Prince of Eckmühl
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Joined: 6/25/2006
From: Texas
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quote:
ORIGINAL: JoeBobShaw
I'm quite sure you're correct in that carriers were the ultimate target. But I have to wonder if, in real life, an SBD pilot ... scared to death ... flak bursting ... plane bouncing around ... clouds and smoke and, oh yeah, ZEROS swarming ... would take the time to find the perfect target over "A" target, any target, to dump that bomb and get the hell out of Dodge.
That's all quite true, but the SBD didn't approach alone. He was normally led by a squadron commander that was just as proficient as his IJN counterpart. Unless it was communicated (or miscommunicated) that a flight bomb something else, the rest of the squadron were gonna do as their leader directed, and those Annapolis guys darn sure knew a carrier from a destroyer.
I'd also note that the ZEROS didn't particularly enjoy attacking a Dauntless formation. Once the fighters sixty rounds of 20mm were expended, it was rather worse than even-steven for a pilot flying into the teeth of fifteen to thirty .30 caliber machine guns. The SBD gave the Japanese fits.
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It would probably be worse for a torpedo bomber. Coming in at low level limits your options and the longer you stay low and slow the more likely it is that flak is going to nail you. The temptation to just drop the damn thing would have to have been overwhelming. While there were no clouds of black powder smoke obscuring the battlefield, the fog of war is still very much a factor.
I've posted to this thread knowing full well that what you've written directly above is both factual and accurate. The TBD situation was unique among the strike types deployed in these battles in that it was so vulnerable to enemy CAP. Because of that, it wasn't uncommon for their pilots to let loose a torpedo at a screening cruiser or battleship, the pilots no doubt believing that it was better to take a shot at something, rather than have the weapon go down with the a/c.
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And I think I've noticed that they tend to go after ships on fire. It's far easier to see a ship with a cloud of smoke pouring out of it than one without, and as large as carriers are, they're still damned hard to pick it out from the fromation at altitude. Remember the number of sighting reports, in real life, that were WAY off the mark, even to the point of missing carriers in the formation.
Do you remember those photos of IJN carriers careening wildly about as they evaded bombers at Midway? Those photos were taken from twenty-thousand feet. Inaccurate sighting reports were partially a product of inexperienced search crew, but the real culprit was distance. Patrol a/c operated on the absolute periphery of the enemy formation. If a PBY or Mavis found itself directly over a carrier, it likely wouldn't be there very long. Squadron and flight leaders of The First Team, or the Kido Butai suffered no such inhibitions. They were there to get hits on carriers, not to snoop about ten miles (or more) from the core of the task group.
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I don't know what the ratio of carrier attacks to "other" attacks was but I suspect that it wasn't anywhere near as high as we, sitting in our easy chairs in front of our computers would like it to be.
Actually, it was extraordinarily high at Midway. Of the three squadrons of SBD that set upon the KB in the morning attack, the only planes that didn't bomb a carrier were ones that had already dropped their payloads because of a faulty arming mechanism. Three a/c eschewed an attack on the Kaga, seeing that she was already a wreck, and flew over and blew up the Akagi, yet another one of those hard-to-find aircraft carriers.
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I agree, it's frustrating as hell ... but I wonder if it isn't accurate at the same time.
Actually, I've begun to find it kind of a relief. Further up a thread, I cited a game experience in which BOTH sides attacked screening vessels so frequently that neither fleet was able to sink a carrier before its stable of aircraft was exhausted. It got to the point where that awful feeling in the pit of my stomach began to go away, because I really expected the enemy to attack the surrounding destroyers and cruisers, rather than the big-ticket item at the middle of the display. And it's important to note that there's no sort of AI "cheat" involved here. My only concern is that the behavior undermines the authenticity of the game.
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Just a thought, I'm no expert. 
Me neither. I've read a lot lately, Shattered Sword, The First Team and The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign, but I wasn't exactly, there, either. I like the game and hope that SSG continues to improve upon its many excellent qualities.
Thank you for your comments,
PoE (aka ivanmoe)
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Are there any tips for finessing strikes? - 
Here's a little tip i discovered trying in vain to retaliate at the Japs: After sending out a Carrier strike...when the planes are on their way back slown down the time to 5 min intervals(as someone stated previously) and as soon as all planes are landed i move the speed slider to full steam and get my TG away into a storm. I noticed the ai TG's zipping away after nailing me so i surmise that is what the speed(knots) slider is there for.
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