Sudden Sinking during high TC

[OddjobXL]

That water is awfully clear in good weather. Periscope depth doesn't seem like the safest place to be to me!

[Hans Schultz]

I've had this happen to me once, i was crusing on the surface in the middle of the Pacific just under MAX TC, then i all of a sudden i got the "death sequence" and the court marshall.

[OneTinSoldier]

Originally Posted by Hans Schultz

I've had this happen to me once, i was crusing on the surface in the middle of the Pacific just under MAX TC, then i all of a sudden i got the "death sequence" and the court marshall.

It's the same as with SH3. If you use a high amount of Time Compression while running on the surface, you will be bombed by aircraft before your watch crew spots the aircraft. It's just a theory of mine, but I thinks it's due to sampling. If you run at 1x, the watch crew scans/samples the where they are looking at the ocean and sky at a factor of 1. If you run at 128x TC then the ocean and sky are sampled 128 times less(factor of 1/128) than they do when you run at 1x TC. Or something of this nature anyway.

I think the best thing to do is... if you know you are crossing a large area of ocean where it is highly likely devoid of any action and enemies, crank up your TC. Just after leaving Pearl Harbor and quite a while thereafter for instance.

When you start getting closer to where you know there is going to start being enemy activity, start lowering your TC. When you have entered an area of high activity, do not run at anything higher than 128x TC, at least during the day. If you are close to Japan and running on the surface during the day, you might want to consider running at 64x max. I'm just trying to help and these are just examples, I'm not trying to make any hard and fast rules for anyone.

I will say it does seem strange to me that this happened to you in the 'middle' of the Pacific though, as 'in the middle of nowhere'. :hmm:

Cheers

[rfbranch]

I was thinking about mines myself, but I am sinking in close proximity to the Philippines within the fist few days of the war, so I’m assuming there are dates that the minefields “activate” and I assume that minefields were not in place that early on in the war unless they were being dropped from aircraft (I don’t know what the Japanese did historically) or minelayers that accompanied the initial invasion for.

I was also thinking it might be the battery, but I can see that I have available charge left, so it doesn’t appear to be that. As I can see the screws turning and hear the engines running during my “death spiral”.

I’m still suspicious that it’s from airborne attacks, but I have nothing to prove it. I tried a patrol from Pearl Harbor and ran surfaced and submerged from Pearl to the Home Waters without issue, so hence my suspicions…but I of course can’t prove it yet.



My next test will be operating submerged below 100 feet and see if it happens there as well, as the death sprial sequence hasn't happened while I have been on the surface.

I will let you all know in a few hours

[Banquet]

Interesting. It could well be aircraft then. As others have said a sub at periscope depth would be visible from the air in good weather. I can't remember if I was a PD or not but I'll look out for it from now on.