German Aircraft Carriers Review
German aircraft carriers Rhein, Weser, August von Parseval, and Manfred von Richthofen are now available for all players to research.
Read the article to learn how to efficiently use the specific traits of these ships and their squadrons.
Features of the New Ship Branch
- The aircraft have a high cruising speed, but somewhat small HP pool.
- Their attack aircraft are equipped with a new type of ammunition—armor-piercing rockets. These are capable of inflicting heavy damage to enemy citadels. However, they may also ricochet or fail to penetrate armor when hitting targets at acute angles—just like armor-piercing shells. When striking the thin armor of destroyers, they will overpenetrate in most cases and deal 1/10 of their maximum damage.
- German bombers carry armor-piercing bombs with high maximum damage values. A squadron initially flies at high altitude, and an attacking flight can dive without the need to first climb to a higher altitude. As it is quite difficult to adjust the position of the target reticle during an attack, and their bombs fall relatively slowly, they are most effective when dropped on slower targets.
- The torpedoes dropped by German aircraft are fast, but have short ranges and are capable of inflicting only modest damage.
- Starting from Tier VIII, not only torpedo bombers, but also dive bombers are equipped with the Repair consumable.
- They have accurate, long-range secondary batteries with greater armor penetration than their counterparts.
Tactics
The key to being efficient while playing German carriers is to correctly choose the appropriate targets for each squadron type.
German attack aircraft are most effective against cruisers. Plan your target run in advance, because all ship types can significantly reduce the damage from your attacks by positioning their hull at an acute angle.
- When attacking a cruiser, approach her side at a 90-degree angle and aim for the main armor belt at the center of the ship—by doing so, you’ll be able to hit the citadel and inflict more damage.
- When taking on battleships, aim higher than the main armor belt. Your rockets won’t be able to penetrate the strong citadel armor, but will inflict significant damage when hitting a ship’s casemates.
- In most cases, your rockets will overpenetrate destroyers when hitting them. Standard penetration is possible at more acute angles, but striking a ship at these angles increases the chances of a ricochet.
Armor-piercing bombs are effective against sluggish targets—battleships, primarily.
- Approach your target from the bow or stern, because it will be difficult to adjust your aim during an attack due to the specific diving mechanism of the aircraft.
- The reticle is located almost under the squadron, and doesn’t shift forward as much while diving as it does for other dive bombers.
- The angle at which bombs fall doesn’t really depend on the moment you drop them. The time it takes the bombs to fall, as well as the reticle location, are the main factors you need to consider in order to choose the correct moment to drop your bombs.
Fast torpedoes with short ranges are the main weapons that the German carriers can deploy against destroyers.
- When attacking battleships and cruisers, aim for their ends. These parts of the ships aren’t protected by anti-torpedo defenses, and you’ll be able to inflict more damage.
- Destroyers have greater chances of dodging your attacks, but even just a single German torpedo hit will be painful for them.
The German aircraft have modest HP pools, which means they can’t stay in the effective area of enemy AA defenses for too long. Choose individual targets or use your high speed to quickly withdraw from the area of enemy fire.
The ships’ secondary batteries are efficient relative to other nations’ aircraft carriers, and can be useful in repelling any enemy destroyers that manage to break through to you. However, don’t rely solely on your secondary battery—it’s not as powerful as that of a specialized battleship.
Commander Skills and Upgrades
For a Commander with 10 skill points we recommend:
- Air Supremacy
- Improved Engines
- Survivability Expert
- Aircraft Armor
- Improved Engine Boost
For 19 points you can select the following skills to reinforce your squadrons:
- Sight Stabilization
- Adrenaline Rush
- Torpedo Acceleration
- Last Gasp
Alternatively, you can invest in the skills that improve the AA defenses and the secondary battery of the carrier herself (Basic Firing Training and Advanced Firing Training), or Concealment Expert, which reduces the visibility of your ship and her planes.
The following upgrades will be useful:
- Air Groups Modification 1 upgrade
- Aircraft Engines Modification 1
- Aerial Torpedoes Modification 1
- For the fourth slot, choose an upgrade for the squadron type that you plan to use most
- Flight Control Modification 1
- Flight Control Modification 2
German aircraft carriers Rhein, Weser, August von Parseval, and Manfred von Richthofen are now available for all players to research.
