How about this?

[swareiam]

Free roaming Fleet Diesel Submarines that do the following;

1. Stay fully surfaced while cruising to include a visible wake.
2. Activate the ships 8" deck gun between 1800 - 2500 yards of an enemy fleet. (The deck gun can only be operated by a player.)
3. It will become partially submerged within 1000 -1800 yards of an enemy fleet. (Only the conning tower would show.)
4. It will be subsurface within 1000 yards of the enemy fleet.
5. It will fire one torpedo within each 15 minutes of contact from within 3000 yards.
6. The shots will be randomly fired and not Match barrings, set and shoot on a pinpointed target.
7. Subs would have randomly programmed patrol routes and not allowed to operate as packs or stay on station.

In reaction to this new menus at sea, Fleet destroyers would be outfitted with depth charges station on the after decks operated by a player. Amidships torpedoes tubes could be added as well.

The following aircraft would have the weapons displays augmented with depth charges;

B-25
B-24
TBM
FM2
JU88
JU87
Boston

Well, what do you think?

[sandwich]

its pretty good

i dont really like the idea though because my pc is crap and i have to set the graphics so low the water is opaque concrete
i like the concept

i would more like the old japanese carrier subs

[BnZs]

Free roaming Fleet Diesel Submarines that do the following;

1. Stay fully surfaced while cruising to include a visible wake.
2. Activate the ships 8" deck gun between 1800 - 2500 yards of an enemy fleet. (The deck gun can only be operated by a player.)
3. It will become partially submerged within 1000 -1800 yards of an enemy fleet. (Only the conning tower would show.)
4. It will be subsurface within 1000 yards of the enemy fleet.
5. It will fire one torpedo within each 15 minutes of contact from within 3000 yards.
6. The shots will be randomly fired and not Match barrings, set and shoot on a pinpointed target.
7. Subs would have randomly programmed patrol routes and not allowed to operate as packs or stay on station.
8. During all submarine operations, the Iron Maiden song "Run Silent, Run Deep" will be piped through the players headphones as theme music.

There ya go!

[Golfer]

1000-1800 yards is really really really really really (did I mentione really?) close to a fleet for a submarine on the surface cruising along at max speed.

[Sakai]

Manning the deck gun though would ask for concentrated fire from the fleet which would be suicidal. 

[AKP]

yea,  but if used properly... a single sub could do some serious damage on a coastal town or base long before anyone finds it. (HorrwyWooood!!!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL3X_txAkgI  ...man that just makes me laugh everytime I see it.

Having said that... unless you give the sub the ability to submerge when under attack at any time, fighters and patrol bombers are going to make short work of it.  Think of it as a slower, lighter armed (as far as AA goes) less maneuverable PT boat.  I know that I would spend hours looking for them just so I could pop them and fly home.

And you would have to give DD's depth charges too... which wouldnt work the way fleet ops are currently set up.  There is no way a DD would just stand off and fire its 5" at a periscope 1000 yards out.  It would break formation, steam over and roll charges and HH's at it until its just a messy grease spot on the surface.

Its a good idea, and I wouldnt mind seeing subs in the game...  but I just dont know how they are going to make them work with the way fleet ops are currently set up... that, and I hear they are offing puppies now everytime someone asks for a sub in the game (ran out of kittens apparently)

Oh... and if we are giving depth charges out to bombers... the B25 needs the torpedo that the Navy version (PBJ) carried long before that ever happens.

[Karnak]

Deck guns were, if I recall correctly, 3 inches.  Most certainly not 8 inches.

[vonKrimm]

1000-1800 yards is really really really really really (did I mentione really?) close to a fleet for a submarine on the surface cruising along at max speed.

Unless it is night, a moon-less night, with a sea state of 3 or higher, and a dead-drunk watch on every ship in the fleet and approaching 90 degrees abeam.

[vonKrimm]

Deck guns were, if I recall correctly, 3 inches.  Most certainly not 8 inches.

& 4" & 5" & 6"x2, but the last only appeared on 2 EW subs that were not directly employed in sinking merchant shipping

[hitech]

5" were standard on South Dakota class which I believe is what was in that picture.

My father is a plank owner of this boat.

http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0833704.jpg

HiTech

[Krusty]

I was watching one of those shows on Discovery Channel where they go around wreck diving with ROVs. Mostly they look for salvagable stuff ($$$) but then take side-trips to visit WW2 subs and whatnot. Somebody made the comment that most German U-boats removed the deck guns, because they weren't used and slowed the ship down while submerged. They saw the deck plating where it was mounted, but it was gone. Helped ID the sub, at least in this TV show's case.

[frank3]

Especially later in the war, the deck-guns proved to be somewhat useless. Since the majority of the cargo-vessels would carry defensive armament, it would be nigh-suicidal to get into a gunfight with one.
And I believe the submarines were terribly unstable gunplatforms.

[Shark21]

How about allowing players to submerge anytime, but have the battery charge modeled so that with x-minutes of submerged propulsion, the sub would surface to re-charge the batts.
The idea of controlling the dive planes and buoyancy tanks sounds cool. "10 degree down bubble number 1"

Also, I like the idea of being able to fire my own torpedos on bearings I choose.

And, maybe at a certain depth (say surface to 40ft), you could see a kind of a shadow from the air to indicate a u-boot was down there. Deeper, no indication.

And while we're at it, how about coastal patrol planes and boats that can pick up downed aviators, hence awarding the rescuers points and preserving the points for the downed flyer. Or allow the sub to do that!

[frank3]

How about allowing players to submerge anytime, but have the battery charge modeled so that with x-minutes of submerged propulsion, the sub would surface to re-charge the batts.

Also, I like the idea of being able to fire my own torpedos on bearings I choose.

And, maybe at a certain depth (say surface to 40ft), you could see a kind of a shadow from the air to indicate a u-boot was down there. Deeper, no indication.

And while we're at it, how about coastal patrol planes and boats that can pick up downed aviators, hence awarding the rescuers points and preserving the points for the downed flyer.

The BBS is way ahead of you, since many years ago
These ideas were asked for about as much as the B-29, and elaborated in as many threads.

[Shark21]

And your point is Frank3?