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Old 01-28-16, 09:55 AM   #3
Rockin Robbins
Navy Seal
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: DeLand, FL
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With every shot you take there is an error envelope that can be expressed as an angle of a certain number of degrees.

There are some variables we have control of and some we do not. We can get closer and we can pick our torpedo speed. Let us suppose that our target is five degrees long. You can't slow him down.

But you can pick your torpedo speed. A faster torpedo, taking a shorter time to get to the target works exactly like decreasing the range to increase the accuracy of your shot. It makes your error envelope a small percentage of the length of the target instead of either a large fraction of the length or sometimes even longer than the length of the target. The fast torpedo is always the most accurate.

And the things said earlier about less time for the target to maneuver are also valid. Additionally, your most error tolerant shot is to shoot when you are perfectly abeam of your target (American analysis, don't use this information if you want to be historically plausible) with the torpedo striking the target at about a 110º to 120º torpedo track angle(that depends on target speed). Since your torpedo is approaching the target from slightly behind, the difference between fast and slow torpedoes is exxagerated.
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