h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

So how would you simulate a submarine hunting ship? You couldn't use handgrenades as I understand it. I guess you'd have to build some scaffolding and have the 'hunter-ship' fire his shotgun strait down.

A friend of mine told me a few things about his career as a submariner. One thing it pointed out was how wrong Hollywood is about showing depth charges. He said that unless you heard the charge bounce off the hull of your boat, you weren't very concerned about them. He said that unless there was an explosion VERY close to your hull or directly below it no damage would be done. His reasoning, (which, now that I think about it, seems to make sense) is that the vast majority of the force of an underwater explosion is directed strait up *because* of the uncompressability of water.

He also spoke of being handed a rifle and told to get out there and retake the embassy (in Aden, Yemen, 1966 I believe). His reply was "I'm a Navy man... what do I know about rifles?!"

Anyway, I loved this entry.

That's absolutely right about the charges. Most of the U-boats sunk by the allies in WWII were depth-charged, which would either damage them or force them to the surface, where they were then strafed or bombed until destroyed. The main effect was a psychological one. For this reason, many navies switched from the large drum charges to smaller, rocket propelled bombs that could be scattered over a wider area. The British called it the 'Hedgehog'. To this day, the Russian navy uses a similar system.

Yep, you pretty much summed it up for the uninitiated. About the only thing missing was that if for some reason you're a pussy and have issues with implementing said protocal, you have NO WHERE to run. Best make sure you packed your nuts in your sea bag before you leave port.Just stow them next to whatever "buzzing" devices you may have brought for....luck!