Are there lookouts when snorting?

Greetings. Running GWX 2.0 at 100% and it's October 1944 during first patrol of Trondheim based U-1021, having sunk three for 14,000+ GRT near the North Channel and Outer Hebrides. Six weeks out and returning to base after spending 37-days submerged, most of it in awful weather. Generally snorted twice a day but the evening the weather cleared I got hammered by an undetected aircraft that destroyed the upper deck, flak guns, schnorkel and both periscopes. Got the boat under control at 220 metres and have fixed what can be fixed.

Have read that when snorting, a watchkeeper manned the observation periscope continuously and I was running with the observation scope up and at TC x64 in the navigation screen when the attack hit. No warning, but then no god's eye view either. This represents my first serious SH3 career and I hope to be able to concentrate on fighting the Allies rather than limitations in the game.

When snorting, is somebody keeping watch if a scope is up?

If not, how do those late-war patrollers and Type XXI Captains out there conduct schnorkelling operations?

Any advice or insights are appreciated, thanks in advance.
Good Hunting.

[Jimbuna]

TBH.......I'm not really sure what happened in RL, but I imagine more periodic periscope checks would have been carried out :hmm:

[Brag]

I'm afraid you need map updates, then the plane will appear when you are on the Nav screen.

[Hanomag]

Welcome aboard Kaluen Randomizer!!

And welcome to 44 ! You will find that it is a very non submarine friendly time! :rotfl:

I would recomend snorkelling at night as much as possible and keep your TC as low as you can bear, to avoid swallowing enemy bombs from surprise attacks.

Good Luck!!

[bigboywooly]

When in 44 ?
Depending on the boat you have the GWX - Late War Sensors Snorkel Antennas can be enabled
Oct 44 IIRC but cant remember which sub that is for - the manual will say
Will add radar warning on top of the snort

ah here

1. FuMB-3

Bali: All type VII and Type IX U-boats and their variants mount this antenna on their

schnorchel

starting in October 1944 as part of the FuMB-29 Bali-Anlage.

2. FuMB-37 Leros: All Type XXI U-boats mount this antenna atop their schnorchel starting in
January 1945.

Page 65 onwards

Thanks to all for the input. Am going to try and make it make to Trondheim without an operational schnorkel, periscopes or flak guns. Should be a swan, only 1500km to go If I get home, I'll refit with the mast mounted RWR's since I should have accumulated enough prestige to afford them. As much as I dislike the idea of enabling the map update option, I might have to since running blind = death from above, I really would like this career to continue since it got off to a good start.

@bigboywooly
Left in September '44 after deciding not to wait for the mast sensors to become available in October.

Good Hunting

What has (so far) worked for me has been this: I run submerged at 2kt 24/7 until out of the Bay and into (relatively safe and clear) waters. During the day I pop the snorkel up long enough to refresh the air, and in the mid of night long enough to recharge the batteries and again refresh the air. So far doing that I've managed (Danke Gott!) to avoid being bushwacked by air attacks.

[3Jane]

Originally Posted by Albrecht Von Hesse

What has (so far) worked for me has been this: I run submerged at 2kt 24/7 until out of the Bay and into (relatively safe and clear) waters. During the day I pop the snorkel up long enough to refresh the air, and in the mid of night long enough to recharge the batteries and again refresh the air. So far doing that I've managed (Danke Gott!) to avoid being bushwacked by air attacks.

As I understand it they used the snorkel at night, because the exhaust trail would have been visible in daylight.

[Dronston]

Sorry, I cannot let this pass...

yes, it is very wise to have lookouts while snorting as in most countries its illegal.

[Sailor Steve]

:rotfl:

Very good, Dronston!

As to the question, if you leave the periscope up, you will get reports of aircraft spotted; and yes, they did keep an eye out. Not that it always helped.

[Ubåtskapten]

I am also based at Trondheim, late October 1944 (GWX 2.0) and I don't run in to airplanes until I'm somewhere between Norway and GB. Except of the base attack at the beginning of the patrol. And I'm not running more than 128-256x TC. Don't know how it was in RL but it seem to me that there's an absence of air patrols outside the west coast of Norway, or maybe I've just been "unlucky"?:hmm:


How often do you other 1944-kaleuns have to duck for airplanes while on the surface recharging at lower time compressions?

[T.Von Hogan]

In that date range IX subs had radar warning in gwx 1.03 if the late war sensor mod was enabled. For some reason the XXI didn't get thiers till jan 45. Don't know about 2.0 haven't made it to 1942 yet.

[Jimbuna]

Don't forget......with the diesels running, the hydrophones were almost constantly seriously impaired

[Von Schmidt]

Advanced allied radar sets were able to pick up snorts on radar.

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

:rotfl:

Very good, Dronston!

As to the question, if you leave the periscope up, you will get reports of aircraft spotted; and yes, they did keep an eye out. Not that it always helped.

I am a bit surprised that it took nine replies before a snorting U-Boat became that other kind of snorting...

As for the lookouts, I tried to keep TC down to x64 but am pretty sure that SH3 only provides periscope lookouts when the map update option is enabled. I managed to get U-1021 home alright and sailed again 5 Nov 44. Now in the Norwegian Sea transiting to AM53 I have detected and avoided aircraft twice on the map screen at x64. I never noted this with the map update disabled. No radar detections yet either although she is fitted with the FuMB-3 RWR.

The plan for this patrol is to infiltrate the Irish Sea and then home for Christmas.
Good Hunting