Hyrdophone checks

[av8rjim]

Was running North of Scapa Flow, on my way out to the Atlantic, when I happened to bump into this in 1km visibility.

http://i767.photobucket.com/albums/xx312/av8rjim84/uhoh.jpg

Couldn't get an accurate count on how many destroyers there were due to my crash diving and trying to save my boat; guessing around 5 though. Three direct shell hits, 72 depth charges in shallow water (4 of which were well placed) and damage to every compartment. Managed to slip away a couple hours later and return to port. Just wondering, how often do you check your hydrophone in bad weather...3 hours for me.

[MartiniMik]

Hi Av8rjim!

Can't recall seeing you around although you've been a member for awhile.

Anyway, to answer your question...a lot! Regardless of weather or almost anything else. I also check the free view and pop up to periscope depth and take a look. I've had more than one occurrence when the hydrophone operator said "No contacts!" and a check through the 'scope proved him very wrong!

Good Luck!

[av8rjim]

Working on making my epic return to the forum...especially in light of sh5 coming out. around the time sh4 came out I disappeared into the ether.

[PhantomKira]

There's another trick that I know for a fact that some U.S. fleet boats used (Thunder Below by Admiral Eugene B. Fluckey), that of "high periscope". Running on the surface with someone on the raised observation scope, which gives a greater area of vision than the bridge lookouts due to the increased height of the optics.

Not exactly hydrophone, but a worthwhile note, I'd think.

As for me, I rely on the radio wayyy too much. High TC unless I get a radio contact, then I switch to man hydrophones myself. Like you, I don't trust the operator, even when he has all the ratings. He's just plain deaf.

(You actually count the number of charges? Wow! You seem a rather hard core simmer!)

[av8rjim]

Not much else to do when getting DC'd. Highest count I ever got was 121, usually either get away or am killed by then.

[Stingray-65]

OK, I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one out there with a deaf sonar man. Sometimes I want to walk up behind mine & http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/compsmash.gif

[av8rjim]

Looking at my picture...I find it interesting that one destroyer is night blinding another with their searchlights. Guess there was a little bit of competition for the kill. Oh..and stingray. Just wanted to say I've been admiring your sig for a long time now..good to see some things never change.

[tuddley3]

Dude!!!!!!!!! Why didn't you enter this is the screenshot contest???????????

[Kaleun1961]

I'm a fan of doing manual hydrophone checks, especially during lousy weather. In such inclement weather you can hear more from below than you can see up top. I like to do them at least twice a day, at sunset and sunrise. When you get good at it you can track down a contact like a bloodhound on a chaingang escapee.

[tuddley3]

I was all the way over in Norfolk, and lost my scopes on the way in the harbor. So since I made it in, I might as well do what I came to do. I was actually able to sink 4 of the 7 moored ships before sneaking back out. That was a proud moment in my US tour.

[Stingray-65]

I manually check the hydrophone before & after an attack & also before we surface @ night just to make sure what is going on in the area. I hate getting surprised by warships.

[Stingray-65]

Figures.... the one time I don't bother to check myself, my hydrophone operator nearly gets us killed:

He notified me (while under time compression) that a merchant was approaching 290 long range... so I let it go a little bit so perhaps it will be within visual distance when I go to periscope view. Periscope up & its a beautiful calm day - mid afternoon. I turn periscope towards 290 -- not seeing anything immediately -- continue towards 180 when there he is (a Canadian C3) -450m about to run us over! (Note: In a state of panic @ this moment.) Flank ahead barely gets us out of the way. We circle around & run submerged a while putting distance between us before surfacing for a deck gun attack (the C3 is armed).

We surface & proceed to sink the C3. I then get the message from my watch officer "enemy ship engaging us". I look completely around from the tower & don't see or hear anything but the C3 in front of us (which I've already taken the gun emplacement off of), so I think its a bug & therefore pay it no mind.

The C3 starts taking on water fast & is obviously going down. Got the message "Enemy unit destroyed", we send our report & go to periscope depth - all engines stopped - ask for a hydrophone check 3 times which come back negative -- "No sound contact". We then resume towards our patrol grid & all of a sudden I hear us getting pinged! We escaped after dodging depth charges for about 2 hours. After that, I'm about ready to throw August overboard or have him court martial-ed when we RTB.

As for "Enemy ship engaging us"... the best I can figure is that he was on the opposite side of the C3 & therefore out of my field of vision.

[Kaleun1961]

Isn't it amazing that in spite of all the aids the game gives us, we can still be surprised now and then? I've had a few moments similar to yours: I have a nice target all to myself and suddenly, "Where the heck did that destroyer come from?"

I recall one convoy battle where I had expended my last torpedoes and caused a fat freighter to fall slowly back from the convoy. Being out of torpedoes, I was anxious to surface, finish it off with the deck gun and then hightail it back to France. After evading the angry escorts for a while I finally surfaced and commmenced to pound away. That freighter was tough and I had to dive away as a couple of destroyers returned from the convoy before I could sink her. Again I had to evade for several game hours and then repeat it again. It took several surface/dive cycles before I could finally sink that tough old lady and then get clear of that convoy.

Another memorable moment was a convoy stalking just west of Ireland, where the convoy lanes converge. I was trying to flank around a convoy to get into ideal position when along comes a convoy in the opposite direction. There was no way I could continue my end-around on the first convoy and the second convoy was too heavily escorted for me to divert from the first convoy. So, I altered my plan to avoid the second convoy and then a third came along! I was literally caught in the middle of three convoys and had no choice but to dive deep and go quiet. I had, between the three convoys in close proximity, about 14-20 escorts of all sorts, not to mention any patrol planes that might come along. That was a very sweaty time for me, but I managed to survive and get a few licks in, eventually.

Man, I love this game!!!

I wish we could have a real life Das Boot style French night club where we could all hang out and drink and swap war stories.

[Stingray-65]

Whoah! 3 convoys at once = targets for days! But thats more escorts than I'd care to tangle with at one time. http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_eek.gif

I'm w/ you on the meeting. That would be very cool! http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/25.gif