A very detailed patrol log.
Congats on that! :up:

New mission grid BE61
 

Boot: VII
Upgrades: dual AA for free
changed: type II torpedo's in Type I torpedo's

Mission 7

Came home with total tonnage 31952
Torped 7 merchants
1 destroyer
1 patrolboat(not speed boot)
date left port: 10-6-1940
Date arrive port: 11-12-1940
U boot hull %: 84.90
Reown this mission: 746.65

Thanks VonHarris :salute:

The Secretary of Command HQ of the U-boat arm has requested the inspection of the files.

OKM - Berlin, 13/05/40

An inspection seems ominous. Luckily I'm at sea again :arrgh!:

Mission 8
 

Mission 8

Boot: VIIB

Patrol Grid: BF 17

Came home with total tonnage 28580
Torped 4 merchant
1 Destroyer

date left port:12-2-1940
Date arrive port: 1-11-1941
U boot hull %:100
Reown this mission:595.95

Personnel File:

Name: VON PAULUS
Date of Birth: 12SEP13
Place of Birth: MAGDEBURG
Date of Intake: 01APR35 (CREW 35)

Promotions
03JAN36 SEEKADETT
01JUL36 FÄHNRICH Z. S.
01SEP37 OBERFÄHNRICH Z. S.
01FEB38 LEUTNANT Z. S.
30NOV39 KAPITÄNLEUTNANT

Medals
30NOV39 IRON CROSS, SECOND CLASS
19JAN40 IRON CROSS, FIRST CLASS
07JUN40 KNIGHT'S CROSS
11SEP40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES
28JAN41 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES AND SWORDS
15MAY41 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES, SWORDS, AND DIAMONDS

Badges
NIL

U-Bootwaffe Postings
10APR38 U-Boat Flotilla Weddigen (Commander training)
01AUG39 2nd Flotilla (9 patrols)
19JAN41 7th/13th Flotilla (4 patrols)
20AUG41 1st Flotilla (1 patrols)

U-Boat Commands
01AUG39 U-33, Type VIIB (9 patrols)
19JAN41 U-97, Type VIIC (5 patrols)


Status: In home base before patrol 15

Date: Friday, Oct 17 1941

Last patrol end: Sunday, Set 7, 1941

U-Boot: U-97, Type VIIC

Flotilla: 1st Flotilla, Brest

Next patrol grid: ET49

Last saved: Saturday, Aug 25, 2012 at 16:31

Totals patrols: 14 /377 days

Ships sunk/merchant/warship: 65

Tonnage/merchant/warship: 290371 GRT.

On Sept 29, 1939, U-30 and its Captain Leonard Krueger surrendered after being forced to the surface in the Irish Sea after being severely damaged in battle with a British A&B Class destroyer.

The patrol ended with 2 ships sunk for a total of over 5600 tons of merchant shipping sunk.

Narvik, April 1940
 

OLtn. Heinrich Buhring, U-99 (VIIB) - Assigned to Operation Hartmut, Apr. 1940

I penetrated the Olotfjorden just before our invasion forces.

I fought a first sqd. of English DD's trying to reach Narvik on Apr. 10. Four hits, three ships sunk, only one credited.

On April 13, we sighted the Warspite incoming wit an escort of some 8-10 DD's. They were coming in at 20 kts, probably too fast to have a good hydrophone performance, so I could maneuver easily in order to position myself in the perfect spot to hit the battleship.

2.800 mt. away, 2.700... 2.600... suddenly the enemy TF slows at 4 kts and steers 10/15° in my direction -- and my tactical position and torpedo solution go down in the sink.

I am forced to maneuver at high speed in very shallow water and wiht giant waves alternatively covering my scope and making my turret show out of the water. Enemy DD's start approaching, so i have to fire my salvo at some 1.900 mts from a nearly impossible angle. I miss with all four, even if at least one was on target (it porpoised some 50 mts. from the target) -- and have to outmaneuver the DD's who are getting the hell out of me.
No caution here, there is a BB to sink! Max speed submerged and I maneuver so that I can put some distance between me and the hunters, but also that I can bring my aft tube to bear. I fire again, at a distance of more or less 1,500 mt.: another near miss. My crew is reloading the fore tubes, and I still have to dodge the DD's -- but at least one of them gets stuck on the shallows. I get some DC, none of them too near (just some light damage to the obs scope and turret).

In half an hour I cant get my last attempt at the Warspite: I have duped the destroyers, who are depthcharging an empty spot a couple of miles behind me, so I have an unobstructed path to the battleship, who is starting to fire on our destroyers in the Narvik bay. So I can approach the ship and fire my last-but-one torpedo at the Warspite from 800 mts. This time I hit just aft of the B turret: a fire starts, but no immediate listing shows.

Then I have to run away from the destroyers, but I can see through the scope that the Warspite is still sailing East, towards the bottom of the fjord and engaging our ships. Many hours later, when the English DD's withdraw and I can re-surface, the Warspite is still there, on fire and heavily listing. Clearly the AI considers her sunk, because a nearby Zerstorer is not firing on her, but on the map she shows as a diamond, not as a sunk ship. Obviously I will get no credit from this sinking, but I am proud of having helped the comrades of the surface ships to do their job.

(Needless to say, ten hours later, when I am sailing away from Narvik, the Warspite steams past me, unscathed: I decide to consider it an hallucination of my third watch)

A couple of considerations on the engine limitations:
1) it is so annoying to sink a ship and see her alive and kicking again only because you have sailed out of rendering distance. I think some workaround should be found.
2) the tactical behaviour of surface forces is often utterly unrealistic. No capital ship would venture in a restricted water combat when damaged. In real war, the Warspite would have withdrawn with all her escorts.

Heading across the North Sea again...
 

After a couple year hiatus, I am once again heading out to tick off Churchill. Had to find all my old notes, files, mods etc. first.

I've been there :) It's hard work getting all the old mods and notes together and then getting acquainted with the new ones! Anyways welcome back and Gute Jagd :arrgh!:

U-154 IXC
 

Realism 100% - Hsie realism pack v16B1

Patrol 18 log page 1 of 3

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/450...18page1of3.jpg


Patrol 18 log page 2 of 3

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/3...18page2of3.jpg


Patrol 18 log page 3 of 3

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/7...18page3of3.jpg



Patrol 19 log page 1 of 3

http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/741...19page1of3.jpg


Patrol 19 page 2 of 3

http://img580.imageshack.us/img580/8...19page2of3.jpg

Patrol 19 log page 3 of 3

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/969...19page3of3.jpg

Hull integrity after patrol 19 : 60%
I am glad I survived this.
In my previous career , I was DCed in the same area at the same time.

Departed Wilhelmshaven 22 January 1940 and patrolled assigned grid square for allotted time. Weather abysmal, so no targets sighted; had to cross Atlantic to get out of storm, which finally broke off St. John's. Headed into port itself and was quite pleased to find anchorage without torpedo nets. Sank a Modern Tanker and the Black Swan at anchor in the harbor (pretty much the only targets of value there) and then headed south. Tried to intercept a convoy, but no luck, so made directly for Halifax, going into the harbor itself. Once again, no torpedo nets (my officers all agreed that this was quite strange for a major convoy depot), so we managed to bag a second Modern Tanker. However, we failed to spot the ASW Trawler and the A/B-class DD that immediately raised steam and attempted to find us, but one fish from the aft tubes blew the stern off the DD and we managed to escape, this time back across the Atlantic.

We headed for home via the Denmark Strait, hoping against hope to possibly catch a British cruiser patrolling the area...no luck. Tried the same with the Iceland-Faeroes Passage...nothing. Finally headed down the British east coast and managed to pick off an ASW trawler, but the weather was slowly closing in again. We headed further south and managed to escape into clearer skies, and we were almost off the northern entrance to the Channel when we sighted a Large Cargo escorted by an ASW trawler. Hit the merchant with three torpedoes and when the ASW Trawler came after me a single torpedo from the aft tubes sank her.

Decided enough was enough, so we headed home, arriving on 6 March. Was awarded the German Cross in Gold and the Knight's Cross, and also my first promotion. And the war goes on...

Started new campaign in a Type-II. Ordered to patrol a grid not too far from the Scottish coast and at a rather nice point. Had quite a bit of traffic from the Forth. Mostly just trawlers and other small boats until a small convoy of merchants showed their faces. I sank two before the north sea forced me under. Weather got even worse and soon it was pouring it down. With our 24hr patrol done with two kills, we decided to use up the last of our eels on any ships docked up the Forth. I then spotted 3 merchants and a destroyer :woot:. I fired first at the destroyer so that it couldn't tail me. Then with what we had left, sank two of the three ships. Out of torpedoes and not in any mood to waste fuel, we returned to base to recieve medals and promotions. Beer is on me crew...:arrgh!:.

Thanks! Feels good to be on deck again.:arrgh!: