UnRep times:

 

 

 

To calculate a [rough] unrep you need to know factors:

With UnRep operations at sea you got 2 possible transporting options:

 

1: by cables between the ships

2: helicopter shuttles

 

What I know about transportation by cable is that the sea must be relative calm; the ships rolling during this operation due to the displacement and speed of the ships so close to each other [about 10-20 meters].

 

Photo: US Navy

 

The transport between the ships by cable line is relative slow. Electro engines or people running the cables. So it takes at least minutes to bridge the distance between the ships, but you must also calculate time to click on/off the payload from the cable line and make room for the next load. There is of course a maximum weight that can be handled per single shuttle. And do not forget the safety/safety protocols…… You cannot say “Oeps” when a container splashed into the water.

 

The navy uses helicopters to transfer ammunition from the support vessels to the receiving ships.

 

US helicopter lifting ammunition containers

Photo: Us Navy

 

 

 

Transferring these crates and containers by helicopters goes much faster, but, just as transferring by cable, there are limitations as well:

 

A helicopter can carry limited weight

They transfer 1 item at the time, I have a collection of photographs showing UnRep operations; on all pics you see the helicopter carrying 1 or 2 items.

The smaller the receiving ship, the longer it takes, due to limited space [helicopter deck] and security protocols.

The metrological circumstances: UnRep a vessel in stormy weather takes much more time than when it is a calm day.

 

This is my 1 cent contribution for now. I personally doubt that the transferring time per item is 15 seconds.

 

 

 

snarF

A superb topic of discussion. Once they fix this bug in ANW, it's going to be very pertinent to scenarios.

 

It seems as though you are trying to discuss both VertRep [with helos] and UnRep [underway replenishment between ships] at the same time.

 

With regards to the PlayersDB, the VertRep poses some problems. These problems are also present in its progenitor, the HUD-II. By creating a loadout for helos i.e. allowing helos to carry ## Harpoons for transfer from the ammunition ship [AE] to the CVN, you inadvertently transform the helo into an attack platform because it can now be used to launch all those Harpoons at the same time. This has always been one of the big problems for trying to simulate VertRep. There might be a way around it, but none of them appear to be easy to implement.

 

The UnRep process via cables sounds like it is able to transfer a far greater volume of stores in a single operation since they are all pre-assembled on pallets. Now, the question are:

 

How long does a normal UnRep evolution take?

How much gets transferred in that time?

 

I knew of one man who served on AOE HMCS Protecteur. I hope that I can contact him for some help on this topic.

 

Very good points have been raised.

 

The weather is a particularly good point, but I don't think we can do anything about it in Harpoon since the game allows every boat and plane to fly even into hurricanes.

I would have hoped players were happy that RAS/Unrep now works. Individual preferences in regard to modelling are freely open to both discussion and editing via the database. There's a lot of things working in 3.9 that were killer bugs and even the inplementation of fully working models for DB Editors that wish to include their own logistics systems.

 

Of course the level of detail the average player wants and the effect of said on the game's playability need to be balanced. If for example you wish to transfer say 200 rounds of (5in) 127mm ammunition at a setting of 15 seconds, this will take 50 mins, of course at the same time adding a full reload of Mk 15 Phalanx ammo (7 rounds) will only add an additional 1.75 mins. So in this case the tranfer at the "despised" 15 secs may actually be in excess to the time taken in reality.

 

I would assume the ammo is palletised and may come in say pallets of 50 rounds. Is 50 minutes too long to transfer 200 rounds, of course there's a time component involved in the ships assuming the their transfer stations, so you are looking at an hour alongside each other to perform the example transfer.

 

When you view the issue in relation to individual weapons such as say RGM-84 Harpoons, of course transferring 4 missiles within a minute is ridiculous. Then again, reloading a Mk141 mount with Harpoons at sea can probably be described in the same way. The basic 15 sec rule fits with the transfer of multiple weapons at a standard rate. It is not aimed or intended in the case of the HUD series databases to allow for mount reloading at sea and underway. It was more aimed at the replenishment of aviation stores, in multiple quantities generating "realistic" overall time periods for these evolutions. I did not intend players to Exploit this feature and for people to use some basic common sense in regard to what can actually be loaded at sea while underway and in close proximity to the ongoing action. As always, each individual database editor is free to implement whatever model he sees fit to. Just because I use a particular system doesn't make it the LAW, nor should anyone feel compelled to copy my values or models.

 

Cheers

 

Darren

Folks,

 

I'll be attending the Australian National Archives shortly to review various RAN vessels "Proceedings Logs". These logs contain information regarding RAS evolutions conducted by the RAN's ships and record both time required and weapons transferred. I'll get things as realistic as possible as fast as possible.

 

Cheers

 

Darren