Historical Hunting Techniques

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Originally Posted by BillCar

I've been re-reading the U-Boat Commander's handbook this morning, and I am kind of amazed at how aggressive BdU was urging its submariners to be in 1943.

They want you to stay surfaced after torpedo impacts on convoys, in order to keep maneuvering and fire still more torpedos, only submerging if you are certain the enemy escorts are bearing down on you. I wonder how often THAT advice was followed. I wonder how many crews got killed trying to follow it...

...yes, it was begining to smack of Kamakasi missions, the BdU were getting desperate: Black May 1943, they got nailed with something like 41, (25% 0f operational u-boats) boats destroyed in one month + younger and younger crews - less experience - less training, it was cut back drastically. for example a 6 month course was slashed to 2-3 months. most of the experienced captains were dead or landed. i think march 1943 was one of their highest ship sinking tallies....then came May and it was all over, really, bar the dying. if you have'nt already, try reading BLACK MAY by Michael Gannon. you can pick one up from amazon - thru Subsim - for anything from 3 - 20p.