battle flag symbols

[runningdeer]

Hi all.

I am working on some memorial skins for the American fleet boats. After googling for battle flags I liked these symbols the best. I got these from an Asian site that I could not translate.

I need to know the exact meaning of the symbols. It seems to me that the ones with red stripes would be battle ships and the others different types of merchants?

I am skinning my boat (Balao) that I am currently using in a campaign. The boat was the USS KETE. Not an outstanding kill record, but had sunk 3 Maru's.

I would like to know for sure which merchant symbol symbolizes the Maru's that were sunk. If you look really close, the merchants have differences. Also would the parachute symbolize rescuing survivors?

Thank you all for your time & help.

[Stealhead]

Good luck with that each sub had a diffrent system of symbols for some odd reason there where several diffrent ones most used a full jap ensign or full jap national falg for a destroyed warship or merchant( the "rising sun" flag is the Ensign or the naval flag warship) and an unfilled sun to show a damaged vessel.This one looks a little made up to me as they usualy did not show anymore than a flag and if they included a ship outline they did not alter them like this one has just a generic one for marus and warships.You say it sunk 3 merchants but they have 10 merchants with broken backs here looks like they are trying to show what type of ship it was as one looks like a tanker while others look like a standard split decker.Unless you are trying to make a kill flag for your Kete using this style. Id take a look at the Barbs kill flag or another good one was the Halibut hers had fish and they had either a ensign or a regular Jap flag. Some ships had an ensign and the national flag on either side of thier subs kill flag and under the respective falg there went an outline of the type of vessel sunk. The parachute must stand for a completed lfeguard mission many subs used a life ring to show this type of mission.There where diffrent ways to design these flags unless you really like this one Id do a little more looking around there are better designs than this one out there.

[Peto]

Yep. The Kete got 3 marus all on the same day (April 10, 45). Most battle flags I've seen just use a Rising Sun for warships and the generic Japanese flag for merchants. There are a couple I've seen which add a CV(E) silhouette to indicate a carrier though...

Interesting choice in boat . Why did you select the Kete?

[runningdeer]

Originally Posted by Peto

Yep. The Kete got 3 marus all on the same day (April 10, 45). Most battle flags I've seen just use a Rising Sun for warships and the generic Japanese flag for merchants. There are a couple I've seen which add a CV(E) silhouette to indicate a carrier though...

Interesting choice in boat . Why did you select the Kete?

Well...until recently I didn't know much of anything about the American fleet boats other than the role they played in WWII. When I started skinning I wanted to be somewhat accurate. So I googled Balao boats, because I'm in one, and had to start somewhere. I saw that the KETE was built in my home town area...also respected the fact that 87 men were lost going back to Midway for rearming, etc., and the more info & images I found the more I kinda got stuck on it. I realize that there were more famous or successful boats but just wanted to get off the ground with any one of them really. I don't recall seeing any mention of the KETE on subsim, just the more well known ones.

Wikipedia has been very helpful, leading me to other links & resources.

I am trying to make my own battle flag for the KETE. After only finding insignias for it. Also, just for my own use, I thought I might add my own kills as I progress through my career(s).

I come from an Army family, my Mother & Father served in the army during the Korean and Vietnamese wars. I've always been interested in WWII. But before SH4 I mostly followed the ground forces and the ground war. Even after playing SH4 for some time...I have much to learn.

Thank you for your time n stuff .

[snakeyez]

Take a look here:

http://usssealion.com/sealion/battle_flags.htm

I'd say very few used special symbols, most used just meatballs for merchants, rising suns for warships.

[runningdeer]

Originally Posted by snakeyez

Take a look here:

http://usssealion.com/sealion/battle_flags.htm

I'd say very few used special symbols, most used just meatballs for merchants, rising suns for warships.

Thank you vm...excellent link, it somehow slipped by me in my googling.

Also, I read about your grandfather at the site you created about him. Excellent memorial. He was a great man.

[Peto]

Originally Posted by runningdeer

I saw that the KETE was built in my home town area...

So ... Does that mean you're a Packer fan?

[runningdeer]

Originally Posted by Peto

So ... Does that mean you're a Packer fan?

"Go pack" .