General Discussions
This is the place to discuss general issues related to the U-boat war or the war at sea in WWII.
modern torpedoes and a modern tojnnage war
Posted by:
kurt
()
Date: August 14, 2001 04:36PM
<HTML>What if (let\'s put aside that it is not likely) we were to have a modern \'tonnage war\'. Lets suppose a major sub power were to launch an unrestricted sub war against a nation with a major merchant marine a la the Battle of the Atlantic.
Modern merchant ships are so huge that a sub commander would leap to the ranks of the top aces with a single sinking. In WWII the average size of a merchantmen kill was about 4000 to 5000 tonnes. Now 100,000 and even 200,000 tonne cargo ships are commmonplace. Some are even 300,000 tonnes or larger.
But, and here is my topic for discussion, are these modern huge ships too large to sink with torpedoes?
In WWII, a torpedo carried 500lb to 1000lb of high explosive. Exploding under the waterline of a cargo vessel, it often took multiple hits to sink a cargo ship. Many survived a single or even multiple torpedo hits (the record holder I believe is a Japanese tanker that needed 11 direct hits before sinking). Modern torpedoes are much better aimed, almost certain of a hit with every shot, but they still have 500lb to 1000lb warheads of pretty much the same high explosive. In other words, modern torpedoes pack little more punch than their WWII ancestors. But the ships being shot at are now 50 to almost 100 times larger.
Would even multiple torpedo hits cause such little damage against these huge ships that they would survive even multiple hits? If it often took two or three hits to sink a 5000 tonner in WWII, won\'t it take a whole bunch to sink a 200,000 tonner nowadays? Or are modern merchant ships, built for low cost, not war, devoid of damage control, compartmentalization, and large enough crews that even one or two torpedo hits will still cause fatal damage?
I suspect it is the later, but if not, the large number of large ships in the modern merchant fleet, and the limited store of torpedoes on the smaller sub fleets of today might make a merchant fleet almost immune to a Doentitz style tonnage war.
What are your opinions about the lethality of a modern torpedo against a modern, 100,000 ~ 300,000 tonne class merchantman?</HTML>
Modern merchant ships are so huge that a sub commander would leap to the ranks of the top aces with a single sinking. In WWII the average size of a merchantmen kill was about 4000 to 5000 tonnes. Now 100,000 and even 200,000 tonne cargo ships are commmonplace. Some are even 300,000 tonnes or larger.
But, and here is my topic for discussion, are these modern huge ships too large to sink with torpedoes?
In WWII, a torpedo carried 500lb to 1000lb of high explosive. Exploding under the waterline of a cargo vessel, it often took multiple hits to sink a cargo ship. Many survived a single or even multiple torpedo hits (the record holder I believe is a Japanese tanker that needed 11 direct hits before sinking). Modern torpedoes are much better aimed, almost certain of a hit with every shot, but they still have 500lb to 1000lb warheads of pretty much the same high explosive. In other words, modern torpedoes pack little more punch than their WWII ancestors. But the ships being shot at are now 50 to almost 100 times larger.
Would even multiple torpedo hits cause such little damage against these huge ships that they would survive even multiple hits? If it often took two or three hits to sink a 5000 tonner in WWII, won\'t it take a whole bunch to sink a 200,000 tonner nowadays? Or are modern merchant ships, built for low cost, not war, devoid of damage control, compartmentalization, and large enough crews that even one or two torpedo hits will still cause fatal damage?
I suspect it is the later, but if not, the large number of large ships in the modern merchant fleet, and the limited store of torpedoes on the smaller sub fleets of today might make a merchant fleet almost immune to a Doentitz style tonnage war.
What are your opinions about the lethality of a modern torpedo against a modern, 100,000 ~ 300,000 tonne class merchantman?</HTML>
modern torpedoes and a modern tojnnage war