Tough but possible
I approached at night. I tried to pass the shore batteries with my decks awash, but I was detected and gunned. I slipped back down to PD and crept along in the shallows at 3 knots. The deeper water was tempting, but I figured my adversaries would expect that. So in I crept with about 17 feet below my keel. I reached the drop-off around 0300, surfaced, backed full, stopped, and set off the agent. Unfortunately, my crew must have forget to throw off the lines because the raft kept banging into the hull when I was backing slowly.
I soon moved ahead at 1 knot, turning to port to reverse course, and he paddled away. Insertion completed. I'm now hugging the coast again in the shallows to get the hell out of Dodge.
I am down to 3 fish, having sunk 29605 tons on the way here (nighttime convoy attack was a major payday), so I'm heading back to Brisbane for fresh fish and a few drops of Nelson's blood for my crew. There's a fat convoy close by to starboard, but I'm in no position to escape if I launch my remaining torps.
|