Marine tactics

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Under naval tactics refers to tactics that are used in combat at sea. Sea tactics generally differ from land tactics, as some elements that dominate land combat are removed at sea, while other factors are given greater weight.

Differences between land and sea tactics

  • At sea there are hardly any geographical elements, there is no different terrain (field, forest, swamp, mountain, etc.) on which armed forces can move at different speeds. The depth of the fairway can only play a role near the coast or with submarines and ships are more difficult to see at night against the background of a coast than against the open sea. Otherwise, all units move equally well through the combat area. There is no cover in the area, no obstacles such as B. rivers that have to be crossed. There is no higher terrain from which one has particularly good visibility and fire positions.
  • There are no classic attackers and defenders, all sides are always on the move. Tactical advantages and disadvantages, such as B. giving up cover by the moving attacker is not necessary.
  • At the time when ships were armed with cannons and artillery, basic artillery rules were much more important at sea than on land. The effective range of a ship's gun is based on its own firepower and the maximum increase in the gun barrel. It is not dependent on the positioning of the gun (height advantages by stationing on heights), nor are there barriers that create blind spots such as B. the back of a mountain that cannot be shot at by a gun. When fighting over longer distances, however, it must be taken into account that the target itself will move. The guns must be aimed at the point where the ship will be when the projectile hits, not where it is when it is launched. Because of the relatively small size of a ship as opposed to land targets, the fire must be extremely accurate. In addition, changes in the position of your own ship, such as fluctuations in elevation caused by the ship rolling in the high seas, must be taken into account. The armor of a ship must take into account the angle of the incoming shells. At a short distance, warships shot in a flat arc (flat fire), the shells hit the ship from the side, which had to be armored accordingly. At a greater distance, however, the trajectories of the projectiles became very steep and hit the ship's deck directly from above, so it had to be armored separately. Side and top armor only protected against shells from a certain distance, the different vulnerabilities of ships at different distances (the so-called immunity zones ) influenced the combat tactics. Army tanks , on the other hand, have almost only side armor and are barely protected against projectiles falling directly from above (an unlikely case in land combat).
  • At the time of the sailing ships, the weather had an enormous influence on the battlefield. A fleet with the wind at its back could maneuver very differently than a fleet that had to steer against the wind. The correct use and, above all, the early anticipation of changes in the weather using the smallest signs were extremely important and could only be learned through many years of experience. For this reason, young admirals were almost never to be found in the Navy , while many compatriots reached the rank of general before their 30th birthday or held similar high positions (e.g. Napoléon Bonaparte , Wellington ) and commanded large armies. The few exceptions, such as B. Juan de Austria at the sea ​​battle of Lepanto were mostly due to political reasons.

Marine tactics

Overwater combat tactics

This was the dominant tactic in naval warfare from the introduction of pivoting gun turrets (around 1870) until World War II . The aim was to achieve the optimal artillery fire position in the battle between the battleships of two fleets.

The counter-maneuver for Crossing the T , successfully used for the first time in the Battle of the Skagerrak .

  • (Carrier) combat groups / depth staggering

This tactic requires a task force consisting of a flagship (usually the largest, e.g. aircraft carrier) and several escort ships (guided missile destroyers, ASW frigates, submarines). The aim is to achieve maximum protection against submarines, surface ships and aircraft by staggering the units. The inner core is formed by the flagship and the suppliers . The other ships are grouped around it, depending on their armament. The aim is to mitigate potential dangers such as missile attacks through deep defense to such an extent that the self-defense systems of the core ship have no problems with them.

In the case of a carrier association, for example, the following theoretical depth staggering against missile attacks arises: In essence, the flagship and a guided missile destroyer that supports the carrier's short-range air defense. Other destroyers (e.g. Spruance or Kidd class ) enclose the core in a loose formation and form a defense area with their close-range air defense weapons. A little further out there are ships with a higher anti-aircraft range (e.g. Arleigh Burke class ), which includes most other ships. Still further away, carrier aircraft and a Hawkeye patrol the area for air surveillance and early warning. In order to prevent self-fire from guided missiles, the carrier aircraft must always maintain a minimum distance from the lower air defense area, except of course during take-off and landing. In addition, ASW frigates are distributed between the individual ships in order to react to possible submarine attacks. If, for example, an FK attack occurs, this will be recognized by the Hawkeye, whereupon the air patrol will make its first interception attempts. After the missiles enter the defense zone of the Arleigh Burke destroyers, anti-aircraft missiles counteract them. Missiles still on the approach are then fought by the SAMs with shorter range by the other destroyers until the attack can ultimately be completely repulsed by the weapons in the close range.

Underwater combat tactics

  • "Float":

A tactic used mainly by SSNs to locate enemy boats. The submarine "brakes" until it only drives control speed. In this phase passive tracking devices ( sonar ) are used to listen for other boats. If no contact is found, the boat accelerates and changes location to slow down again and listen.

A maneuver, mainly carried out by SSBNs of the former Soviet Navy, in which the captain lets his boat turn 360 ° at regular / irregular intervals in order to check his aft, acoustic "blind spot" for pursuers.

  • "Bastione":

To protect their SSBNs against enemy action, the Soviet Navy formed so-called bastions. These were areas in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean in which the strategic submarines operated. These areas were shielded from enemy forces by Soviet SSNs as well as other surface and air forces.

  • "Hide":

In order to escape detection / tracking by surface units, submarines can hide under the so-called thermocline . This boundary layer in the water breaks and reflects sound, which makes it difficult to locate using sonar.