u-boat decoy
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u-boat decoy
Hello. In the past I have heard of the Germans using devices like a mine with a dummy periscope attached to lure allied ships into ramming them, or u-boats towing a dummy conning tower to lure convoy escorts out of position. Any truth to this? Any info greatly appreciated.
Re: u-boat decoy
I must be honest I've never heard of either of these ploys.lonestarson wrote:Hello. In the past I have heard of the Germans using devices like a mine with a dummy periscope attached to lure allied ships into ramming them, or u-boats towing a dummy conning tower to lure convoy escorts out of position. Any truth to this? Any info greatly appreciated.
The one where the U-boat is supposedly towing a dummy conning tower in order to lure an escort out of position is a rather insane thing for a u-boat to do. For a start it alerts the escort to the presence of a U-boat, and far from luring an escort out of position, it lures the escort near to the position of the towing u-boat, giving the escort every chance of picking it up on its sonar.
Re: u-boat decoy
maybe you are refering to the decoys launched by torpedo tubes to simulate a hit underwater by antisub weapons and then presume a u-boat sunken (canisters filled with debris, oil, papers, etc, designed to float as wreckage on the surface)
Xavier
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Xavier
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- Mark McShane
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Re: u-boat decoy
This may also help, its about the sonar decoys used by the uboats.
http://www.uboataces.com/sonar-decoys.shtml
Regards,
Mark
http://www.uboataces.com/sonar-decoys.shtml
Regards,
Mark
Re: u-boat decoy
Yes, I remember seeing in Helmut Blocksdorf's book "Das Kommando der Kleinkampfverbände der Kriegsmarine" (published in English translation this year by Pen & Sword)that explosive devices which looked like German one-man torpedoes were set adrift off the Cherbourg Peninsula in 1944: I will look through my copy but it has some pages missing and I may not be successful...
Re: u-boat decoy
You are thinking of the "wasseresel" decoy, which was towed behind a uboat by a 2000m wire. It had provisions for releasing both oil and certain effects like clothes etc to pretend it was a sunken uboat after an allied attack.
The attached illustration is from the norwegian book "Marinen i kamp" ("The navy in battle")
The "wasseresel" is also described in "German secret weapons of the second world war" (Rudolf Lusar, 1960)
The attached illustration is from the norwegian book "Marinen i kamp" ("The navy in battle")
The "wasseresel" is also described in "German secret weapons of the second world war" (Rudolf Lusar, 1960)
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Re: u-boat decoy
For a start it alerts the escort to the presence of a U-boat, and far from luring an escort out of position, it lures the escort near to the position of the towing u-boat, giving the escort every chance of picking it up on its sonar.
ThanksSsssSsssSSs :)
Re: u-boat decoy
Probably important factors contributing to it not being used much, and appearently strongly disliked by u-boot commanders...frediuncle wrote:For a start it alerts the escort to the presence of a U-boat, and far from luring an escort out of position, it lures the escort near to the position of the towing u-boat, giving the escort every chance of picking it up on its sonar.
Re: u-boat decoy
Hi,
there can be also German mine EMS - Einheitsmine Sehrohr Treibmine.
Some information you can find here (page: 32 or 23 in original numeration)
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ref ... -Mines.pdf
--
Regards
Maciek
there can be also German mine EMS - Einheitsmine Sehrohr Treibmine.
Some information you can find here (page: 32 or 23 in original numeration)
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ref ... -Mines.pdf
--
Regards
Maciek
Re: u-boat decoy
Yes (it's also illustrated on the drawing I posted above).SnakeDoc wrote:there can be also German mine EMS - Einheitsmine Sehrohr Treibmine.
Some information you can find here (page: 32 or 23 in original numeration)
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ref ... -Mines.pdf