Boss ! Ze plane ! Ze plane !

[Scarredclown]

I'm having a bit of difficulty with the planes that keep on trying to sink me. Besides hiring the small guy in Fantasy Island who seemed to have a talent for spotting planes...

Right now my tactics is to go full ahead and crash dive. I rarely escape without damages. I try to fight them but its a bit risky. What experienced submariners like you do ?

[Pigboatcook]

Me, I crash dive at flank and stay at flank until I am 200+ down, then I might give it a kick to the right or left a few degrees. I'm in the Pacific to sink ships, not aircraft. If it is a choice between my ship and crew and that aviator in the water all i can say is he better keep swimming until I can get back up.

[TorpX]

If they have spotted you, or will spot you, crash dive.

Get down as fast as you can; don't play games.

Your mods may make for a higher or lower level of danger.



Donitz ordered the Kriegsmarine U-boats to stay up and fight aircraft. They shot down some planes that way. They also lost a lot of U-boats.

[Shkval]

During the day, if under the umbrella, 3 hours submerged, 1/2 hour surfaced, in that way you will always have over 95% batteries and fresh air... combat ready all the time...

[Warren Peace]

Air Search radar raised (it may not matter, but I swear I spot planes a lot sooner with it up), never above 512x time compression when within aircraft patrol ranges (which I consider to be about 1,700 NM from any Japanese occupied areas), and I ignore that I have AA weapons.

Haven't had a plane get the drop on me yet, they're typically several thousand yards out when I get a radar hit / lookout alert. Then, it's simply ahead flank, crash dive, hard to whichever-direction-feels-good-at-the-time. Don't bother fighting 'em, just RSLG (Run Screaming Like a Girl).

[Crannogman]

I've found daytime cruising to be best at 55ft, just shallow enough to pick up the shortwave radio broadcast

[SquareCanine]

In typical play, I set 1/3 or 2 knots and periscope depth (1/3 if I am avoiding, 2 knots if I plan to stay down for the day).

If I mess up and fail to dive (usually because I think a plane will miss me. Sometimes I hit time compression on accident), order crash dive, man the AA gun, and change course. I want them coming in behind me to present a narrow target and give the AA gun a good shot, but I make sure to be turning or be on a course that will force the incoming plane to turn on approach to help them miss me.

You don't have to make them miss by much to prevent at least any serious damage.

[Pigboatcook]

If you are playing with TMO you better get under 120 at least. Do this, take the free cam and zoom out over your submerged boat. In TMO the pilots can see you just like you see you in that view.

[Crannogman]

Originally Posted by SquareCanine

In typical play, I set 1/3 or 2 knots and periscope depth (1/3 if I am avoiding, 2 knots if I plan to stay down for the day).

If I mess up and fail to dive (usually because I think a plane will miss me. Sometimes I hit time compression on accident), order crash dive, man the AA gun, and change course. I want them coming in behind me to present a narrow target and give the AA gun a good shot, but I make sure to be turning or be on a course that will force the incoming plane to turn on approach to help them miss me.

You don't have to make them miss by much to prevent at least any serious damage.

My general AA tactic is to allow the aircraft to approach me from abeam or a little abaft thereof; punch it to full or flank when they close to visual range; hit full rudder in the direction of the aircraft when they are about halfway into their dive. That's too late for them to readjust, and anyhow it would cause them to dive more steeply and risk crashing. Usually the bombs land farther ahead of my course, and half the time the plane (usually a Betty) is caught in the explosion, gets flipped over, and plunges into the sea

[SquareCanine]

If I get caught with them coming at me from the side, that's what I would do for sure. That may also be more ideal with a Balao so you can use your entire AA armament.

For my Gato though, I think I prefer hiding. It would be satisfying to shoot some planes down, but right after making a mistake doesn't seem like the best time to do anything bold (if I'm crash diving, I already screwed up).

[Crannogman]

I perfected this in my Gato; the reason I don't do it all the time is you run out of 20mm rounds within 1 day in enemy territory

[thegrindre]

I just avoid them. They only fly in certain areas and patterns and I avoid their areas and patterns.

[XenonSurf]

Although I own SH4 for years, I didn't play it very much, still figuring out what mods to play, currently I give it a go with the patched 1.5 (U-Boots inclusive).
I had good AA tactics in SH3 and SH1, depending if I spotted the plane by radar or if it was already in sight.

If the plane is in sight, it's a very bad idea IMO to crash-dive, this may get you killed, you won't make it safe under water because it takes too long and you lose any control, so you have to fight it out, go flank and present your broadside to the plane until the first bombs hit the water. Just then it's the perfect moment to crash-dive and turn 60-90 degrees after getting some speed.

If you spot a plane by radar, you have the time to crash-dive and head away from your water trail. Do it, because as said above you are not there to play a chicken game

XenonS

[SSI01]

My experience has been it's inadvisable to take on an aircraft under any circumstances unless for some reason you can not dive, due to mechanical problems or previous damage - or you were caught flat-footed, as can happen. When radar spots them click on the aircraft icon and you can see their course and detection range - if you stay out of that you can remain on the surface but always turn your stern to them anyway, to make for a smaller visible target. If that circle is going to overlap you and your boat, then dive right away, minimum 150-200 feet. If for some reason you can not dive and an aircraft makes a run at you - turn into him as fast as you can, go to flank speed, and man your forward AA gun if you've got one. Going flank speed right at him greatly steepens his angle of dive and raises the risk of his flying into the water to keep you in his sights. He will almost certainly miss ahead - at which time you secure the AA gun, remain at flank speed and crash dive. Get down to about 200 feet, straight-line dive - then turn 10 or 15 degrees from your original course, still at flank speed, and still in the direction of his approach. At this point you can slow to submerged speed. I've found this works so far.

EDIT: I forgot to mention you can employ a little trick when surfacing, to avoid being caught on the surface after just having arrived there. Determine the height of your radar antenna above the water. Come to periscope depth and use the observation scope to take a 360-degree look around the horizon, and tilt the head up a little to scan the sky as well. It has a larger lens on the upper end than the attack scope and therefore gives you a larger field of view when observing with it - hence its name. If the sky and horizon are all clear, come to "radar depth" (where your SD antenna is out of the water and usable - which is why that height above water is so important) and let it take a few sweeps around the boat at max range. This will detect any aircraft that are a proximate threat to your boat. If they are there, it's back down for a little while. If they're not, surface and get about your normal routine.

I've read somewhere in the past US captains in the RW who remained on the surface and fought it out with aircraft when they could have otherwise evaded by diving were looked upon as having a screw loose. There were occasions, such as when lifeguarding, when this would happen but was unavoidable and so was understood. But to make it a matter of habit?

Anyway - our mission is to bankrupt the Japanese equivalent of Lloyd's, and destroy their merchant marine. Aircraft and crews are easier to replace than ships.