WW2 US submarine patrol reports

SteamWake · 02-20-09, 03:24 PM

Thanks for sharing this.

Some truely fascinating reads and insights to the everyday day to day life (and death) of the ships and their crews.

Falkirion · 02-22-09, 07:02 PM

Request sticky

Rockin Robbins · 02-22-09, 07:19 PM

Ditto. This is priceless reference material for anyone who wants to extend their role playing experience to knowing the boat and crew their game submarine represent.

Fish40 · 02-22-09, 08:34 PM

This is an excellent site! It would be cool if the modders could make it so the boat you have in game could patrol the same areas that the real boat patrolled IRL. I'm not saying you should have the exact same patrol results, but just to patrol the same area at the same time as the real one. Probrably a crap load of work

Quasimodo · 02-23-09, 07:25 PM

Wow...what a treasure trove. I was on the USS Croaker when it was based in New London, CT long after the war as a museum. long gone now. Towed to Minnesota or some place like that. Too bad. Its was something that if it were still here I'd appreciate more than in my teenage years.

We still have the Nautlius but *sigh*...it's just not the same.

Fish40 · 02-24-09, 09:36 AM

I'm really starting to get into this! I've been reading the patrols of the SS Silversides, since this is the sub I currently command in game. A couple of things stood out at me, and I only read the first two patrols. First, the use of the DG in choppy seas. The captain states the difficulties of accurately aiming the weapon, as well as haveing the DG crew being knocked away from the gun in one instance due to rough seas. I would imagine this would slow your reload rate down!

The next thing to hit home with me was the obvious malfunctions of the torpedoes in a couple of instances. The captain states that in a couple of missed shots, he fealt the torpedoes were running too deep. Furthermore, these particular misses continued to run up on the beach, since they were fired at inshore targets. The failure of the torpedoes to explode when hitting the beach caused the captain to suspect a faulty exploder mechanism. These patrols were in 1942, and today we know the captains assumptions were correct. The captain goes on to state the possibility of the Japanese recovering these.

The final item that deemed mention here is the problems experienced with both the air search, and surface radars. On several occasions targets were picked up too late, or not at all. Again, the year explains the difficulties. We know today, as the war progressed radar greatly improved and became a most important weapon!

Finally, the mention of the lack of spare parts, as well as the misidentification of targets on occasion rounded out a typical patrol.

I play the RFB mod, and IMO these guys have done a good job of trying to portray these shortcomings. Things we may consider "bugs", or over the top (in respects to the DG reload times) may have been RL challanges to the RL crews. Oh well, just my two cents. On too patrol report 3.

tater · 02-24-09, 12:30 PM

Yeah, I've been reading these with Alden on my lap, and ONI-208J open as well.

Very useful.

It would be an amazing project to mine this for really useful statistical data. You cannot always trust sinkings, or even the number of hits (might be a premature just off the target, etc), but some stuff is very interesting. Gun attacks, for example. Some have good commence/cease fire times, others have a broad engagement period.

Another useful set of statistics would be aircraft contacts, as well as follow up attacks by planes.

Early reports list timed spacing of DC explosions, too.

tater

Fish40 · 02-24-09, 09:34 AM

I'm really starting to get into this! I've been reading the patrols of the SS Silversides, since this is the sub I currently command in game. A couple of things stood out at me, and I only read the first two patrols. First, the use of the DG in choppy seas. The captain states the difficulties of accurately aiming the weapon, as well as haveing the DG crew being knocked away from the gun in one instance due to rough seas. I would imagine this would slow your reload rate down!

The next thing to hit home with me was the obvious malfunctions of the torpedoes in a couple of instances. The captain states that in a couple of missed shots, he fealt the torpedoes were running too deep. Furthermore, these particular misses continued to run up on the beach, since they were fired at inshore targets. The failure of the torpedoes to explode when hitting the beach caused the captain to suspect a faulty exploder mechanism. These patrols were in 1942, and today we know the captains assumptions were correct. The captain goes on to state the possibility of the Japanese recovering these.

The final item that deemed mention here is the problems experienced with both the air search, and surface radars. On several occasions targets were picked up too late, or not at all. Again, the year explains the difficulties. We know today, as the war progressed radar greatly improved and became a most important weapon!

Finally, the mention of the lack of spare parts, as well as the misidentification of targets on occasion rounded out a typical patrol.

I play the RFB mod, and IMO these guys have done a good job of trying to portray these shortcomings. Things we may consider "bugs", or over the top (in respects to the DG reload times) may have been RL challanges to the RL crews. Oh well, just my two cents. On too patrol report 3.

02-22-09, 07:19 PM	#3
Rockin Robbins Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: DeLand, FL Posts: 8,900 Downloads: 135 Uploads: 52	Ditto. This is priceless reference material for anyone who wants to extend their role playing experience to knowing the boat and crew their game submarine represent. __________________ Sub Skipper's Bag of Tricks, Slightly Subnuclear Mk 14 & Cutie, Slightly Subnuclear Deck Gun, EZPlot 2.0, TMOPlot, TMOKeys, SH4CMS

02-20-09, 03:24 PM	#1
SteamWake Rear Admiral Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 13,224 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	Thanks for sharing this. Some truely fascinating reads and insights to the everyday day to day life (and death) of the ships and their crews.

02-22-09, 07:02 PM	#2
Falkirion Ace of the Deep Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Melbourne, AUS Posts: 1,043 Downloads: 34 Uploads: 0	Request sticky

02-22-09, 08:34 PM	#4
Fish40 The Old Man Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Yonkers, NY U.S.A. Posts: 1,507 Downloads: 154 Uploads: 0	This is an excellent site! It would be cool if the modders could make it so the boat you have in game could patrol the same areas that the real boat patrolled IRL. I'm not saying you should have the exact same patrol results, but just to patrol the same area at the same time as the real one. Probrably a crap load of work

02-23-09, 07:25 PM	#5
Quasimodo Watch Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Connecticut Posts: 15 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	Wow...what a treasure trove. I was on the USS Croaker when it was based in New London, CT long after the war as a museum. long gone now. Towed to Minnesota or some place like that. Too bad. Its was something that if it were still here I'd appreciate more than in my teenage years. We still have the Nautlius but sigh...it's just not the same.

02-24-09, 09:36 AM	#6
Fish40 The Old Man Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Yonkers, NY U.S.A. Posts: 1,507 Downloads: 154 Uploads: 0	I'm really starting to get into this! I've been reading the patrols of the SS Silversides, since this is the sub I currently command in game. A couple of things stood out at me, and I only read the first two patrols. First, the use of the DG in choppy seas. The captain states the difficulties of accurately aiming the weapon, as well as haveing the DG crew being knocked away from the gun in one instance due to rough seas. I would imagine this would slow your reload rate down! The next thing to hit home with me was the obvious malfunctions of the torpedoes in a couple of instances. The captain states that in a couple of missed shots, he fealt the torpedoes were running too deep. Furthermore, these particular misses continued to run up on the beach, since they were fired at inshore targets. The failure of the torpedoes to explode when hitting the beach caused the captain to suspect a faulty exploder mechanism. These patrols were in 1942, and today we know the captains assumptions were correct. The captain goes on to state the possibility of the Japanese recovering these. The final item that deemed mention here is the problems experienced with both the air search, and surface radars. On several occasions targets were picked up too late, or not at all. Again, the year explains the difficulties. We know today, as the war progressed radar greatly improved and became a most important weapon! Finally, the mention of the lack of spare parts, as well as the misidentification of targets on occasion rounded out a typical patrol. I play the RFB mod, and IMO these guys have done a good job of trying to portray these shortcomings. Things we may consider "bugs", or over the top (in respects to the DG reload times) may have been RL challanges to the RL crews. Oh well, just my two cents. On too patrol report 3.

02-24-09, 12:30 PM	#7
tater Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New Mexico, USA Posts: 9,023 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 2	Yeah, I've been reading these with Alden on my lap, and ONI-208J open as well. Very useful. It would be an amazing project to mine this for really useful statistical data. You cannot always trust sinkings, or even the number of hits (might be a premature just off the target, etc), but some stuff is very interesting. Gun attacks, for example. Some have good commence/cease fire times, others have a broad engagement period. Another useful set of statistics would be aircraft contacts, as well as follow up attacks by planes. Early reports list timed spacing of DC explosions, too. tater

02-24-09, 09:34 AM	#8
Fish40 The Old Man Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Yonkers, NY U.S.A. Posts: 1,507 Downloads: 154 Uploads: 0	I'm really starting to get into this! I've been reading the patrols of the SS Silversides, since this is the sub I currently command in game. A couple of things stood out at me, and I only read the first two patrols. First, the use of the DG in choppy seas. The captain states the difficulties of accurately aiming the weapon, as well as haveing the DG crew being knocked away from the gun in one instance due to rough seas. I would imagine this would slow your reload rate down! The next thing to hit home with me was the obvious malfunctions of the torpedoes in a couple of instances. The captain states that in a couple of missed shots, he fealt the torpedoes were running too deep. Furthermore, these particular misses continued to run up on the beach, since they were fired at inshore targets. The failure of the torpedoes to explode when hitting the beach caused the captain to suspect a faulty exploder mechanism. These patrols were in 1942, and today we know the captains assumptions were correct. The captain goes on to state the possibility of the Japanese recovering these. The final item that deemed mention here is the problems experienced with both the air search, and surface radars. On several occasions targets were picked up too late, or not at all. Again, the year explains the difficulties. We know today, as the war progressed radar greatly improved and became a most important weapon! Finally, the mention of the lack of spare parts, as well as the misidentification of targets on occasion rounded out a typical patrol. I play the RFB mod, and IMO these guys have done a good job of trying to portray these shortcomings. Things we may consider "bugs", or over the top (in respects to the DG reload times) may have been RL challanges to the RL crews. Oh well, just my two cents. On too patrol report 3.