RL torpedo question

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by TorpX

Did they happen to say how long this process took, or what proceedure they follow if (god forbid) they saw an enemy airplane?

I found this:

A torpedo weighs about a ton and it is stated that with two efficient crews the transfer of each torpedo from one U-Boat to another, should not take more than an hour.

Worse seems to be refueling:

It was stated that the refuelling took over 8 hours and was carried out in calm weather by daylight.

http://www.uboatarchive.net/U-111INT.htm

I also found this video, which partially answers the question asked in the "Decks Awash" thread. It seems that the torpedo was loaded onto the deck of the supply sub and prepared for transfer, and then the milch kuh submerged to the lower conning tower and the torpedo floated off. The procedure was reversed on the recieving sub. I had no idea they could be that precise, but it seems so.

[fireftr18]

Thanks for the answers, they were great. That's one of the best things about this community. I asked a question that may sound silly, but instead of ridicule, I got good thought out answers. Answers were complete enough that my son was able to well understand.

[TorpX]

Those are good sources there.

It occurs to me though, that such procedures are only practical in climates which are not very cold. It would be brutal to be in the water for an hour or more for such a job.

[Sailor Steve]

That's a good point. I think that those kinds of operation usually did take place in warmer climes, since in the North Atlantic they were close enough to home to resupply at a real base.

I think a more important point in the case of the Germans is that those supply subs didn't carry enough fuel or torpedoes to keep the operational boats on station for a whole extra patrol. I'm pretty sure they normally only gave the front-line boats enough fuel to get home, and a couple of torpedoes, just in case.