Can FaT torpedoes confuse escorts?

[Nikita]

Imagine you are stalking a convoy at its port side. You launch a FaT torpedo that misses in its first run, but when turns back it hits the starboard side of a ship.

Now comes the question: Will escorts look for a sub in the starboard side of the convoy (where your U-Boot isn't)?

[Iron Budokan]

I would think so. God, I hope so....

[Abd_von_Mumit]

Originally Posted by Nikita

Imagine you are stalking a convoy at its port side. You launch a FaT torpedo that misses in its first run, but when turns back it hits the starboard side of a ship.

Now comes the question: Will escorts look for a sub in the starboard side of the convoy (where your U-Boot isn't)?

If the ship was on the left side of the convoy, the escorts would presume you were somewhere on the left side, as you are usually able to hit the ship that is closest to you. And I'm sure they work that way, it was described quite many times here, it's also stated in GWX manual.

And as to your question, I'd rather suppose that it depends _only_ on the hit ship's position. I doubt if escorts check, what side of the ship was hit. But that's only a hipothesis.

PS. Found a pro for my hipothesis: when a hit or alerted ship lights her searching lights, she doesn't aim them on the 'proper' side (i.e. the side that was hit) but rather looks around in a quite messy manner.

[lafeeverted]

Iwould think that whenever possible the side of the ship hit is very important. It determines evasive manouevers to be taken by the convoy and where escorts are searching.

[Nikita]

I hope escorts don't DC me as fast as your answers. Thanks, Kaleuns!

[AVGWarhawk]

I'm willing to bet they just start sweeping like the clean up crew after a football game.. Maybe the do look first to the side the torpedo hit but 360 degrees coverage by two to four escorts does not take long happen. Great question though!!!!

[GT182]

Nikita, I take it you're speaking of the ladder search pattern FATs. Seeing they are electric it strikes my funny as to why an escort would know where it came from if it is coming back from it's original course when it strikes any ship. But for some reason they do, unless they were tracking it to begin with.

Now my question... which side of the convoy did the escorts come from looking for you? If the starboard side, then I wouldn't think so as they convoy should mask you. But if from the port side where you are, it's a good possibility. Especially if they are closer than 2000 meters. If over that they shouldn't know as the engine noises from the convoy should mask you. But then again, SHIII's sonar detection works in mysterious ways and is hard to figure out at times...... actually all the time IMHO. LOL

[Iron Budokan]

Come to think of it I suppose it's not out of the realm of possibility for a mag torp to detonate on the far side of the ship, given how squirrely they are anyway. Now that I think about it they (DDs) probably do pay more attention to what side of the convoy the ship is being hit, rather than what side of the ship....

[GT182]

:hmm: Come to think of it... escorts always come looking in the spot where the fish was fired from. No matter where they and you are. So get the h*ll out of there as fast as you can.

[andy_311]

Actually it does not, I use acoustic torps in 44-45 and those thing home in whatever make the loudist noise be it a DD or merchant.If your target reduces speed and so does every one else it will seek the loudist noise and chase it sometimes you might get lucky and it will hit a ship on the far side and the escorts will go looking for you on that side sometimes you might fire a a merchant might bring up speed and it will go for that ship the escorts can't detect torps being fired (as far as I know) but they will search an area of around 4000m from the ship being hit. and with a lost detection time of 45 mins they find you your screwed.(gwx)

[Nikita]

Originally Posted by GT182

:hmm: Come to think of it... escorts always come looking in the spot where the fish was fired from. No matter where they and you are. So get the h*ll out of there as fast as you can.

The attack is made at night, with an impact torpedo (not magnetic), in bad visibility conditions, so escorts can't know where the torpedo came from ( if AI works in this way, thing I don´t know). And if you hit a ship in the middle of the convoy...