What do you guys use your deck gun for?

[Rockin Robbins]

There is a reason that modern submarines do not have deck guns. They were an appallingly bad idea. Sinking a lousy tug meant a half hour lollygagging on the surface waiting for your puny posterior to be plastered by a lucky airplane.

Because the submarine was such a lousy gun platform, and dangerous to its crew, the odds of being tagged by an enemy aircraft were only slightly worse than the odds of sinking the target. The risk/benefits ratio was hideous.

If I were Admiral Lockwood, I would have used the deck gun solely as a screening device to detect and eliminate incompetent skippers from my fleet. If your log shows a deck gun use against anything but a junk, you're relieved of command. If you were stupid enough to endanger your crew shooting at an armed merchant or escort, it's the firing squad for you. Your death is a small price to pay for the lives of your crew and that valuable sub you were willing to throw away. OK, I'll throw in a get out of jail free card for use finishing off an unarmed wounded merchie if you have no torpedoes left. Ain't I merciful?