Uboat patrol length?

[jmr]

Something I've often wondered about but couldn't find any concrete info so I thought I'd ask here. For example, in my Type VII based in Saint Nazaire my patrols can last a little over a month (sometimes less than that) as it doesn't take long to find the action. I feel a little guilty returning home so soon but I guess that was the norm for Type VII's? I'm assuming the TypeIX's would have longer patrols given their greater range?

[Wilko]

I stay out until the eels are gone, badly damaged, low on fuel.. usualy it is all of them that sends me limping back to port .

This has happened within a couple of weeks on occasion

Personally,I do think that patrolling duration depends on weather and traffic very much.

You see,you can have full torpedo reserves and plenty of fuel,but there maybe awful stormy weather with zero visibility for week or so,without traffic at all.

Sometimes,it is worth to return to base and end current patrol in order to start next one with good weather and perfect hunting conditions.That is just a matter of saving a campaign time.

[GoldenRivet]

according to various articles on U-boats.net anywhere from 14 or 15 days to around 25 - 35 days up to some of the longest patrols on record lasting over 200 days at sea.

generally the information on that site is very accurate.

I would say that if you are in a type VII then you could be proud of a patrol lasting between 20 and 40 days.

one must consider that a German U-boat leaving french bases would only be at the most 3 or 4 days journey from the western approaches. If a commander spent a week or two patrolling the western approaches and ran across a convoy and used the tactic of stalk -attack- stalk on them for a period of only a few days he would have likely depleated nearly all of his torpedos sinking a good number of ships. factor in perhaps another week or two searching for a few more targets to slam those last few torpedos into and the return voyage then your looking at about a 20 to 30 day patrol assuming that there was no reassignment from BdU.

On some occasions U-boats returned to base for mechanical problems or unforseen issues with the boat.

and if you get lucky and run across a lot of targets of opportunity on your way to your patrol zone and run out of torpedos you will pretty much be useless depending on the phase of the war. so things like that can cut your patrol length down some.

So, yeah, if your NOT using unlimited fuel i think that SH3 puts a fairly accurate spin on patrol length because it forces you to consider the amount of fuel required to reach home too.

[_Seth_]

Something i have always wondered about....Is there any way to simulate realistic usage of supplies in SHIII? Like food & water, IE... This would add more realism besides fuel & torps..

[Brag]

From what I have read, outside of quality, food was seldom an issue on long patrols. For water, the boats had desalinators, which provided drinking water. I can't remember exactly the quantity. I think It was something like 70 percent of what was needed. So having fuel as the primary concern limiting patrol lenght is realistic enough.

When in the central Atlantic, I stop at the Cape Verde Islands for lobsters

[joea]

Originally Posted by Brag

When in the central Atlantic, I stop at the Cape Verde Islands for lobsters

Hmmmm seriously, I wonder if the u-boats or any other subs took the chance to try some fishing? Maybe not in the busy, that is dangerous areas but the Type IXs way off in the South Atlantic or something? :hmm:

[_Seth_]

Originally Posted by Brag

From what I have read, outside of quality, food was seldom an issue on long patrols. For water, the boats had desalinators, which provided drinking water. I can't remember exactly the quantity. I think It was something like 70 percent of what was needed. So having fuel as the primary concern limiting patrol lenght is realistic enough.

When in the central Atlantic, I stop at the Cape Verde Islands for lobsters

Thanx for clearing that up, mate! (BTW: Bernard sent an enigma, ordering some pizza.....i dont know if "Adolf's" deliver to the western approaches, and if the pizza would be warm on delivery...)