United States Navy
Ships - 2
Supplement to second revision of Ships-2
March 1943
Description of New
Measures
The principal objectives of the new camouflage measures
are:
- To shorten the range at which vessels can first be
seen.
- To delay recognition.
- To reduce the chance of enemy hits after the
presence of the vessel has been detected by radar or any other means.
The first is accomplished by low visibility patterns
which resolve to uniform shades that match the backgrounds of sky and sea.
The second is achieved by deceptive patterns
which falsify the appearance of structure.
The third is done through target angle deception
by painting false perspective and confusing mass structures. The right
measure may accomplish all three objectives.
ANTISUBMARINE.
The hardest ships to see and recognize from submarine
and other low angle observations are painted light pattern Measures 16 and
33. The hardest ships to recognize and hit are painted Measure 32.
The best all-around antisubmarine measures is Measure
32.
The best one-color measures is Measure 23.
ANTIAIRCRAFT.
The hardest ships to see from high, steep angles are
painted Measure 31.
The best of the one-color measures is Measure 21.
RADAR AND SOUND DETECTION.
If it is reasonably certain that your ships will
first be detected by sound or radar, then Measure 32 should be given first
consideration because ships painted with the designs of this measure are most
difficult to recognize, and when sighted from certain angles give the illusion
of being on one course when actually on another. This false target angle
illusion varies from 10 degrees to 180 degrees.
There may be other conditions when it is considered
most important to deceive the enemy as to your type of vessel and confuse him
in range finding and focusing. Then again, Measure 32 is the best
measure. In other words, when it is more important to make a vessel hard
to hit, than to shorten the range at which it can first be seen, deception
painting is better than low visibility painting.
Again, when it cannot be predetermined where vessels
will operate or what conditions of light and weather will be, Measure 32 is
the best selection. The chief exception to selecting Measure 32 as an
antisubmarine measure is where it is known that vessels will be operating so
much of the time in the half light of cloudy weather, fog, predawn, or night,
that good visibility conditions and searchlight may be disregarded. In
this event ships may escape detection altogether by being painted Measure 16
or even White. Only in half light or bad weather conditions do large
ships have much chance of remaining invisible without being hull-down.
LOOKOUT DETECTION.
When it is reasonably certain that the first
detection of the presence of your ship, will be by eye or binoculars, then the
first consideration is to select a measure which will shorten the range at
which the ship will first be seen. It is then most important to know
whether the greatest threat of disclosure will be from a low, flat angle or
from a high, steep angle.
It is obvious that submarine and surface raiders are
included in the low, flat angle group, but not quite so obvious but equally
true, that much aircraft observation is also included. Aircraft flying
at low altitude and aircraft flying at a medium or even a high altitude when
"visibility is unlimited", sight ships at distances of 35 miles or
more at a low angle.
Nine times out of ten ships first sighted from low,
flat angles appear as dark spots against the sky background. The
best safe low visibility measure, i.e. to shorten the visible range, is
Measure 33.
ANTIAIRCRAFT.
Not all aircraft are flying at medium or high
altitudes relatively close aboard do they see ships at high, steep angles, and
then generally first detect ships by their wakes. However, when
proceeding at less than 12 knots the ships are generally seen before the wake,
and Measure 31 is the best hope of concealment.
RECAPITULATION.
The best all-around antisubmarine measure is Measure
32. The best one-color antisubmarine measure is Measure 23. The
best all-around antiaircraft measure is Measure 31. The best one-color
antiaircraft measure is Measure 21.
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