Questions about Luftwaffe support from France
 

Here's the situation: I have spotted a convoy exiting English Channel, 800 kilometers from German "Small Airbase" in France, year is 1940 (this is stock SH3). I have no torps left so I have sent contact report hoping for some airstrike. Unfortunately I have no clue how to check what airplanes are based there at this time.

1) Is there a chance for air support coming after I have issued contact report or am I outside their range?
2) How long should I wait before assuming no help was sent my way? An hour, several hours?
3) Is help only dispatched in response to contact report or shadowing the convoy might trigger airplanes showing up later, even if no help was sent initially?

I always assume no help is coming, because I have never received help.

I have seen anecdotal evidence from other posting's here that it does happen, but if they called it in, or came upon the battle already in progress, I am not sure.

Oh well. I shadowed them until dusk just to be sure, but didn't get any assistance, so I'll just return to base and write a complaint to certain fat ugly Reichsmarschall.

If you have a solid contact, and are actually able to get the "send contact report" button to work, you should get a reply from BDU. I know you do in GWX. Although, I have never seen it say anything else other than you're on your own.

But for that button to work, I've found you have to be on the surface, and in decently strong visual contact with the convoy.

No no - I got the reply (I always do when sending contact report of a convoy, the button doesn't work with single ships of course). I just didn't get any help.

I've had the Luftwaffe show up a couple times in the Med. Both times, I had not asked for help and they just flew in and blasted the ship I was chasing. Fun to watch. Not so fun to miss out on the renown.

Ditto. I've never seen the Luftwaffe anywhere else except in port and the Med.

The worst one in the Med I experienced was I was stalking a lone ship in the daylight while submerged. I was in perfect position, ready to shoot when she starts zig-zagging. WTH-did I get spotted or what? :x

I look with the external cam and notice shell splashes around her. The Luftwaffe was attacking her.
Those bastages-I wasn't about to loose my target to them. I surfaced and gunned her down with the deck gun. :smug:


And I won't even talk about the time in September 1943 when I saw some "friendly" Italian Air Force aircraft approaching who then proceeded to attack me, luckily with minimal damage before I was able to crash dive.

I guess I didn't get the memo about the Italians switching sides prior to sailing. :oops:

:)

I have always gotten the "you're on your own" radio message, but I have seen air attacks happen after reporting them. I've seen this on the East cost of England. I don't know if it is coincidence or not.

I think I remember a post here saying that the game checks to see if help is nearby and if it is sends it in. But it's random.

Steve

I've had this happen near the North Sea while transiting the Skagerrak strait that runs between Norway, Sweden and Denmark. I often take this route to enter the North Sea (rather than transit the canal) if I'm based at Kiel.

At the very beginning of the war Skagerrak seems to be a good place to encounter lone polish flagged merchants. On two seperate occasions I have had friendly aircraft crash my Skagerrak party and attack my prey. I love it though, it really adds to the immersion and there are plenty more ships in the sea :up:

Italy surrendered and signed a military armistice with the Allies early in Sept 1943, I can't remember when the game switches them from Axis to Allied but I would guess it would be somewhere between the 3rd and 9th of the month.

My assumption has always been that from that point on, anything spawning from the Italy/Italian roster will be an enemy unit and consider you the same. I think there is a separate roster for the Italian forces that stayed on board with Mussolini and the Axis, under 'RSI.' I assume anything spawning from that roster would still be a friendly after the armistice but if the two rosters share common classes of ships, planes, etc., I don't know how you'd know which was which until the shooting started without having gotten a proper look at any flags/markings that would verify their allegiance.

At any rate, after Italy changes sides in the game the only friendly "Italian" forces left are the RSI ones... so don't be surprised if your former BFFs in the Med get very unfriendly indeed 'round about Sept 1943. :DL

Saw a Stuka attacking a lone British ship north of Norway once, but other than that only seen the Luftwaffe in home port.

Nemo

They took out a fishing boat off Norge/Norway once, but I never asked for help.

A contact report will raise the possibility of an airstrike by 50%.
Considering Luftwaffe abilities (aside The Med), that's not much of a help.

Aside from the few Condors available, most german planes had very short legs.

Quite some time ago I was on a patrol in the North Atlantic (SHIII & GWX 3.0). I was after a single ship when the lookouts called out an aircraft alarm. Turns out the plane was a FW200 that then sank the ship I was chasing. Fun to watch.

Awww. Herr Herman is on Jenny Craig these days.

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