ok... so I guess the frequency, "volume" of ping, and lenght have no official correlation to what extent you are being detected. It's either you are detected or you are not... the sound is only ambiance? Or am I totally in left field here?
What happened in game...
I was 3,000 yds. off port to a convoy at night, no moon, winds 15m... the convoy zigged and I zagged to get a good firing position. My sonar man finds warship screws at X bearing, I turn and look through the TBT and all I see is bow of Japanese destroyer. I immediately crash to 240ft. His inital drop of charges was very close.
He kept circling and making port to starboard passes and pinging. This happens 4-5 times, each time the charges are further and further away. I seem to evade him.
(So, I'm not sure what to make of this... I get pinged--I was below a thermal-- and he's dropping charges but they are not 'on the mark'. So I assume I'm not detected? Or is he just a bad shot?)
Continuing story...
Eventually I don't hear high speed screws and come up to periscope depth for a look. The damn spot light is shining right on me but the watches on the DD didn't notice me (about 1500 yds. off his port-stern).
I dive right back down to 240.
I keep changing course every 5 mintues at 1 kt. on silent running and keep this up for an hr. Then I surface, spot him, what's estimated at 7,000 yds. (probably wrong as I couldn't i.d. the warship for certain)
Check for merchants screws, find them, surface the boat set course to catch up with the merchants.
The DD did turned his lights off as I was doing this and couldn't remember his relative bearing (oops). My watches didn't notice him and the next thing I know I'm being shelled. Another 2min he's on me and I'm dead.
I don't know how he spotted me at night but maybe it was from passive sonar detection, as he was full stop hanging out on the surface.
I had a gut feeling it wasn't going to turn out well when I was trying to close the gap on the surface at flank speed. At some points in the journey I was only 3,000 yds. from the merchants but i got careless and greedy.
I know now that night raids aren't as I easy as I had imagined lol.
EDIT: this is all in Jan. of '41
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