Hitting an actively maneuvering target

Razoleg · 05-19-17, 10:26 AM

Hi Folks,

So, I am in the middle of the enemy convoy with 5 carriers and I already sank a battleship by mistake and injured two carriers in the bow, also kind of by mistake (you see, all three torp spread was meant for one guy, but the first one hit a heavy cruiser dead centre, right behind Hiryu, the other one hit the target and the last - carrier behind her). They are up to their towers in the water, but are still doing good 7-8 kts speed and are maneuvering vigorously in extremely bad weather (waves so high, my boat is exposed at 35 ft in water).

So, I am in the middle of the convoy, going flank speed with destroyers right behind me and a crusier to my port side, so close that I can see people having cigarettes on its decks. These two carriers are doing zig-zags from -30 to +30 degrees in front. I have three torps left in my S-18, but it's extremely hard to see or target them (periscope gets maybe 1-2 seconds of view in these waves), they are about 700-900 meters away in front of everybody.

My question is: do you have a tactic for engaging a zig-zaging target (as a bonus: in bad weather in the middle of convoy w/o being detected)?

05-19-17, 10:26 AM	#1
Razoleg Тов. Капитан 3-го Ранга Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Moscow/Hong Kong Posts: 26 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	Hitting an actively maneuvering target Hi Folks, So, I am in the middle of the enemy convoy with 5 carriers and I already sank a battleship by mistake and injured two carriers in the bow, also kind of by mistake (you see, all three torp spread was meant for one guy, but the first one hit a heavy cruiser dead centre, right behind Hiryu, the other one hit the target and the last - carrier behind her). They are up to their towers in the water, but are still doing good 7-8 kts speed and are maneuvering vigorously in extremely bad weather (waves so high, my boat is exposed at 35 ft in water). So, I am in the middle of the convoy, going flank speed with destroyers right behind me and a crusier to my port side, so close that I can see people having cigarettes on its decks. These two carriers are doing zig-zags from -30 to +30 degrees in front. I have three torps left in my S-18, but it's extremely hard to see or target them (periscope gets maybe 1-2 seconds of view in these waves), they are about 700-900 meters away in front of everybody. My question is: do you have a tactic for engaging a zig-zaging target (as a bonus: in bad weather in the middle of convoy w/o being detected)? __________________ On 30th of January 1945, *S-13* Submarine of the Baltic Fleet hit and sank *"Wilhelm Gustloff", which was an armed cruise ship transporting Nazi military personnel. This was the biggest, single submarine kill of all time that is yet unmatched. The Captain of said submarine was Romanian-Soviet skipper by the name of Alexander Marinesko*.