supermods, I believe trying to use a flak gun on ships would be about as useful as shooting spitwads at them. And as others have mentioned, after about mid 42 when everything is armed (albeit with dumb and blind gunners) and planes are more of a worry, the deck gun becomes pretty much useless.

[spork542]

You can sink small vessels with the 37.

[The Munster]

I've sunk a PT boat using the flak gun before, but that was in stock SHIII.

If you're running any of the supermods, I believe trying to use a flak gun on ships would be about as useful as shooting spitwads at them. And as others have mentioned, after about mid 42 when everything is armed (albeit with dumb and blind gunners) and planes are more of a worry, the deck gun becomes pretty much useless.

I agree with the dumb and blind gunners on Merchants with exception to the last altercation I had with a Liberty Cargo Gunner.. man, could he shoot.. he was hitting me everytime ! It was a case of 'Men, forget about manning the ornament..I mean, heavy flak gun.. DDDDDIIIIIVVVVVEEEEE !!!!!'

[TarJak]

It all comes down to the experience level of the merchant crew. Vetran and expert crews will shoot you up bad. Bewbies will fire wildly in every direction but yours. Later years mean more vetrans and experts, early years most of the merchat gunners are either asleep or crosseyed.:doh:

[kptn_kaiserhof]

its Been Done