U- 137: Close call. Damn mine almost spoiled great patrol

VonApist · 08-31-12, 09:10 AM

November 1943
Grid BF 11

Patrolling the treacherous and escort infested seas of the Irish sea with my IID-Type Boat.

Weather pretty appalling, which is good for me as in a Type II and at crappy weather, chances of me being detected are pretty low.

I am determined to make my 5 torpedoes count. I have let a coastal freighter pass unharmed as tonnage was too low to announce my presence.

No need to push ones luck. If I had met him on my way back - it would have been a different story.

Running on surface only to recharge and then diving to avoid detection.

Sonarman reports contact, long range, at medium speed, closing.

Plotting interception, its feasible. Surfacing and sprinting to position my boat ahead. Bad weather means no RAF harrasment. Good.

Diving to periscope depth and waiting. Regular reports indicate that she will make a pass some 500m ahead - at the limits of my visibility. And after some minutes there she is. And what a beauty. A lone whale-factory ship! In 1943!.

For realism purposes all my torpedoes are set at Impact pistol, depth 2m. As it was extremely difficult - at least until 1944 i think - to change from impact to magnetic during patrols.

Choppy waters make my boat bobble and roll, making targeting more demanding. But angle is 90 and distance is only 500m.

To torpedoes fired, two hits. She goes down. 10k of tonnage under my belt.
Good start for a humble Type-II boat.

3 torps to spare, will have to make them count.

3 days later, I spot a convoy. To cut a long story short - two hits. Large merchant , I tanker. Total tonnage 25k. Pretty strong for a tiny type II. But I get pinned down by excorts at 160m for hours.

My small size and the weather , make evation succesful.

And on my way up towards the surface at around 20m depth..... BANG

Hit by a mine! Major flooding. Pumps full speed

I make the surface. Thank god its night. Thank god for the weather.

Repairs. Hull at 46%.

Will I be able to cripple back to base without being detected? Too risky to submerge...

Kept praying the weather would hold up. And it did. It remained crappy.

Back to port.

Damn mine almost spoiled great patrol

RConch · 08-31-12, 11:53 AM

Surprised you survived.
Great patrol, but I will stick with my VIIC.
Inshore campaigns give me a rash.

Fubar2Niner · 08-31-12, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rconch

....
Inshore campaigns give me a rash.

Is that all?

Red Heat · 08-31-12, 05:47 PM

Great report mate...

grislyatoms · 08-31-12, 06:20 PM

Well done. A toast with English gin is in order should we ever meet near the docks.

08-31-12, 09:10 AM	#1
VonApist Navy Dude Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Greece Posts: 175 Downloads: 6 Uploads: 0	U- 137: Close call. Damn mine almost spoiled great patrol November 1943 Grid BF 11 Patrolling the treacherous and escort infested seas of the Irish sea with my IID-Type Boat. Weather pretty appalling, which is good for me as in a Type II and at crappy weather, chances of me being detected are pretty low. I am determined to make my 5 torpedoes count. I have let a coastal freighter pass unharmed as tonnage was too low to announce my presence. No need to push ones luck. If I had met him on my way back - it would have been a different story. Running on surface only to recharge and then diving to avoid detection. Sonarman reports contact, long range, at medium speed, closing. Plotting interception, its feasible. Surfacing and sprinting to position my boat ahead. Bad weather means no RAF harrasment. Good. Diving to periscope depth and waiting. Regular reports indicate that she will make a pass some 500m ahead - at the limits of my visibility. And after some minutes there she is. And what a beauty. A lone whale-factory ship! In 1943!. For realism purposes all my torpedoes are set at Impact pistol, depth 2m. As it was extremely difficult - at least until 1944 i think - to change from impact to magnetic during patrols. Choppy waters make my boat bobble and roll, making targeting more demanding. But angle is 90 and distance is only 500m. To torpedoes fired, two hits. She goes down. 10k of tonnage under my belt. Good start for a humble Type-II boat. 3 torps to spare, will have to make them count. 3 days later, I spot a convoy. To cut a long story short - two hits. Large merchant , I tanker. Total tonnage 25k. Pretty strong for a tiny type II. But I get pinned down by excorts at 160m for hours. My small size and the weather , make evation succesful. And on my way up towards the surface at around 20m depth..... BANG Hit by a mine! Major flooding. Pumps full speed I make the surface. Thank god its night. Thank god for the weather. Repairs. Hull at 46%. Will I be able to cripple back to base without being detected? Too risky to submerge... Kept praying the weather would hold up. And it did. It remained crappy. Back to port. Damn mine almost spoiled great patrol __________________ "Submariners are a special brotherhood, either all come to the surface or no one does. On a submarine, the phrase all for one and one for all is not just a slogan, but reality.” -- VADM Rudolf Golosov

08-31-12, 11:53 AM	#2
RConch Captain Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: No. Virginia Posts: 619 Downloads: 518 Uploads: 0	Surprised you survived. Great patrol, but I will stick with my VIIC. Inshore campaigns give me a rash. __________________ "Noch und Noch" Prowling the Nord Atlantik with GWX 3.0.

08-31-12, 05:47 PM	#4
Red Heat Ace of the Deep Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Portugal Posts: 1,093 Downloads: 267 Uploads: 0	Great report mate... __________________ "There is three kinds of man: the living, the death, and those who are at Sea." Plato

08-31-12, 06:20 PM	#5
grislyatoms Medic Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 169 Downloads: 31 Uploads: 0	Well done. A toast with English gin is in order should we ever meet near the docks. __________________ "Na Männer...alles klar?"