PT boats? What good are they?

[nashvillen]

Next JFB question on this subject: What is the best way to kill these "pests" (PT Boats)?

[Puhis]

ORIGINAL: nashvillen

Next JFB question on this subject: What is the best way to kill these "pests" (PT Boats)?

I guess it's surface combat TF and only destroyers. Fast E(scorts) might work as well?

I've been trying to use low flying fighters to kill PT-boats, but not any luck so far. Zeros will strafe them, but the 20 mm gun won't penetrate PT-boat "armor"...

[DuckofTindalos]

Sigh... Yes it will...[8|]

[nashvillen]

By "strafe" them with Zeros, are you putting them on Naval Attack or Sweep at 100 feet?

[Puhis]

Naval attack, 100 ft (or maybe 1000 ft, can't remember anymore).

[paulkenny]

In my two ongoing PBEmail games (both in mid January 42-me as Japan), I have seen around 20 PT attacks, one was successful, sinking an AP and an AKL IIRC. seems about right, have sunk around 10 PTs, seems about right.

They are expendible attack items and would HOPE that they werent more successful.

I have seen around 6 to 10 reports in the OP reports that a PT was hit (figure any hit is a sink), got to figure a few more PTs have gone down.

Pain in the butt but can be dealt with as the Japanese player. My biggest fear is when they are based at a location with minefields, running in a DD SCTF to deal with the PTs and run into a minefield, yech.

Always remember to put your TF on highest threat tolerance and give them an agressive commander.

[nashvillen]

OK, just had a turn in my current PBEM game. The combination of SCTFs with just DDs in them and Zeros set on Naval attack at an elevation of 100 worked. The DD SCTFs had four plus DDs in them and worked better than the Zeros, but I had two SCTFs of DDs and only one unit of Zeros allocated to this methodology.

[crsutton]

They are very effective vs barges. Historically correct.

[HansBolter]

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When in 1942 do they start to show up in numbers?

I'm in mid April and have 2 boats in the pool. The boats you start with can be returned to the pool to boost your count and make them available for use other than their starting locations.

I have seen Dutch PTs sink a CVL in the DEI. As some one pointed out best use is against unloading amphibious TFs. You can literally wreak havoc in the Phillipines with the American, Phillipine and Brit boats out of Hong Kong. Just be sure to check the stats of the TF commander and change to the most aggressive ones available. Persistence also counts. I have had the Phillipine boats run from 6 straight encounters only to hit paydirt on the 7th try.

[rjopel]

The american ones start showing up in the pool in August.

[crsutton]

Um guys, I asked that question back in March. My game is about 500 turns further along and I got scads of PTs now .[:D]

So far in the war my PTs have put torpedoes into two CAs and two or three DDs, not to mention a few Aks. By 1943 they all have radar and in mid 1943 some of them start to get some very nice firepower. (40mm and 37 mm guns) If they run into a barge TF, they will shoot it up very nicely. However, 9 times out of 10 when they meet warships they will get shot at for a while, perhaps losing a boat or two then disengage. I have them at every forward base for defensive purposes. The one thing they can do is when they engage surface forces, they cause the surface force to use up OP points. So if you get a round with your PTs and perhaps a round with some of your DDs-even if that surface force comes out on top, you will have a good chance that they are still in range of your bombers come daylight. I have had it happen a few times and done some damage to the Japanese surface fleet this way. I find PTs to be very useful. You can use them to escort barges as well-preventing sub surface attacks.

Offensively they can hit a base at night where you suspect your enemy is running fast transport into. Sometimes causing some problems.

We do have a house rule preventing multiple PT task forces at one base and limiting the TF size to six. Seems to work well.