Torpedo Firing

Munchausen · 03-16-08, 12:48 PM

Germans had problems with magnetic exploders but disabled the function early in the war. Americans had problems with similar exploders but the Navy Brass refused to believe the exploders were at fault ... instead placing blame for poor performance on the skippers.

American torps ran, on average, 11 feet deeper than their setting because trials were done with dummy warheads ... and the dummies were too light. Circular runs were blamed on an early function that was supposed to be disabled: the ability to set a torpedo so that it would circle back and hit a pursuing DD (pre-war tactics always had the sub firing while submerged ... the surface attack made circular run a dangerous gambit).

P.S. The easiest method of picking your point of impact (on the target) is to use the O'Kane procedure.

03-16-08, 12:48 PM	#8
Munchausen Commodore Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 608 Downloads: 25 Uploads: 1	Germans had problems with magnetic exploders but disabled the function early in the war. Americans had problems with similar exploders but the Navy Brass refused to believe the exploders were at fault ... instead placing blame for poor performance on the skippers. American torps ran, on average, 11 feet deeper than their setting because trials were done with dummy warheads ... and the dummies were too light. Circular runs were blamed on an early function that was supposed to be disabled: the ability to set a torpedo so that it would circle back and hit a pursuing DD (pre-war tactics always had the sub firing while submerged ... the surface attack made circular run a dangerous gambit). P.S. The easiest method of picking your point of impact (on the target) is to use the O'Kane procedure.