New Experience

[Sandman_28054]

Starting a new career, I'm currently on my third mission.

Leaving the base in Java, I was ordered to patrol an area just NE of Saigon.

I plot my course and get under way. near Singapore, I encountered two merchants. Sank both.

I turn NNE. The screen starts acting funny, you know jumpy, so I submerge.

Soundman informs me of a warship heading SSE moving fast. I surface and find the ship. Akisuki Destroyer. A loner, 15,000 yards away, easy pickings, or so I thought.

Turning towards the destroyer, I soon find out I'm heading striaght for a task force.

7 destroyers, 2 Maya Heavy Crusiers, 2 Ise battleships.

I radio my contact in, and recieve the reply, good find, break contact and attack.

Its 18:30, dusk is about to set in, so I stay surfaced until I'm within 8500 yards.

Submerge and raise my scope, lower my SD radar mast. I plot a path where I will rendevous with the task force at about a 90 degree angle of attack.

The first Ise BB comes within 3200 yards. I fire tubes 1-3.

I take aim at the 2nd Ise with tube 4.

The first 3 "fish" hit and slow the Ise down to 2 knts. Torpedo men working feverously to reload the tubes. The 2nd Ise is moving fast, about 15 knts, and the 2nd, Maya heavy destroyer is moving at a 20 knt clip. Tube 1 becomes ready, I take aim and shoot at the cruiser.

Sank, 1 Maya Heavy Cruiser 9800 tons.

Tube 2 come ready, I aim at Ise #1 and fire.

Sank Ise BB #1, 33800 tons.

Turning hard starboard, tube 1 is ready, I take aim and fire.

I hit it right under the aft guns exploding the power magazine.

Sank Ise BB #2. 33800 tons.

Not a bad haul.

Then all of a sudden, bam I'm being pinged by 5, count 'em, 5 Destroyers.

I dive to 220' at flank speed and order Silent running.

For the next 3 hours, I'm being hunted.

Took several indirect hits. Bulkheads, dive plain transmitter, bow tube #1, main pumps, bow deck gun, and taking on water.

For the next 3 hours its a game of cat and mouse, going from ahead slow, to flank speed, diving to 220', rising to periscope depth. At one time, I had a destroyer parked right on top of me. Why he did not drop any depth charges, God only knows, but it was very lucky for me he didn't.

Anyway, at the end of 3 hours, I decided to wait until one Destroyer had passed over, rise to periscope depth, take aim and fire at the dd's. I had all my stern tubes ready and all the fore tubes ready.

One passes over and I go to periscope depth. As I'm heading up, another DD passes over, drops DC's, but they drop to deep as I'm rising.

At periscope depth, I raise the periscope and take aim a Fubuki Destroyer. Open my tube, and fire.

The "fish" runs and hits the destroyer in the aft section right near the men dropping DC's. I hear them scream.

I turn due North, lower my periscope.

After 15 minutes, I noticed the "pings" had stopped.

I raise my scope and take a peek.

The remaining Destroyers had "rallied" around the injured Destroyer and were moving off.

Wow! I hadn't expected that!

Bottom line, 3 ships sunk for 77,400 tons.

Just to be on the safe side I continued at 54' doing 1 knt for one hour.

Sure enough, they must have given up.

I surface, and immediately save the game.

I never would have thought topedoing a destroyer would rally the others away, but it must have worked.

Anybody else had this experience?