U-99 Captain's Log

[Scout614]

I recently got command of my own Type VIIb out of St. Nazereth. Before then i was a XO on a Type II coastal boat. My original skipper believed that if you wanted to kill something you had to hit it dead on and ordered all the fish to be set to impact fuses. Sitting around my new base, I heard the Captains around these parts loved the magnetic fuses. I decided when in Rome and had my fish set to magnetic too. We have to go up to grid AF15 south of the emerald isle and on the way there i encounter a lone merchant around AF20 or so. Its dark and im on the surface to make time. I have my WO work the tubes as I look at our first kill. I am told our fish is ready and order it to swim. I see the trail as it speed towards our target. I hold my breath joyous that I will make a kill on my first night. Then I see the fish go into the deep blue yonder the magnetic fuse refusing to detonate as the stream of bubbles goes past the screws of the British ship. Not to take that insult I have the WO set tube 4 for a shot. At 1 click I will not be robbed of a kill. Yet the second fish does the same as the first, buzzing the target and failing to blow. Angry I order my crew to the 88mm and have them open fire. An HE shell rips through the deck and into the diesels blowing the merchant to the deep. I continue on to the patrol grid and have an uneventful patrol until Radioman Wentz tell me he hears fast screws. I raise the scope to see a Hunt class destroyer at 5000m bearing 087 and a J&K class destroyer escort at the same distance bearing 149. Not wanting to be sunk on my first patrol, I order a ping of the depth below. Satisfied we dive to 80m and turn south getting the heck out of Dodge. Once under friendly air cover we surface and progress back to the pens for some real food, given that the real food is for us officers only, and some well deserved sleep. My thoughts as I walk onto dry land is that our next patrol shall use impact fuses on our fish.
Leutnant zur See Karl Johanson