Long patrols and beyond.
 

Okay left Brest March 23 1943 my patrol area was GR83 on the way there took a convoy out and amassed 180k in the cf grid encountered anouther convoy in grid "DT" 2 fish left (rear tubes) so I didn't bother eventually got there GR83 did my 24 hr patrol and for a change headed for Penang "nice place devoid of traffic apart from the odd C2 and tramp steamer".Got to penang im July 43 "whow" I thought and whats there couple of steamers and a armed trawler where the hell is the INJN?.
Docked in Penang I was gob smacked to see a VC/41 :huh: in there since when have them have the range to get there.
Did a few "Null"patrols out of there to Madras Columbo :down:
decided to go home.
Now I have pondered hard about this does one go back the way one comes via the cape or does one go via Suez? I chose suez nothing happend much until I hit Aden first the RAF "wellingtons" then a v&w and then a **** load of Sunderlands took out 5 of them them the weather changed to my advantage but as soon as I got to the canal the weather changed before I even got half way through suez I run out of flack ammo my twin c/38 FLAK guns packed in all I had were my Quads and they did'nt last long.
Now Gents and Ladies I would love to know how many of you have traversed the Suez Canal going South or North in a Career.
(just to say I did hit esc when my hull intergrity hit 12%)

It's something I was always going to try. After all I can't see the point in adding the terrain mod for it then not going. I doubt I could survive an air attack though, the airpower mod makes them pretty lethal and difficult to shoot down (apologies if you use that too).

I suppose if you go early enough you could travel safely on the surface at night, and submerge all day. That way aircraft shouldn't come into it. I'll go there on my next patrol and see how I get on :D

Im sorry. No really, i just did this, this was the suckiest, and longest patrol i ever ran. Although i did score a 10K tonner warship, and 20K in merchants so it wasnt a total scrub. Although i spent most of my time submerged, sucking through through a straw :roll: Took me 140 days this patrol, and it was slow going. So ya.. GRXX grids..... i feel your pain.

By default indian ocean traffic is fairly sparse. Something that im going to be working on (again) btw. This might acutaly be something i release this time. Penang really isnt much to look at, and the ships there are going to be like anywhere else, excepting a japanese flag from its mastheads.


Your supposed to go back round the cape. Suez is suicide, although ive openly thought about making this run. Historically theres no way your boat would break out of the med. You'd be locked in there assuming you made it in into the med to begin with.

No way would i attempt the suez. Its a death trap. I once went to kiel from willhelmshaven via the small canal between the two, and my god it was an arduous journey! Never again!

Well now I know the next time I decide to go Penang I will definately return the way I came via the cape.
I just had to try that adacious route trying to go via suez but the RAF in 44 I can't handle,I litrally got swamped by planes as soon I reached Aden.

If you use SH3 Commander to set your TC limit to either 64 or 128 ... "when near land" you can easily travel through the Kiel canal in a matter of 2-4 minutes real time. It takes longer to carefully set the way points through the canal than it does to do the actual travel.

I dont know about the Suez though as I have yet to attempt that one.

I just started on GW and that was one of the first things I looked for. Whether the Suez was there or not.

Doubt I'll ever go, but it bugged me with all the map details they did put in they left that one out.

Glad it was included in the MOD.