MAS 561
Contents
Description
The Velocissimo Classe 500, MAS 561 is a rank I Italian motor torpedo boat with a battle rating of 1.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update "Raining Fire".
General info
Survivability and armour
This ship has the entire hull made of wood, more precisely 40 mm of wood for the hull and 15 mm for the superstructure. Against all expectations, this wood is much more effective than one might think, in fact as a reserve boat the MAS 561 is one of the most resistant to damage. It can withstand rounds up to 20 mm, although after 20 mm it will only take a few moments to sink. There are 15 sailors, which may seem few but are enough compared to the 6 members of the G-5 and 7 of the LS 3. The advantage of having a relatively small ship and many members is that it will not take long to repair and extinguish fires on the ship.
Mobility
The MAS 561 is propelled to a speed of 80 km/h thanks to 2 engines of 500 horsepower. The peculiarity of the MAS is that its 2 engines are civilian engines, not special engines for the armed forces. These two engines are also capable of going to -33 km/h.
| Mobility Characteristics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Game Mode | Upgrade Status | Maximum Speed (km/h) | |
| Forward | Reverse | ||
| AB | |||
| Upgraded | 112 | 45 | |
| RB/SB | |||
| Upgraded | 80 | 32 | |
Modifications and economy
| Seakeeping | Unsinkability | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armament
Primary armament
The primary armament is composed of two 12.7 mm and a 20 mm, thanks to its 2 x 12.7 mm machine guns MAS 561 can cause serious damage in a short time to enemy ships, while the 20 mm causes little damage and has a very low rate of fire.
Additional armament
The MAS 561 is equipped with two types of additional armament. The first one is the W.200 torpedo, a torpedo that can navigate up to 81 km/h for 3 km. With the torpedo mode modification, the torpedo will lose 7 km/h but in compensation it gains 1,000 metres of range. These torpedoes are excellent for quick attacks on larger ships. With their good speed and 200 kg of explosive, it will be child's play to sink a ship.
The second additional armament of the MAS 561 is the B TG depth charge, two of these charges can be equipped and being positioned in the back of the ship will be easier to use. The B TGs with their 60 kg of explosive each are very effective to destroy ships that get a little too close, you can also flank the big ships and throw them at them.
Usage in battles
To engage other small ships, it is better to maximize your firepower shooting from the side so you can use the machine guns and the 20 mm cannon at the same time.
To engage strafing aircraft, move in the same direction as the aircraft, lock the target, go to the gun sight view and lead your fire to the engine of the plane or cockpit if its a twin-engine plane. Once you destroyed it, or if you are not able to hit it, change direction with a sharp turn to avoid their return fire, as the plane is usually not as manoeuvrable as the boat.
To engage larger ships, you should use islands as cover to hide from their fire. It is useful to think a route to your target or destination (capture point, ambush position, etc) right from the start having all the present cover of the map and allies into account. To attack, you must get as close as possible to the target without getting destroyed. To do this, you must make sure the large ship is engaged in a firefight with another ship. Hold your fire to remain undetected and sneak to your target at high speed. Once you are close enough to launch a torpedo, launch them and get back behind cover as fast as possible using a smoke screen or terrain to conceal your escape.
The MAS 561 is a rather odd ship, despite being the reserve ship equipped with the largest calibre armament, its rate of fire and small magazine, as well as its inability to fire directly forward, drastically limit its potential. However, it can still be a significant threat to other ships. The best strategy when using the cannon is not to sail forward, but to turn your back on the enemy. This way you can use the full operational area of the weapon while exposing little of the hull, which increases the ship's survivability by a few crucial seconds. The best way is to stay behind cover and only move backwards when engaging and then return to cover. One-on-one combat against almost any other reserve will not work in your favour, so the element of surprise is very important.
Pros and cons
Pro:
- Good top speed - 80 km/h in RB, 112 km/h in AB
- Good turn time (~20 seconds AB/RB)
- Good torpedoes (speed 74 km/h, range 4 km, explosive mass 200 kg)
- Good acceleration
- Good armament - two 12.7 mm and one 20 mm cannon
- Effective 12.7 mm
Cons:
- No armour
- 20 mm has small magazines and slow rate of fire (~3 seconds for reload after 12 rounds)
- Terrible survivability (compared to other ships)
- The 20 mm cannon is positioned at the back
- Angle of fire of the 20 mm cannon only 270°, the cannon can't shoot towards the front of the ship
- No anti-aircraft protection
- Aircraft can strafe the ship and knock it out with a few well placed shots.
History
MAS type "500"
The project for the MAS type "500" was presented in November 1935, because Italy needed motorboats armed with modern torpedoes (for that time) with a guaranteed speed of 44 knots assured by 2 petrol engines Isotta Fraschini "Asso" of 1,000 horsepower each.
This new class of MAS was studied by Cantieri Baglietto of Varazze and was shown to the Minister of the Navy and then accepted by Prime Minister Benito Mussolini.
The MAS type "500" were small fast wooden boats, unlike the MAS of the First World War they were much faster. They got different armaments over time and also different modifications.
The MAS type "500" were composed of almost 100 units, these wooden boats then obtained several modifications such as the use of metal instead of wood for the hull of the boat, and increases in size and crew complement.
The MAS type "500" were produced in four series.
The first units of the MAS "500" had a wooden hull (the MAS 525 had a metal hull) with a hull with two steps and a range of 400 miles at 42 knots and 1000 at 6 knots with auxiliary engines.
There were 26 units of 1st Series from MAS 501 to MAS 525. In particular, the MAS 424 had 3 Isotta Fraschini engines with 3 propellers instead of 2 but without auxiliary engines.
There were 24 units of 2nd Series from MAS 526 to MAS 550. 2nd Series had the greater dimensions, were built with two-stepped wooden hulls, and had a range of 360 miles at maximum speed or 1,100 miles at 6 knots. MAS 550 had a metal hull.
There were 13 units of 3rd Serie from MAS 551 to MAS 564 divided into 2 groups.
1st Group from MAS 551 to MAS 554 had metal hulls, with a range of 350 miles at maximum speed and 850 miles with auxiliary engines.
2nd Group from MAS 555 to MAS 564 had wooden hulls, with a range of 395 miles and 913 miles respectively.
The MAS of 3rd Series changed the 13.2 mm Breda machine gun with the 20/65 Breda machine gun, this made the gun more effective against enemies at medium distances.
There were 12 units of 4th Series from MAS 566 to MAS 576. These units were almost identical to those of the 3rd Series with some minor changes such as the adoption of the helm of manoeuvre in the bridge, the replacement of the shaft with support for the Breda 6.5 mm machine gun and the increase in the supply of ammunition for the 20/65 Breda machine gun
MAS type "500" in-game:
- 1st Series: X
- 2nd Series: X
- 3rd Series: MAS 555, MAS 561 (Mod. MNR)
- 4th Series: MAS 569
MAS 561
After the armistice announced by Pietro Badoglio, 8 September 1943, the various military forces of the Kingdom of Italy were divided, and in 23 September 1943, Mussolini succeeded in founding the RSI (Italian Social Republic) and founded a new military corps to counter the Allies who continued to advance into Italy. In particular, the MNR (National Republican Navy), the fascist navy of the RSI, put into service former ships of the Regia Marina, one of which was the MAS 561. It was scheduled to be transferred to the Adriatic Sea, but was not carried out.
Later it was put into service, but before service in the MNR it was modified with the addition of two 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT.
Later the MAS 561 was renamed SA 16 for German purposes.
On 23 April 1945, the MAS 561 sank with its entire crew.
Media
- Images
See also
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Italy boats | |
|---|---|
| Motor torpedo boats | MC-490 · Freccia P-493 · MAS 555 · MAS 561 · MAS 569 |
| MS-15 · MS-53 · MS-472 · Stefano Turr · VAS 201 · GIS 811 · MS 444 · MC 485 | |
| Motor gun boats | MAS 441 · MS-473 · MV-611 · Alano · Sparviero |
| Motor torpedo gun boats | Saetta P-494 |
| Gunboats | Albatros · Alcione |
