Hey plj, I too was suffering a lot of CTDs (assuming thats the crash you had), and am also running a very similar mod setup to you. I thought I had it beat, but then every time I went through Kiel canal, it would CTD without fail.
It seems the TDW SH5 patcher I was using (I didn't know better so I downloaded the .gps file from one of the tutorials), had enabled some of the advanced render patches. May be worth checking those, as I have only had 1 ctd since then, when I tried to use the flak gun on a plane.
As for your weapons officer, 2 things to check. At the top right (to the left of the clock, make sure it's set to show the XO TDC. Next, when you press space to lock a target, make sure you haven't switched TDC off. I'm sure you've probably checked those already, but in my limited experience with SH5, I hope that helps a bit.
