Red light, blue light and red glasses

[Bussard_x]

The LI from U-96, still alive, stated that there were no blue lights on U-boats. Another time witness from U-995 mentions that red lights were there for emergency when normal light failed. Crew preparing for the watch at night were wearing red glasses. Some things for the developers to consider.

[Dewgle]

Relevant :)
https://youtu.be/yyL3zuyT3rE

[Thorn]

Originally posted by Bussard:

The LI from U-96, still alive, stated that there were no blue lights on U-boats. Another time witness from U-995 mentions that red lights were there for emergency when normal light failed. Crew preparing for the watch at night were wearing red glasses. Some things for the developers to consider.

Red lights are used at night

1. Red light can't be seen from miles away at night like white light can. Uboats mostly ran on the surface, especially at night time, and they'd use the red light at night to keep their position hidden. Whenver someone opens that topside hatch to go on watch, it would be like announcing, "HERE WE ARE!" if white lights were on inside the Uboat.

Likewise, surface ships also use red lights to keep their profiles as reduced as possible at night time.

2. Takes less time for eyes to adjust to darkness when using a dim red light at night. Crew members had to go topside to go on watch and so you'd want their eyes to be able to adjust to the darkness faster.

This is also why during emergencies (i.e. depth charge attacks), they would turn the red lights on. Because if their crew members were sitting in bright white lights and suddenly a depth charge took their lights out, they would all be blinded going from a brightness to sudden darkness. And during an emergency like that, you don't have 5+ minutes to wait for your eyes to fully adjust to the darkness. Dim red lights made transitioning to sudden darkness not so severe.

[alfox]

Originally posted by Thorn:

Originally posted by Bussard:

The LI from U-96, still alive, stated that there were no blue lights on U-boats. Another time witness from U-995 mentions that red lights were there for emergency when normal light failed. Crew preparing for the watch at night were wearing red glasses. Some things for the developers to consider.

Red lights are used at night

1. Red light can't be seen from miles away at night like white light can. Uboats mostly ran on the surface, especially at night time, and they'd use the red light at night to keep their position hidden. Whenver someone opens that topside hatch to go on watch, it would be like announcing, "HERE WE ARE!" if white lights were on inside the Uboat.

Likewise, surface ships also use red lights to keep their profiles as reduced as possible at night time.

2. Takes less time for eyes to adjust to darkness when using a dim red light at night. Crew members had to go topside to go on watch and so you'd want their eyes to be able to adjust to the darkness faster.

This is also why during emergencies (i.e. depth charge attacks), they would turn the red lights on. Because if their crew members were sitting in bright white lights and suddenly a depth charge took their lights out, they would all be blinded going from a brightness to sudden darkness. And during an emergency like that, you don't have 5+ minutes to wait for your eyes to fully adjust to the darkness. Dim red lights made transitioning to sudden darkness not so severe.

for the second part you forgot that the red light is also more effective then the red glasses
and those glasses need a space to be keep so no they didn't have this but they actualy really use the red light for emergency and a uboot rarely go to the surface at the end of the war but the red light is use when they attack at night to have a day night cycle or yes in case of a emergency so that every one on the ship know if there is a probleme

[El Rushbo]

I know US subs used to use blue lights for night time, they later switched to red. One example would be a light I remember seeing in the forward torpedo room of the USS Silversides with a sign labeling it as a blue light though the bulb was red. I don't know if early German boats were the same way or not.

[Bussard_x]

What Thorn mentions is what I assumed for years. But I have this information from a German Navy side were members interviewed U-boat crew. Confussed now.

[wolf310ii]

Originally posted by Thorn:

Red lights are used at night

1. Red light can't be seen from miles away at night like white light can. Uboats mostly ran on the surface, especially at night time, and they'd use the red light at night to keep their position hidden. Whenver someone opens that topside hatch to go on watch, it would be like announcing, "HERE WE ARE!" if white lights were on inside the Uboat.

At night they just turned off or dimm the light in the controll room.
U-995 in Laboe has exact 3 red lights, two on the machine telegraph (controll room and machine room) as optical signal for the port engine (green for the starbord engine), and one near the ladder, probaly installed after the war.

This is also why during emergencies (i.e. depth charge attacks), they would turn the red lights on.

No, thats a movie thing. German u-boats had 3 independent circuits for light, two in each compartment and batterie powered emergency light.
During depht charge attacks they dimmed the light, from 110V to 90V, they didnt change to red light wich they didnt had.

[wolf310ii]

Originally posted by al:

for the second part you forgot that the red light is also more effective then the red glasses
and those glasses need a space to be keep so no they didn't have this but they actualy really use the red light for emergency and a uboot rarely go to the surface at the end of the war but the red light is use when they attack at night to have a day night cycle or yes in case of a emergency so that every one on the ship know if there is a probleme

It makes absolute no difference if the red glass is around the (normal withe) light bulb, or right befor the eyes.

Also, equip the whole boat with a extra circuit and red lamps, takes a lot more space than a few red glasses.

Also also, the day night cycle on u-boats is a post war thing

[Thorn]

Originally posted by Bussard:

What Thorn mentions is what I assumed for years. But I have this information from a German Navy side were members interviewed U-boat crew. Confussed now.

Most of my info comes from my own personal experiences and assumptions having served in the US Navy between 1999-2005 - so I have no true idea of what the U-boat crews for Germany did during WWII or what their reasoning was regarding lights.

I served on USS Nicholas FFG-47 "The Nasty Nick" and we always ran red lights once the sun went down. They would announce, "Darken Ship" over the 1MC and the lights would switch over from bright white lights to dim red lights throughout the entire ship.

This is how it was. I don't miss it. At all. LOL!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRrE3tEMtHs

[MonsterMunch]

Would love to see McDewgle's lighting suggestion implemented or a mod created for that. You can make it an option in the settings menu if people still want to manually switch on and off the lights.

[Gator]

For the game itself, should you just always have on blue lights?

[Bussard_x]

After reading interviews with uboat crew, you could conclude that white light was dimmed down during night and the next watch were wearing red goggles. Red light was turned on automatically when the main light failed. Blue light did not exist. Request to developers is to correct this for realism. Should be easy to fix.

[DECAFBAD]

Just delete a gameplay mechanic in the name of r*alism, no biggie ^^

[Finess]

I don't know, maybe it should be optional as extra realism. With a total offswitchable lights in conning tower. And fluorescent gauges.

[XLjedi]

Originally posted by Bussard_x:

After reading interviews with uboat crew, you could conclude that white light was dimmed down during night and the next watch were wearing red goggles. Red light was turned on automatically when the main light failed. Blue light did not exist. Request to developers is to correct this for realism. Should be easy to fix.

Since it was a 3yr old dead thread when you resurrected it... and we still have red/blue/white light (which I like). I think the devs have made their choice.

[Finess]

I like the 3 lights system. Especially when I switch to red and visibility really gets better with it! 👍