SSK Hunting

SandyCaesar · 08-02-08, 07:21 PM

All right. Lots of nice advice here, thanks a lot.

So, in an aircraft it boils down to getting lucky with methodically placed active buoy fields supplemented with MAD. I don't have enough GRAMs to keep track of all the buoys, but I suppose the computer the can do that?

It's the frigate that worries me. Once again, it boils down to its active sonar, right? That, and its MH-60. The thing is, there are several cases where I could hear the echo off a submarine, but not see it on the screen. My guess is that it's either far away or at an unfavorable aspect. In either case, all I know is that there's a sub out there somewhere--I can't tag what doesn't show up on the screen, and the helo can't prosecute what I don't tell him. But the idea of running around like a torchbearer, pinging madly, screaming the equivalent of "Here I am! Torpedo me!" has never really appealed to me. The SSK--if it doesn't send a USET-80 or a 53-65K down my throat--would either steer around me or duck beneath a layer.

Case in point: "Holddown Exercise" from Bill Nichols' Red Storm Rising campaign. I performed marginally against the Foxtrots, but at least once I've gotten a general direction I have a helo to help. Against that Kilo: I don't know anything about him, so there was no way I could've chased him. It's frustrating having to run in circles looking for a ghost while the captain of said ghost is probably laughing his head off and polishing his TMA solution at me.

Maybe I could track in on his laughter, if nothing else.

08-02-08, 07:21 PM	#5
SandyCaesar Chief Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: HMS Thanatus Posts: 325 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	All right. Lots of nice advice here, thanks a lot. So, in an aircraft it boils down to getting lucky with methodically placed active buoy fields supplemented with MAD. I don't have enough GRAMs to keep track of all the buoys, but I suppose the computer the can do that? It's the frigate that worries me. Once again, it boils down to its active sonar, right? That, and its MH-60. The thing is, there are several cases where I could hear the echo off a submarine, but not see it on the screen. My guess is that it's either far away or at an unfavorable aspect. In either case, all I know is that there's a sub out there somewhere--I can't tag what doesn't show up on the screen, and the helo can't prosecute what I don't tell him. But the idea of running around like a torchbearer, pinging madly, screaming the equivalent of "Here I am! Torpedo me!" has never really appealed to me. The SSK--if it doesn't send a USET-80 or a 53-65K down my throat--would either steer around me or duck beneath a layer. Case in point: "Holddown Exercise" from Bill Nichols' Red Storm Rising campaign. I performed marginally against the Foxtrots, but at least once I've gotten a general direction I have a helo to help. Against that Kilo: I don't know anything about him, so there was no way I could've chased him. It's frustrating having to run in circles looking for a ghost while the captain of said ghost is probably laughing his head off and polishing his TMA solution at me. Maybe I could track in on his laughter, if nothing else.