Glad you’re getting the hang of it
ORioN17, it really is fun!
The Crew of the Wahoo SS-238, used to place a Ship model on a lazy Susan and turn it at different angles while the XO looked through the opposite site of binoculars to guess the AOB.
Estimating the target's course was generally considered the most difficult of the observation tasks. The accuracy of the result was highly dependent on the experience of the skipper. During combat, the actual course of the target was not usually determined but instead the skippers determined a related quantity called "angle on the bow." Angle on the bow is the angle formed by the target course and the line of sight to the submarine. Some skippers, like the legendary Richard O'Kane, practiced determining the angle on the bow by looking at IJN ship models mounted on a calibrated lazy Susan through an inverted binocular barrel
It really just takes some practice as you focus on the center of the ship's hull, draw a line from that to your sub and then decide if the ship's bow is port or starboard, and then guesstimate at what angles. The great angle views in the
IJN Recognition Manual are also very helpful.
For practice, take a look at the Sub School torpedo Attack mission. Using this:
* Note, using the protractor is a longer way of doing AOB, but it may help you visualize the situation.
Load #3 Torpedo Attack:
Here's what you should see after a minute or two into the simulation:
Subs' Heading = 000 due north and speed 0
Target heading = 102.674 (let's use 100)
Bearing to Target = 325
AOB = 45 (42 if using Target heading of 102-103)
Target speed = 9knts
* TIP: once in Map view F3 hit backspace to pause the sim. When ready, hit the NumPab + (plus) key to continue.
You can check this by drawing a line out from your sub's center with the distance tool on your course to the 8^ 13' N
Now draw another line from the target's center until it intersects your course line.
Take the Protractor and draw a line from the Intersection point to the Target's bow, now left-click and draw another line to your bow. The Angle on the Bow should = 45 degrees for AOB=45.
Cheers,
