Is it Historical?Radar equipped Elco TB...

[Axlwolf]

I would like to know if it was possible.To me,the ship seems too small for a good radar set,but maybe i'm wrong.

EDIT:Seems they were equipped with some type of radar:
After a brief search i've found at this site http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/...pt.html#pt-103
I've found information about an Elco(nominally PT 505)
One of the crew "transferred his forward guns, radar, and radio equipment to PT 507" after the 505 hit a mine.
I'm amazed.Some other has better info?

EDIT 2:It seems they were fitted with depth carge too
I wasnt aware of that.Sadly,in game the Elco it's not equipped with DC....
Or maybe it's better

First of all, the Royal Navy didn't use Elco boats, they were strictly American. The only Elcos in the area were the US boats in the Med. The British used their own Vospers.

Radar: US PT boats were equiped with radar starting sometime in 1944. It was used mainly to help locate big ships, which were their main targets.

Late in the war US boats had four depth charges mounted in place of the aft torpedo tubes. Their purpose was to discourage enemy destroyers from following them when they were spotted; yes, a depth charge going off under a destroyer's hull is just as bad as a mine. I don't know if they ever actually used them, but they had them just in case. If they tried to use one on a U-boat it would have to be just after it dived-they had no sound gear at all.

[Axlwolf]

Mmmm,i was tracked in game by a british Elco with radar.It was june '43.
I guess it's not historical then.

About the DC...it seems that the PT505 (In the provided link) was hit just when they were tryng to make a DC run over the last position of a periscope,so you're right about the tactic.

Wasn't sergbuto doing a Vosper?what happened to it?

Don't know. I remember seeing it, and I've wished many times in writing that they had done the Vosper instead.

Side note: though an Elco 80-footer was used in the awful movie, the original McHale's Navy used a Vosper.

[badhat17]

MTB's in the RN could have radar fits as early as 1942, ASDIC sets made for small boats were available throughout WWII.

[Axlwolf]

ASDIC for small boat?
Only corvette size or Elco too?

[Bruno Lotse]

During the terms of the Lend-Lease arrangement, the Royal Navy Admiralty ordered 38 American PT boats. 21 were delivered to British, the rest were handed over to the Soviet Navy. 26 boats were supplied by Electric Boat company (Elco) (70 and 77 foot), five by Higgins (78 foot), and the remainder from the US Navy existing stock. The first batch of 70-foot Elco boats (PTs 10 to 19) were delivered to British in November-December 1940, where after refit they were designated as MTB 259 to 268.

I have a picture of MTB 385 which is Vosper Type I MTB in production since 1943 ('Vosper MTBs in Action' Squadron-Signal 4013) with radar antenna on her mast. Since 1943 British would equip their submarines with radars and detectors. If they could fit radar equipment into a sub, why not fix on MTBs as well?

Historically speaking, radars were introduced to British MTBs in 1941. That was Type 286PU radar unit developed from ASV Mark I aircraft radar. The Type 286PU could detect an enemy torpedo boat or a submarine at a range of two miles under reasonably good weather conditions. Radar units were available and installation time would take about a week. Along with radar they would get Type 244 IFF equipment.

MTBs carried usually 4 standard Mark VII dc (410 pounds each). DC were used against surface ships (yep, I mean it) and against submarines in ASW. Yet effectiveness was low as MTBs did not have ASDIC (sonar that is).

So by 1943 a German boat could be easily attacked by a British MTB (some of them (minority) were Elco made boats) equipped with radar, torps, and depth charges.

[andy_311]

Try hitting one with a acoudtic torpedo no chance