Perry class Frigate vs Tu-22 Backfire...what's the trick?

[Kapitan]

Just finished playing the mission and this is what I found, with settings and details I also kept a scrap log of events during the mission be advised I am a little rusty with the Perry as well.

I am playing Dangerous Waters with the RA DWX Mod 1.51 with current fixes

The Perry is armed with the SM1 which I took 40 with me during the mission, I also set all soft kill dispensers to chaff not flare.

I do play with auto crew on reason behind this is to avoid information overload, in the real world you wouldn't be doing everything and you physically cannot keep bouncing between stations and thus catch everything.
As the Captain you would be heavily reliant on other persons input in order to fight the ship and my main focus is on navigation and weapons control, I do go and oversee the other stations periodically throughout the mission as well particularly the bow sonar.

I also have show dead platform on in this scenario to show the kills.

Game time starts 0400 and ends 0536 total game time 1 hour 36 minuets.

DECK LOG

0400 I start in game and immediately set green deck launch the helo's, I set one to launch the other to alert 30, I also stream the nixie and set my bow sonar to passive CIWS is set to auto, both air search and surface search radars are on

My reason for doing this is that there is no point in trying to hide a submarine can hear the convoy many miles away anyway as the merchants are loud, the submarine can also use link data to transmit the convoy location to other assets so running EMCOM in my opinion is not required here and has no benefit to you.

0402 to 0404 Set up map markers on nav map for buoy deployment, 1 in the north 1 in the south and a barrier forward by the line.


0406 Receive intel that there is a submarine threat to the north est 8,000yards (5.5nm), Helo 1 is deployed to that area to lay a datum prosecution pattern

0407 launch helo 2 to cover the south sector.




The reason I have done this is because I wanted to create a west to east lane with both sides of the convoy covered as well as the front, the tactic works by creating a passage of clear water which the convoy can sail through and ensures both sides are guarded with a helo in both sectors ready if anything is found in either sector and also forward or astern of the convoy.

0408 Convoy turns to 180 I also follow turning at 15 knots until I reach 180 then slow to 5 knots.

My reason for doing this is to protect the convoy, intel reports a submarine to the north its prudent to turn away, also my nixie is deployed any torpedo will likely run into this.
By slowing to 5 knots I assume the quiet state it gives my sensors increased capability to detect a TIW or a submarine, it is also harder for the submarine to detect me, it also allows me to lag behind the convoy to be in a position to sweep the stern and put me between the convoy and the submarine.

0407 my air search radar picks up two inbound air contacts not yet classified, the turn is very timely as it turns out as now the weapons arc of the CIWS is almost in full range.
NOTE: here I have made a big mistake, I did not load up a SM1 at the start of the game! Ultimately this could have cost me.


0410 turn completed I slow to 5 knots, the air search has detected 3 missiles in bound I get vampire warnings so I fire off a SM1 for each missile incoming, then recycle for another 2 shots.
The result is I down 2 missiles with the SM1 and CIWS takes out the final missile.

Reload rate is 1 x SM1 missile every 10/12 seconds roughly and I'm not using quick launch, each incoming missile on the track I de-assign and then re assign.
I do notice one other thing doing this and that is sometimes the missile lock is broken hence why I use 5 missiles to take out just 2 missiles.
The reason I do this is to ensure it is a confirmed track and not a spoof or duplicate

0413 Pick up new active track in the northern sector

0416 Turn to 270 and run to flank for a sprint and drift

The reason I am doing this is to position myself behind the convoy as fast as I can, it will put myself between a potential submarine contact and the convoy.
I now also know that there is an aircraft to the north east and this move still gives my CIWS a decent engagement arc.
Thus there is no real negative in doing this, to figure out the aircraft location I use a line of bearing assumption for the aircrafts position as I have not yet detected it only the missiles.

0424 Return to 8 knots still on 270, several buoys are hot in both sectors and patterns are completed. I have detected 2 submarines not one ! (I only actually thought there was 1 in the mission)
I instruct both helos to drop Dicass deep buoys near the area of the potential submarines to confirm the contact (buoys 14 and 15).

The reason I have done this is because I want to confirm the exact location of the submarine using active sonar in order not to waste weapons as the helo only carries 3 torpedo's

0428 Detect missiles inbound via air search radar I also for the first time detect an aircraft behind them.

0429 Vampire warning three missiles incoming, I fire off at each missile then like before cycle again I fire a total of 5 missiles, My CIWS does not engage I take down all 3 missiles with the SM1.

0430 The aircraft is in range of the SM1 and to make sure I fire off 3 SM1 missiles at it.

The reason I have done this is because I hadn't classified the type of aircraft at this point and I wasn't too sure if they would use chaff / flare or other decoy methods, yes its a bit over kill but I also don't know if it has any more weapons, it is also very close to the convoy and now my helos.

0433 I am informed by the trigger that kill goal is completed and TU22 is shot down and at the same time both submarine contacts are confirmed.


0434 South helo is instructed to drop torpedo on contact, for this I use the helo screen and manually drop the torpedo using the way point.

The reason I do this is to ensure only 1 torpedo is dropped, this is incase I require another at a later stage.

0435 Kill goal confirmed Kilo class submarine Rostov on Don is sunk, Convoy now returns to base course 090 at 15 knots


0436 I also order a turn to 090 but do not increase to 15 knots I maintain 8 knots.

The reason I have done this is to again place my ship between the threat submarine and convoy also 8 knots is not that loud although it is above the quiet state for the Perry (Quiet state being 0-5knots) it also allows the convoy to get ahead of me and I can then again sweep the stern.

0438 Helo 2 in the south is re tasked to lay a barrier pattern forward on the line

The reason I have done this is to ensure there is nothing the convoy will run into, I expected only to deal with 1 submarine in the mission but got surprised there was 2 (I also didn't read the brief at the start btw) so I anticipated there maybe a third submarine out there.

0441 Helo 1 in the north drops torpedo and does not acquire.

0442 Helo 1 drops another torpedo in advance of the contact again does not acquire.

0443 Helo 1 Drops final torpedo and yet again does not acquire, helo 1 is recovered.

0444 Helo 2 having laid 2 of the 3 Dicass barrier buoys is re tasked to execute the submarine contact in the north.

The reason I have done this is because a great portion of the line ahead is covered anyways (a 20nm area) and the buoys are active, Helo 2 still has 2 torpedo's and I have a definitive submarine contact, I would rather execute a known contact than look for a possible phantom contact and leave the confirmed contact sitting there with the ability to shoot at me or the convoy.

0448 Updated contact confirming the submarine location this has used 3 buoys 1,3 and 15

0450 Helo 2 drops torpedo and immediately acquires increase speed to 15 knots course 090



0451 Kill confirmed 2nd Kilo Krasnodar informed by the mission voice over that mission is completed, note the convoy has not crossed the line yet therefore I stay in game to ensure they do.

The reason I have done this is to ensure the convoy does cross the line but also critically the mission requires them to cross the line to complete, Also with the surprise of the 2nd kilo being in mission I didn't want to end without making sure there wasn't anything else coming at me.

0501 EW detection this had me as I thought this was another air attack, after interrogating the EW and radar the aircraft was classified as a commercial A300

0501-0529 Multiple EW contacts all were civilian aircraft at altitude

0533 Convoy crossed the line

0536 Mission was ended


Conclusion

To be honest I am a little rusty I did make a few mistakes during the mission, however all tasking was completed I took down a TU22 and 2 Kilos and the convoy crossed the line intact with no loss.

This was a pretty high paced high threat mission encompassing multiple threat assets but it is achievable, I found that it was a maneuver situation and that at the start your not actually in the best position travelling due east 090.

A note for Stewy: Earlier in the comments I mentioned that there is usually a 2 hour game play window, with threat assets close in and that you would require both helos in the air at the same time.
This mission perfectly displays that, as for the submarines being within a radius of 8,000 yards from the convoy I honestly expected much more from them.

As I do also play the submarine and from that perspective had I been in command of one of them Kilos I would have been worried at my starting position as I feel it was too close to the convoy.

Knowing that my targets are mainly merchant ships I could have easily picked them up at a much greater range and fired off missiles rather than get in close with torpedoes.

Driving the SSK it gives you limited scope for maneuvering as your constantly worried about the battery with speed over range.
I would have likely engaged with Missiles from 10 to 15nm out and if playing with another human controller in another submarine I would have coordinated a joint missile strike.

The reason for this would be to overload the Perry and have a maximum of 12 missiles incoming from two directions at the same time which would have made it very hard for the Perry to counter, the TU22 would have helped also by shooting off its missiles so in theory the Perry would have had to deal with 12+ incoming missiles from 3 positions.

In the real world this would have been (Still is) a classic Soviet / Russian tactic to use multiple assets in different locations far out to overwhelm the convoy defenses while being at a distance in order to evade and relocate.

Final Note

I hope this has helped anyone wanting to play this mission, and I hope you can follow this and what I have done and critically the reasons behind the decisions I made whilst in game.