USS Balao, ex-Fremantle to Bismarck Sea (cover Dampier and Vitiaz Straits), several days leading up to approximately 10/10/43:
Tracked a four-ship convoy of small vessels. Six PBYs and several Mosquitoes sank three as we closed within 40 mm range, which we used to sink the fourth. No game issues with all this aerial activity. A day or so later, with no other activity on the radar/sonar/visual, a single aircraft approached our position at the SE approaches of the Dampier Strait from New Britain.
The game CTDed for no obvious reason. The type/nationality was never identified. Could it be a rare or new type that's misconfigured? Could explain some of the CTDs escaping Truk if so.
Restart patrol:
Fremantle-Dampier/Vitiaz-Admiralties-Papua coast-Halmahera Sea-Ceram Sea-Molucca Sea-Basilan Passage-Sibutu Passage-Makassar Strait-Fremantle. Sept-Nov 1943.
Issues:
- Other than sailing vessels, the only MV underway that we encountered was a DD we'd triggered by coming too close to one of the coastal bunkers in the Basilan Passage. Decided to raid a certain anchorage to finally score some tonnage, which led to the only MV merchant and two other warships on the entire patrol, all three anchored.
- The levitating flag issue on large sampans remains. They do not respond to AA fire.
- The 40 mms we upgraded to just before the start of the patrol have only a single crew position per gun, instead of two.