Fairmile A (ML100)

Fairmile A (ML100)

MTB-1(1)

MGB-61

Fairmile A (ML100)

MTB-1(1)

MGB-61

Britain

I Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
1.0	1.0	1.0

Class:

Motor gun boat

Boat

Research:2 900

Purchase:700

Show in game

Description

The Fairmile A (ML100) is a rank I British motor gun boat with a battle rating of 1.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.83 "Masters of the Sea" along with the British fleet.

General info

Survivability and armour

The Fairmile A has little to no armour, therefore a few good shots to the engine and ammo rack will make quick work of the Fairmile A. The Fairmile A has a crew of 14, which is small compared to the Soviet OD-200 and the German R-boot R-41. In terms of survivability, it is best to stay at a distance of about 1.40km from the enemy, so you're just out of reach. But you don't want to be too far otherwise you won't be able to hit the target with the 3 pdr armament.

Mobility

The Fairmile A has a top speed of around 37 km/h. It is fairly slow at turning. Since the Fairmile A has a low top speed, it is hard to catch up to the more agile motor torpedo boats, but you should be able to catch up to similar ships such as the Soviet OD-200.

Armament

Primary armament

The primary Gun is a 3 pdr QF Hotchkiss cannon. It is very slow at reloading and has a slow firing rate. It cannot fire towards the front of the ship, only from the sides or rear of the ship due to its positioning. However, the 3 pdr is capable of taking out motor torpedo boats and other ships. The 3 pdr has a high explosive (HE) shell, of which a single shot can destroy a motor torpedo boat at close range if you aim for the engine or ammo rack.

Secondary armament

In addition to the 3 pdr QF Hotchkiss cannon, the Fairmile A (ML100) has three turrets with dual-mount 7.72mm Lewis machine guns. They are capable to destroy lightly armoured motor torpedo boats and enemy planes.

Special armament

12 x Mk.VII depth charge

Usage in the battles

The best way to use this ship is to take out other slow-moving ships with the 3 pdr gun. The main gun fires very slowly and is slow to reload, so its best to switch to the Lewis guns scattered around the ship to take out any approaching boats. Watch out for other motor torpedo boats that are approaching, as this boat is a bit slow so they will hit you with torpedoes if you don't shoot first.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good 3pdr gun
• Three turrets of dual-mounted Lewis guns
• Access to 12 depth chargers

Cons:

• 3 pdr gun is slow to fire and reload
• 3 pdr shells have slow velocity
• Boat is a bit slow

History

The Fairmile A was a series of 12 ships designed prior to the start of WWII, with the British Admiralty purchasing all 12 at the start of hostilities. Intended to serve as a light coastal patrol craft the had a unique modular design that could be manufactured by light industry prior to final assembly at a second line port, such as the ones that fabricated pleasure craft.

The ships were originally intended for coastal escort duties, being rigged with sonar and depth charges. However, as the war progressed and due to the lightweight design of the Fairmile A, the ships would see selective service restricted to British coastal waters much more so than the later variations of the same vessel.

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,

• reference to the series of the ship;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

ETC.

Sources

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• page on ship encyclopedia;
• other literature.