U-53, AM 51, January 16 1940. Calm sea state all the way through this patrol.
Cruised around, picking lone merchants off with the deck gun, doing my best impersonation of a floating Tiger tank. Jan 14, get radio report of convoy NE heading at 8 knots. Intercept it changing course heading SE. After 1 daytime and 2 night time attacks, sank 1 Ore Carrier,1 Ammo ship, 1 Granville freighter and 1 Southampton Cruiser. Total tonnage for patrol thus far is 72,000 tons. Only light damage sustained to the deck gun so far. No aircraft sighted in this area. Time is 0200. Time enough for 1, maybe two more attacks on the convoy. It has slowed to 5 knots. |
Playing GWX 3 at 90% realism incl manual targetting. It's Apr of '40 and after completing my assigned patrol SW of Norway I decided to stick my head into Scapa Flow at night and see if I could find anything interesting. Since I wasn't expecting to find much (as usual), I decided I'd take on some of the patrolling DDs. I sank both a Tribal and a V&W with one eel each. I then proceeded into Scapa Flow on the surface with decks awash and to my surprise I saw the silhouette of an Illustrious class carrier. As I rubbed my hands with glee, I also saw a BC to the NE. Going for the bigger tonnage, I headed for him and let loose all four bow tubes at 3000m with shallow setting to get over his torpedo nets. I then came up to full speed and headed east for the narrow channels. There were three torpedo impacts and I was notified that the BC is going down and my log told me I've sunk HMS Hood. History is rewritten. I had to dive when star shells were fired, revealing my position to shore batteries. Once the star shells faded, I resurfaced and continued east past through the three wrecks and out into the North Sea. I escaped alive and covered with glory. Damn, that felt good.
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Continued from my earlier report ;)
19th Oct 1942 BE65 11:49 Distant merchant sound contact,heading roughly NE.Unable to attack in rough seas with all torpedoes expended.Attempting to intercept in order to radio position of contact to HQ. 12:00 Contact bearing 25 degrees,moving slow.Vis. I estimate between 300 and 500m :nope: 12:09 Vis. too poor,making hardly any ground on the contact who seems to be getting no closer.Breaking off due to very low fuel and poor chances of spotting target.Remaining on the surface in order to ride with the storm :arrgh!: two hours have elapsed since original contact was made,absolutely futile to re-attempt an interception in these conditions. 15:27 Radar signals detected in our area,crash dived to 100m.Unable at the moment to tell what or where the signals were from.Will surface in 1-2 hrs. Quick sound check confirms a DD is in our area at a bearing of 80 degrees,and closing. 16:30 1 hr elapsed sm.No sounds in the area,DD has passed us by,preparing to surface. 20:45 BE65 Weather,no change. Approx 1300km to go,about 3 days at this rate. ETA- 22nd-23rd Oct. 20th Day 40 No sightings of anything. Weather,no change. 21st Nothing,no change. 22nd BF54 No change. Approx 500km to go. 23rd Day 43 BF64 176km away,11hrs. Safe to assume we are now in safe waters.Storm did in fact shield us all the way across the bay of biscay as hoped,not one aircraft sighted anywhere. ETA- 11:00-12:00 04:55 Passing 'Noir something' island west of France. Report sent in of our imminent arrival. Vis.reduced to about 300m,can just make out the glare of the lighthouses ahead. 11:07 Arrived in port. Tonnage 1 S.Merchant (British) 1 T3 (American) 1 Troop Transport (American) 1 C3 (British) 7 Hurricane fighter planes Total 28.116t Damage/casualties 2 watchmen dead from machine gun fire in an air attack at the beginning of the patrol.Service was held at sea and they were committed to the depths with heavy hearts.Families being notified. No damage to U-Boat Renown 1736.28 Total remown 2509.50 Medals I recieved the Iron Cross 1st class and a U-boat Badge :salute: Promotions Diesels Officer to be promoted to C.S.W.O.He worked like a bloody trojan on this patrol!. Quals I sent for a WO to have extensive training in operating all manner of radio equipment aboard a U-Boat.His dedicated post will now free up our sonar man,as switching between jobs earlier was becoming time consuming and reducing our efficiency.I suspect shifting priority towards radio equipment/radar etc at this time becoming ever more important,as allied radar is slowly becoming more consistent at sea and the increased air attacks were devastating. |
Just finished four weeks in November 1939, patrolling outside the Firth of Forth and picking off assorted unescorted small fry. Only a few slow surface patrols and almost no air patrols! Doesn't seem possible, even in 1939. Also three weeks without a breath of wind, which seems even less possible.
Back in Wilhelmshaven, boasting of the easy cruise, I dropped the phrase "happy times" and it seems to be catching on. Next up is the mid-Atlantic, so I expect a very different experience this time around. |
Good luck Coyote :up:
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Captain Hans Klarholz
U-94 , VIIC Based at S.Naz. 4th war patrol 25th October 1942 Patrol Notes Preparing to patrol grid AL35.Looks like we are going to be operating on the same convoy lane as our last patrol,yet we are nearer to both Britain and Iceland this time,and that means high alert :nope: There may also be opportunities against Russian shipping if we cannot attack the American shipping.Damn Ruskies,i've been itching for a fight with them!. If we have trouble against these convoys then we can always drop south onto the merchant lane down there.We will make all endeavours to attack during the day as much as possible due to our proximity to local air bases,giving us much more time to evade then,than would be possible at night. Air Strength Expected to be very high,due to local air bases nearby.We had a close call by just one bomber coming out of Iceland last time,and we were on what we thought were the fringes of their coverage!. Naval Strength Moderate to high.Strength of previous convoy was very high,and we could expect assistance coming directly from Britain this time.Last time we were further to the west and in the 'air gap'. Equipment Notes Just finished fitting Alberich and Bold cannisters to the boat.We were being pinged at 200m and at 3kts last time,and its evident the allies have increased their ASW quite a bit.The bold cannisters have never been used by us before,and we hope to find good use for them on this patrol.For emergencies only,such as when unable to escape multiple Asdic pings,or prolonged pursuits lasting for more than about 1 hr. Torpedo Layout Main Fore 4 ETorps.For 1st daylight attack on expected convoy.Ranges not to exceed about 2000m from perimeter. Fore Reserves 4 GasTorps.For subsequent night attack against same convoy.Ranges not to exceed about 1000m from perimeter. 2 Falkes.Reserved for any opportunities against major warships,LCs,BBs,etc. External 3 spare GasTorps.Simply to bolster Fore Reserves. Main Aft 1 Falke.For emergencies only. |
U-49, VIIB
December, 1939 Patrol. Was assigned to patrol off the NW coast of Spain. On the way south, I was making an arc to follow the the outside of the continental shelf. Don't ask why, it just felt right. And it worked. In BE17, I got a radio report of a convoy heading SW at 8 knts, in BE17!! I was literally a stone's throw away. I was quite excited, as this was my first convoy in the game. I cut my teeth in the stock version with a IIA, and only moved into the Atlantic in a VII once I got GWX. Anyway, not really knowing what to do from personal experience, I quickly moved ahead to get into position, went to 20 meters, and waited. Turns out the convoy track was a little more south than expected, but that worked out, as the lead escort cleared me by about 1500m without me having to move. My sonarman was only reporting 2 warships, and what I counted as 21 merchants contacts. Feeling brazen, once the DD was past me, I went to periscope depth and took a peek. This being my first convoy, it was a sight to behold. And what is this?! I notice the very distinct shape of a Nelson-class BB in the middle! I know our standing orders are to ignore warships and go after merchants, but I couldn't help but feel giddy. I'll get those merchants next time around, I tell myself. I'm now cursing my inexperienced torpedo loadout choices, as I have only one electric loaded in the fore tubes. I decide to attempt 4 magnetic shots - I'll fire the electric at an angle at the tanker following the BB, and then spread the 3 steamers set to run at 12m at the BB at 90 degrees. I didn't have to wait long for the pieces to move into place. Fired the electric, periscope down a couple meters, quickly switch to TDC and set to fire all 4 tubes (one is empty, of course), and run fast at 12m. Back to periscope, center on the middle of the three forward batteries, and Los! Then, as I was told to do by the boys back at BdU, er, subsim forums, I lower periscope, move to ahead slow, alter course to exit the rear of the convoy, and begin a slow dive. It was hard not to stay and watch, but I needed to consider the crew's safety. As we slowly dive, we wait for the results. Boom! Boom! BOOM! All three pistols work on the Nelson! Ruhig, maenner! We wait for the torp hitting the tanker...nothing. Oh well, three hits on the beast! And of course, the fun begins. I slip past the last line of ships, making my way down to 150m. Both escorts are in pursuit, though one doesn't stick around too long. 2 DC runs happened as I was still diving. I'm VERY inexperienced at evading destroyers, so I wasn't sure what I was doing. At one pt I tried to go to full and alter course as soon as the destoyer passed by and I was in the baffles, but he quickly reacquired me. Anyway, after the 2nd DC run, we get the "she's going down" message! More cheers, followed by the chief scolding them. I hope the convoy picked up the abandoning crew. Now we really need to ditch this DD. We reach 150m. Then 160m. Another DC run occurs, though it doesn't sound like any got close. I can't seem to shake the guy, but he can't seem to get any closer. We just need to wait it out, I guess. Anyway, after running the last 3+ hours at 1x, it was getting to be quite late IRL, and unfortunately, I had no option but to pause it and make the escape later. Wow, long post. My apologies! And sorry for the unfinished story, I just needed to get it out! Now, back to the work I should be doing... |
From: U-765
To: Bdu BF4121 24 Nov 1940 Intercepted large heavily escorted british convoy heading due west. 4 eels expended. Empire and Large merchant sank for a total of 17000 tons. Current depth: 179m I am now successfully slipping through the cracks in the screen. We live to fight another day. :salute: Nothing Follows |
U-589 is currently patrolling the med area around Sicily in Dec. 1941. Can't move anywhere without bumping into friendly Italian or Albanian Convoys (with cargo's that have 'Kreigsmarine' clearly written on them...nice touch GWX!)
Last night, I almost bumped into a rather large, unlit, and completely unescorted Troop Ship sailing away from Malta... the puddle of drool coming from my mouth as I watched her through the scope make my socks wet...until I saw the Italian Flag in the darkness. :-? The med has lots of traffic, but smaller conveys. Now and then, we come across a single small merchant/cargo escorted by one or two enemy DD's. Tonnage is much lower in the med, but I'm used to it. Duing our last patrol we manageed to sink 2 light cruisers (out of a trail of four)...and thats about as big as we're going to get for a while. Goerings Flyboys are like mosquito's around here, they turn up at almost every attack I make in the daylight, without being informed! Makes for great fireworks and distraction while we slip closer and finish them off. A few days ago, as we were passing Malta for the western approaches, (during a spectacular sunset) we observed a flaming trail in the sky for several minutes, before realising it was a hurricane in a spot of bother. He paid no heed to us and turned back to Malta. Someone's givin them hell, I thought... This was before we had run into two other AI VIIC's in the same waters. Three's a crowd, but then again...there's safety in numbers! We recently expended four eels with 1 miss and three duds at a juicy looking empire freighter. :damn: Things arn't that safe though, because, I'm now returning home with one eel left and a good man dead, all over a few seconds delay after sighting an aircraft. We were approaching a solitary spanish sloop, seemingly dead in the water, (Not a breath of wind, so no wonder she's not moving... well done again GWX!) in the hope of bartering for some *liquid refreshment*. Aircraft was reported and I wanted to make sure it wasn't one of ours, as we have been diving needlessly a lot in the previous hours, so I told the AA to hold off for a min. A sudden rake of MG fire and he's screaming for a medic as we dive for cover. :down: Will we ever learn? Surfaced right beside the spanish sloop after an hour, giving her crew the fright of her life. After exchanging pleasantries in broken spanish, we discovered they were tee-totalers. :stare: |
U-5 2030 23JUN 40
Successful attack on a convoy in AL8532, shot 2 torpedos to a Fiji class, one explosion, 1 torpedo to one ore carrier, hit; 1 torpedo to a large merchant, hit and huge explosion. Turnend and shot stern tubes to the ore carrier, another hit, and to the fiji class. Convoy light protected. After one hour underwater, surfaced and reloading tubes; waiting for the night to attack again. |
I enjoyed these last few posts :up:
I especially was impressed by yours thelawon.For someone relatively inexperienced you did great in that encounter,and you did everything normal. My next patrol report will be coming in about a months time,as I expect real problems with aircraft in my new patrol zone,and I need to traverse most of the journey at no more than x32TC :zzz::timeout: |
U123
War Patrol 16 February 26 1942, After a refit involving the replacement of my much bedraggled conning tower with a shiny new 2 mounter we sailed from Lorient with orders to join our brothers off the American East coast to partake in the slaughter April 1 1942, 02:00 Position SW of Ireland radio reports a large convoy to our SW heading in our direction, we plot a course to intercept, a chance to test out this new fangled radar this better not be a prank by assistant radio man bernard 11:30 Weather, millpond calm and sunny, Radar reports contacts to our SW, it soon becomes apparent that there are alot of contacts, I close hull down hoping to be able to send off a contact report before I dive, however the forward escort spots me and turns in my direction, 12:00 HMS Buldog a type AB becomes our first victim of the day, Rapidly followed by the other forward escort a Flower Class HMCS Rimouski, my first Canadians, I'm mobed by 3 more escorts, all small corvets, but manage to put an eel into the bows of a liberty class merchant tho she proceeds undetered, pick up one of the escorts, a black swan, before dettonating my last available eel under a Chattam Troop Ship, with 3 escorts closing on my position I dive deep and run silent towards the rear of the convoy, 13:30 with the convoy passed I surface and commence reloading, I set off in persuit aiming to refil from externals before re-engaging, 14:00 I spy a small escort at extream range, and decide to let my deck gunners have a pop before submerging, they fire off 2 rounds and score a hit with the 2nd, leading to massive secondaries, I dive to PD and approach she's sinking but I don't get a credit :( However 2 more small escorts approach, the first a black swan is dispatched relativly easily, the 2nd a flower the eel explodes behind her, however she slows to a stop, a 2nd eel finishes her off. Now down to minimum torps I again chase NE after the convoy picking them up on radar and closing, finaly I get off my contact report to base, only to be told that there is no help available, Radar is now painting in excess of 20 merchants in 5 rows, with no escorts in site, I close to within 4000 yrds of tail end charlie a coastal freighter and my gun crew brings her down, I close again to the next target another freigher and engage her with the gun, but she shoots back, thern a couple of liberty ships and an ore carrier join in too It's getting a bit hot so I dive, but so does the 2nd freighter, I now steer for the flank of the convoy and once out of range aim to race ahead, whilst completing the loading of the externals, maintaining flank speed I bump along just outside of range of the ocnvoy occasionaly exchanging shots with a merchant wen I get too close, 16:00 I note that I have not had an engagement for over 1/2 an hour I dive for a hydrophone sweep to find the convoy has changed course to the east, I adjust and set off to get around them 19:00 Satisfied I am in position ahead of the convoy I submerge and pick up the hydrophone contact heading stright for me, with an abundance of targets I am for the nearest big ships, bringing down 3 Liberty Cargo's in a short space of time, with magnetic under the keel shots, 2 of them exploding with massive secondaries after 1 shot each, te 3rd requiring 2 Some quick reloading and an Ore Carrier, a Large Cargo and a Granvile quickly follow, the granvile being an admited fluke after an eel missed my primary target (the large cargo) and hit the ship in the next column I also took a chunk out of an empire frighter, which slowed to a stop but showed no sign of sinking, with all eels expended I closed on her aiming to let the rest of the convoy move away before surfacing to finish her off, However the last escort black swan now appeared on the sceen so I WENt deep beneith the crippled empire and waited 2 hours for her to go away, I surfaced 50m off the empire, took out her deck gun which could not depress enough to hit me, before backing off and putting 2 shells into her guts, which did for her, She sank in moments, and suddenly we were surrounded by life rafts, we were preparing to head off after passing out soem emergency rations when Splash, the black swan was back, and despite us being surrounded by half drowned allied merchies she was firing on us, my deck gun crew returned, and well trained boys that they are scored hits with the 2nd 3rd and 4th shots which caused large secondaries and stopped her main guns firing on us, with machine gun tracer dancing around us and the poor civies we kept firing and another 3 shots had her heading to davey jones. With all eels and most of the deck gun ammo expended and the reuply subs not yet on station I decided that proceeding to America was pointles, so tured around and headed for Brest, We faced no incidents on the return leg and made port on the 3rd entering the u-boat pens with our pennants streaming Just shy of 60,000 tonnes, not a bad days work |
Thanks Riley. Everything I learned was either from the massive GWX manual, or from these forums. And I suppose a couple things (like turning into the baffles and running) from Das Boot as well.
To finish the first convoy attack of U-49, we made it out alive. A couple more DC runs after our last post, but nowhere near close to the ship. Escorts eventually gave up and returned to the convoy. We're left to regroup and prepare for the second round attack. With a BB notch on the belt, I might add! |
Quote:
We were able to penetrate the screen submerged. Due to extremely rough seas, the convoy is crawling along at 1.5 knots. Never seen that before. Everything still happened pretty quick inside the convoy though. Shot 2 eels at a troopship and 2 eels at a ore carrier. Missed the troopship (damn this manual targeting :damn: ) but got the ore carrier. No retaliation from the escorts-they must be too seasick:doh:. Due to clearing my firing point after shooting, we got behind the convoy and we are currently working around for another go and are debating on trying to slip in submerged while it is still light out for another submerged attack or waiting for darkness to try to slip through the escorts in the heavy seas. :) |
U-107's 22nd Mission
Hi thought it might be a good idea to go to the Canary Island and look for some single merchants, no such luck. Now I'l going down the coastline of Africa to Freetown in hopes of finding some merchants there.
Am I wasting my time. It's July 1944. Rob |
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