[in_vino_vomitus]

This doesn't compare with some of the epics people have recounted here but it was a new experience for me. Most of the time, convoy attacks tend to be Shoot and Scoot, and on the approach to this one [Zinbu maru, Tyohei Maru, two Akita's and a destroyer] I thought the same thing would happen. I was feeling very wary of the destroyer, since on my previous patrol, a lone destroyer had almost ended my career. With heavy damage and flooding, making three knots at flank speed and unable to steer, in desperation I'd surfaced and surprisingly, had survived, with heavy losses. Anyway, sonar conditions were good, and I wasn't in the mood for taking too many chances, so my plan was to fire at long-ish range and hope to be outside the detection envelope before the torpedoes impacted.

Anyway, I've been trying to use the PK more and been having mixed results, and since I was expecting a depth charging, I wanted to make sure it was worth the trouble so I set up for a shoot DoK style, and the only reason I mention this, is because since I started trying to use the PK I'm even more amazed at the robustness of the DoK method. Between that and the Solution Solver, I never used to turn the TDC on. So in the spirit of credit where credit's due; Thanks guys - Nice work.....

So. I was set up about 1500 yards off the beam. The destroyer had been on the opposite side of the convoy, but as they approached. he was cutting through the middle, changing sides and heading towards me. I went silent and stopped engines. As the first ship crossed the wire I fired two torpedoes on slow. I fired two on high speed as the next one passed and the escort began pinging. I changed my point of aim and fired the last two at the destroyer then went to flank speed, full left rudder, and set depth for 400'

I heard one impact reported, and I heard two explosions that were obviously premature detonations, but what I couldn't fathom was why the escort hadn't increased speed, or why it had stopped pinging. I went silent and held depth at 300', since we obviously weren't being pursued. the sonar operator reported breakup noises, the escort had disappeared from the sonar plot. I admit - I checked the log and sure enough the destroyer was in it. When I came up to periscope depth, one of the Akitas was dead in the water with its bows submerged, and the rest of the convoy had slowed to about 3 knots - Do they pick up survivors? - that's what it looked like......

Anyway the rest of the evening can be summed up in two words. Turkey Shoot. As I say, it doesn't rank particularly highly in the tales told in these pages, but it was a new experience for me to have not only got away with the depth charging, but also to suddenly find myself with an unescorted convoy to wreak mayhem on. I wonder when that will happen again....