Torpedo Bomber Attack success

[SonofDworkin]

Has anyone successfully gotten a TBD strike through? I've actually switched to using them as my scouts because they generally end up getting shot down during strikes with no benefit while using them as scouts preserves more SDBs for dive bombing.

[SomeoneYouKnow2]

only against ships that are already pretty much dead in the water. They don't coordinate drop angles and they drop their torpedoes WAY too far out

[rampantfox]

Originally posted by SomeoneYouKnow2:

only against ships that are already pretty much dead in the water. They don't coordinate drop angles and they drop their torpedoes WAY too far out

I would have to do some research but I also think that early on in the war the TBD success rate was low due to pilot skill or lack there of. Same issue plagued the SBDs until pilot skill caught up.

[H. Guderian]

I launch them After a dive bomber wave. If I send them up With the dive bombers they descend first and get chewed up. Pretty much you don't have enough torpedo bombers concentrating on a target unlike CarDiv5. I can have my Lex dodge 5 torps and another 5 are on the way from each direction because there are just so many.

[Doinkster]

Like others mentioned, dive bombers first then a wave of torpedo bombers to finish whatever is left off. i only send an escort with the torpedo bombers to at least distract the enemy CAP, and trying to get as many on their run as i can.

[Cap'n Darwin]

Early war US torpedoes have a very narrow launch window (speed, height of drop, entry angle, and distance to target) and pilot skills would add to the issues.

[ironsmack]

Its hit or miss for me as far as survivability. On occasion I have had them survive. But I never get torpedo hits ever.

[Hood_fr]

Works better when the enemy is launching and their CV is on a steady upwind course. But you need a bit of luck on the timing of the attack

[SonofDworkin]

Of course I post this, and then in my next playthrough, VT-2 puts 5 torpedoes into the starboard side of Shokaku and ends her day in about 20 minutes. And in that entire battle, I only lost one torpedo bomber between both carriers.

[va_ghost]

They drop BEFORE the bombers - the slowest planes shouldnt drop first. They drop too far out. They drop according to expected path WAY too much not watching target turning and thinking - oh wait i need to shift towards the curve. They arent doing hammer and anvil - they are doing drop all aimed at a specific point in an Arc .

[Hauggy]

Originally posted by SonofDworkin:

Has anyone successfully gotten a TBD strike through? I've actually switched to using them as my scouts because they generally end up getting shot down during strikes with no benefit while using them as scouts preserves more SDBs for dive bombing.

The secret is having them attack after the dive bombers who will deal damage regardless if your target is dead in the water they're very deadly.
Looks like the mark 15 detonates everytime.

[htrk74jr]

I've hit Japanese CVs 4-6 times with torps and they just shrug them off, along with like 6 bombs. Something must be wrong with damage models for them to be able to tank that much damage

[Lord of the Exiled Winks]

Originally posted by va_ghost:

They drop BEFORE the bombers - the slowest planes shouldnt drop first. They drop too far out. They drop according to expected path WAY too much not watching target turning and thinking - oh wait i need to shift towards the curve. They arent doing hammer and anvil - they are doing drop all aimed at a specific point in an Arc .

Don't let this guy know about Midway....

[Lord of the Exiled Winks]

Originally posted by SonofDworkin:

Has anyone successfully gotten a TBD strike through? I've actually switched to using them as my scouts because they generally end up getting shot down during strikes with no benefit while using them as scouts preserves more SDBs for dive bombing.

Alot also depends on pilot skill level, for instance if you use the battle creation to setup a random battle with the highest skill level, it seems like that modifies the TBD's behaviors quite abit. In the standard scenario I believe pilot skill level is fairly low for the U.S. side. Which is pretty consistent for 1942, Coral Sea and Midway the U.S. pilots were pretty green still.

[va_ghost]

Originally posted by Lord of the Exiled Winks:

Originally posted by va_ghost:

They drop BEFORE the bombers - the slowest planes shouldnt drop first. They drop too far out. They drop according to expected path WAY too much not watching target turning and thinking - oh wait i need to shift towards the curve. They arent doing hammer and anvil - they are doing drop all aimed at a specific point in an Arc .

Don't let this guy know about Midway....

The difference between midway - and a combined strike as described. If you knew history that the Dbs went farther ESE and needed to curve around and TBs had a far straighter shot, as well as Midway was not a combined strike. Eastern Solomons Saratoga combined strike says hi. (with the faster Avengers). I can bring up santa cruz too.

[Lord of the Exiled Winks]

Originally posted by va_ghost:

Originally posted by Lord of the Exiled Winks:

Don't let this guy know about Midway....

The difference between midway - and a combined strike as described. If you knew history that the Dbs went farther ESE and needed to curve around and TBs had a far straighter shot, as well as Midway was not a combined strike. Eastern Solomons Saratoga combined strike says hi. (with the faster Avengers). I can bring up santa cruz too.

Yes but all of those strikes happened because of the experiences that the aviators had with the battles at Midway, Coral Sea and the rest. The TBD's were old and the Mk15 had so many problems that they were basically useless.

Doctrine is one thing, but practical experience and the reality of combat is entirely different. I'm happy that the game portrays reality, and not a purely doctrinal/procedural representation of these fights. I'll remind you that the demo scenario is of Coral Sea, and even in those later engagements, things hardly went according to Navy doctrine.

For example only Saratogas strike actually reached Ryujo, and Enterprises strike was hastily launched and sent north, amounting to nothing. Light carrier Ryujo was only hit by 5 bombs, and some speculate by one torpedo. The Saratoga strike was like 40 aircraft in total, not a spectacular performance. Especially considering that Enterprise was also hit by atleast 3 bombs herself.

During Santa Cruz the TBFs from all of the strikes from Enterprise and Hornet got lost, shot down, or turned back from damage. The ones that got lost never attacked the carriers, and I don't think they scored a single hit. All of the damage done to the Japanese fleet was done by SBD's. Also Santa Cruz ended with the complete loss of Hornet, not entirely doctrinal and hardly a good example of coordination between dive/torpedo bombers TBH.