Can we talk about Periscopes??

K-61 · 09-03-10, 11:47 AM

A while back I participated in a discussion about scopes over at Ubi. I looked up that old thread; here it is for those who are interested:

http://forums.ubi.com/eve/forums/a/t...3/m/3841097728

I did see an article somewhere, online or in a book, which discussed the merits and disadvantages of raising the scope while surfaced. I can't find it at the moment, but I do recall some of the main points. In the Pacific, the Americans used this method, as their war got easier over time. The Japanese simply did not invest much into ASW vessels and technology. The Allies in the Atlantic theater did make it harder for the Germans, investing vast resources into escorts, patrol planes and technology. The technique of using raised scopes for further viewing by U-boats actually made the U-boat easier to detect. It raised their silhouette against the horizon; observers on an escort were higher above the water than a U-boat and could see further. As well, once radar went to sea, raised scopes increased the signature of a surfaced U-boat.

The real solution to detecting Allied shipping was very simple: allocate more long range patrol planes to reconnaisance. As they travelled higher and faster than a U-boat, they could detect convoys and report them to BdU. Because of Goering's jealous hoarding of "anything that flew" the U-bootwaffe was deprived of essential reconaissance. It actually worked out that the U-boats detected more convoys for the Luftwaffe to attack then the other way round!

09-03-10, 11:47 AM	#11
K-61 Grey Wolf Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Ontario Posts: 795 Downloads: 39 Uploads: 0	A while back I participated in a discussion about scopes over at Ubi. I looked up that old thread; here it is for those who are interested: http://forums.ubi.com/eve/forums/a/t...3/m/3841097728 I did see an article somewhere, online or in a book, which discussed the merits and disadvantages of raising the scope while surfaced. I can't find it at the moment, but I do recall some of the main points. In the Pacific, the Americans used this method, as their war got easier over time. The Japanese simply did not invest much into ASW vessels and technology. The Allies in the Atlantic theater did make it harder for the Germans, investing vast resources into escorts, patrol planes and technology. The technique of using raised scopes for further viewing by U-boats actually made the U-boat easier to detect. It raised their silhouette against the horizon; observers on an escort were higher above the water than a U-boat and could see further. As well, once radar went to sea, raised scopes increased the signature of a surfaced U-boat. The real solution to detecting Allied shipping was very simple: allocate more long range patrol planes to reconnaisance. As they travelled higher and faster than a U-boat, they could detect convoys and report them to BdU. Because of Goering's jealous hoarding of "anything that flew" the U-bootwaffe was deprived of essential reconaissance. It actually worked out that the U-boats detected more convoys for the Luftwaffe to attack then the other way round! __________________