Authentic method of getting firing solution?

[Wilcke]

Simply awesome, just astonishing.

Wilcke

I've always believed in german technology but this is awsome! How precise and complicated had to be those things!?

It also boosts my realism feeling cause I wondered from time to time why 95% or more of my eels hit. Now I know that this was simply so accurate and if doing it right you couldn't miss. Wow!

Impressive work, can't wait for the full version of your Bible!

[Tom]

So, this is what happened:

Captain identifies ship, and checks mast height and ship length from manual, or estimates them. He then turns a couple of dials on the periscope, matching two pictures, and has range and AOB.

All he needs in addition to this is speed. And that could be measured exactly using any of the following (and probably by some other means too):

- Matching course and speed when doing long range approach, even before identifying ship.
- By keeping a constant bearing during perpendicular submerged approach. (Or at any other angle, but this would require a bit more calculation).
- From any two timed spottings with some trigonometry.
- Using the stopwatch to measure speed from stationary sub at any time after ship was identified and length known.

The Submarine Commander's Handbook suggests that measuring range was the only somewhat difficult part (which is quite true at least in the game through the periscope/uzo). An error in the range estimate would also mean an error in AOB. But AOB could be visually checked, to make sure there is no large error. (And if there was, the range could then be rechecked.)

This is very impressive. I'm tempted to turn weapon officer assistance back on. Or perhaps a good (giving realistic effects) solution would be to use the AOB given by the weapon officer together with my own speed and range measurements (both done from the periscope/uzo).

Thank you very much for all the information, Hitman.

[Hitman]

Now I know that this was simply so accurate and if doing it right you couldn't miss. Wow!

Well, not that easy, and certainly there were many errors, but the german success laid most in that they fired very close (Less than 1000 metres if possible, better 500). Mast heigth and ship length is not so easy to estimate if you don't know for sure the values, but since U-Boot commanders were after all people experinced at sea (Some came from the merchant Navy like Prien or Schulz) they tended to make good estimates.

Also many times they fired at a ship but actually hit another (The advantage of shooting at convoys), something that actually happened a lot to Kretschmer

Captain identifies ship, and checks mast height and ship length from manual, or estimates them. He then turns a couple of dials on the periscope, matching two pictures, and has range and AOB.

All he needs in addition to this is speed. And that could be measured exactly using any of the following (and probably by some other means too):

- Matching course and speed when doing long range approach, even before identifying ship.
- By keeping a constant bearing during perpendicular submerged approach. (Or at any other angle, but this would require a bit more calculation).
- From any two timed spottings with some trigonometry.
- Using the stopwatch to measure speed from stationary sub at any time after ship was identified and length known.

The Submarine Commander's Handbook suggests that measuring range was the only somewhat difficult part (which is quite true at least in the game through the periscope/uzo). An error in the range estimate would also mean an error in AOB. But AOB could be visually checked, to make sure there is no large error. (And if there was, the range could then be rechecked.)

Yes, that's more or less how it was done

[Puster Bill]

Originally Posted by Hitman

Also many times they fired at a ship but actually hit another (The advantage of shooting at convoys), something that actually happened a lot to Kretschmer

That doesn't happen nearly often enough for me

Dude, if you ever end up in Upstate New York, I owe you a drink of your choice.

@Hitman,

Kudos to your research, facinating stuff, it really is.
Any update on the English document you were putting together ?

[Puster Bill]

Originally Posted by Uber Gruber

@Hitman,

Kudos to your research, facinating stuff, it really is.
Any update on the English document you were putting together ?

Yeah, Hitman, where the heck is our free ice cream?

We want it *NOW*!

[Alyebard]

Originally Posted by Puster Bill

Yeah, Hitman, where the heck is our free ice cream?

We want it *NOW*!

:rotfl:Patience is a virtue :rotfl:

I CAN'T WAIT MORE TIME