Difference between revisions of "Type T-51b"

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{{About
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{{Specs-Card|code=jp_t51b}}
| about = Japanese motor torpedo boat '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
 
| usage = the premium version
 
| link = Type T-51a
 
}}
 
{{Specs-Card
 
|code=jp_t51b
 
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
 
}}
 
  
 
== Description ==
 
== Description ==
<!-- ''In the first part of the description, cover the history of the ship's creation and military application. In the second part, tell the reader about using this ship in the game. Add a screenshot: if a beginner player has a hard time remembering vehicles by name, a picture will help them identify the ship in question.'' -->
+
<!-- ''In the first part of the description, cover the history of the ship's creation and military application. In the second part, tell the reader about using this ship in the game. Add a screenshot; if a beginner player has a hard time remembering vehicles by name, a picture will help them identify the ship in question.'' -->
 +
[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
 +
{{Break}}
 
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} Japanese motor torpedo boat {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy"]].
 
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} Japanese motor torpedo boat {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy"]].
  
 
== General info ==
 
== General info ==
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Fleet-Armour}}
 
 
<!-- ''Talk about the vehicle's armour. Note the most well-defended and most vulnerable zones, e.g. the ammo magazine. Evaluate the composition of components and assemblies responsible for movement and manoeuvrability. Evaluate the survivability of the primary and secondary armaments separately. Don't forget to mention the size of the crew, which plays an important role in fleet mechanics. Save tips on preserving survivability for the "Usage in battles" section. If necessary, use a graphical template to show the most well-protected or most vulnerable points in the armour.'' -->
 
<!-- ''Talk about the vehicle's armour. Note the most well-defended and most vulnerable zones, e.g. the ammo magazine. Evaluate the composition of components and assemblies responsible for movement and manoeuvrability. Evaluate the survivability of the primary and secondary armaments separately. Don't forget to mention the size of the crew, which plays an important role in fleet mechanics. Save tips on preserving survivability for the "Usage in battles" section. If necessary, use a graphical template to show the most well-protected or most vulnerable points in the armour.'' -->
Despite of lack of armor, a widely distributed crew of 18 makes this boat surprisingly survivable. Size-wise it's just large enough to distribute damage without having any obvious weak-spot. Additionally engines are well-protected by the fuel tanks (both: in front of, and behind the four engines), making it unlikely to ever lose all the power, though fires will be a real issue, making Fire Protection System arguably the most-wanted modification for the boat right after unlocking it.
+
The T-51b is unarmoured, apart from the 4 mm of steel making up the hull. It's a fairly large vessel for its class, and also not the fastest either, this means it will take a higher amount of damage comparatively, and will likely not survive incoming fire for very long. It does however have four compartments, so if fire is concentrated over a small area it can survive for a short amount of time.
 
 
One most interesting aspect of the boat (and a distinguishing factor from the [[Type T-51a]]) is the shield in front of the bridge and two gunners. While it does not show as the armor protection, it essentially works like one. Even 40mm {{Annotation|HEF|High explosive fragmentation}} shells hitting the shield will not do any permanent damage to any of the components of the ship - instead, the round will be stopped in place, exploding in vain. All of the high explosive rounds (e.g. {{Annotation|HEI|High explosive incendiary}}, {{Annotation|HEF|High explosive fragmentation}}, {{Annotation|IAI|Immediate-action incendiary}}, {{Annotation|FI-T|Fragmentation incendiary tracer}}) will suffer the same fate. It works even for rockets or a large-caliber shells, as long as they hit far-enough from the main hull to avoid overpressure damaging it.
 
 
 
Survivability of the boat can be increased even further, by always facing the enemy head-on, letting the [[wikipedia:Bow (watercraft)|bow]] soak up as much damage as possible without significantly affecting the crew. What should be avoided is sitting with exposed sides to the enemy, as it allows them to quickly run the crew down by spreading gunfire on the entire length of the ship.
 
  
 
=== Mobility ===
 
=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Fleet-Mobility}}
 
 
<!-- ''Write about the ship's mobility. Evaluate its power and manoeuvrability, rudder rerouting speed, stopping speed at full tilt, with its maximum forward and reverse speed.'' -->
 
<!-- ''Write about the ship's mobility. Evaluate its power and manoeuvrability, rudder rerouting speed, stopping speed at full tilt, with its maximum forward and reverse speed.'' -->
The T-51b isn't a hugely fast vessels by MTB standards, reaching a max of 52 km/h in RB, and 73 km/h in AB. It's also a fairly long boat, so it has a fairly wide turning circle, and takes some time to adjust direction. Its acceleration and speed in reverse also isn't too impressive. Overall, it's fast enough to cruise around the map and reach the spots it needs to, but it does lack the overall mobility to get out of trouble when avoiding bombs or trying to escape from a disadvantageous position.
+
The T-51b isn't a hugely fast vessels by MTB standards, reaching a max of 52 km/h in RB, and 73 km/h in AB. It's also a fairly long boat, so it has a fairly wide turning circle, and takes some time to adjust direction. Its acceleration and speed in reverse also isn't too impressive. Overall, it's fast enough to cruise around the map and reach the spots it needs to, but it does lack the overall mobility to get out of trouble when fighting faster craft.
 
 
{{NavalMobility}}
 
 
 
=== Modifications and economy ===
 
{{Specs-Economy}}
 
  
 
== Armament ==
 
== Armament ==
{{Specs-Fleet-Armaments}}
 
 
=== Primary armament ===
 
=== Primary armament ===
{{Specs-Fleet-Primary}}
 
 
<!-- ''Provide information about the characteristics of the primary armament. Evaluate their efficacy in battle based on their reload speed, ballistics and the capacity of their shells. Add a link to the main article about the weapon: <code><nowiki>{{main|Weapon name (calibre)}}</nowiki></code>. Broadly describe the ammunition available for the primary armament, and provide recommendations on how to use it and which ammunition to choose.'' -->
 
<!-- ''Provide information about the characteristics of the primary armament. Evaluate their efficacy in battle based on their reload speed, ballistics and the capacity of their shells. Add a link to the main article about the weapon: <code><nowiki>{{main|Weapon name (calibre)}}</nowiki></code>. Broadly describe the ammunition available for the primary armament, and provide recommendations on how to use it and which ammunition to choose.'' -->
 +
[[File:T-51b deadzones.jpg|thumb|331x331px|Dead zones on the cannon mounting]]
 
{{main|25 mm/60 Type 96 (25 mm)}}
 
{{main|25 mm/60 Type 96 (25 mm)}}
  
The T-51b is equipped with three 25 mm cannons, two at the front and one at the rear. The presence of three cannons can lead for a very high damage output, though it can only bring two to bear on a target at once. The 25 mm cannons come with three belts:
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The T-51b is equipped with a triple 25 mm mounting, which on the surface offers huge damage potential: a single 25mm cannon is a powerful, the presence of three of these cannons can lead for a very high damage output. However, because of the shield present around the mounting, it does have a significant dead-zone, meaning that the cannons can't fire at a surface target in the red sections of the diagram to the right. This can make the T-51b quite a tedious vehicle to engage other vessels with. The 25 mm cannons come with three belts:
  
* Universal - Predominantly HE rounds with an AP round, good for combating all types of vessels but not the most powerful.
+
* Universal- Predominantly HE rounds with an AP round, good for combating all types of vessels but not the most powerful.
* API - Predominantly AP rounds with one HE round, good for combating armoured vessels.
+
 
* HEIT - Full HE belt with few tracers, the highest damage potential against light craft, but little viability against armoured targets.
+
* API- Predominantly AP rounds with one HE round, good for combating armoured vessels.
 +
 
 +
* HEIT- Full HE belt with few tracers, the highest damage potential against light craft, but little viability against armoured targets.
  
 
Overall, taking a mix of API and HEIT belts to switch between will let you cause maximum potential damage to all kinds of boats. The HEIT belt will cause impressive damage to lightly armoured boats- although they are slightly harder to aim as there are few tracers, and the API rounds will shred through the various armoured vessels and support craft you'll meet.
 
Overall, taking a mix of API and HEIT belts to switch between will let you cause maximum potential damage to all kinds of boats. The HEIT belt will cause impressive damage to lightly armoured boats- although they are slightly harder to aim as there are few tracers, and the API rounds will shred through the various armoured vessels and support craft you'll meet.
  
{{:25 mm/60 Type 96 (25 mm)/Ammunition|HEF-T*, HEI, HEF, AP-T}}
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=== Torpedo armament ===
=== Additional armament ===
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<!-- ''Torpedoes launchers are standard equipment on many ships and boats. Torpedoes are a significant means of defeating an opponent. Evaluate the position of the torpedo launchers, discuss the ammunition available, firing specifics such as dead zones, features of the torpedoes themselves, etc. If there is no torpedo armament, remove this section.'' -->
{{Specs-Fleet-Additional}}
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{{main|Type 2 (450 mm)}}
<!-- ''Describe the available additional armaments of the ship: depth charges, mines, torpedoes. Talk about their positions, available ammunition and launch features such as dead zones of torpedoes. If there is no additional armament, remove this section.'' -->
 
{{main|Type 2 (450 mm)|Type 95 depth charge}}
 
  
The T-51b is armed with two Type 2 torpedoes, they will easily destroy any MTB or large support craft, but as the maximum range is only 3 km you'll need to get a bit closer to the target or choke point than you would with other torpedoes, there's also no 'Torpedo mode' modification to allow for more travel distance, so there's no way to increase the range, this makes engaging Destroyers on the open sea quite tricky, as you'll need to make yourself vulnerable to be able to reach the torpedoes effective range.
+
The T-51b is armed with four Type 2 torpedoes, they will easily destroy any MTB or large support craft, but as the maximum range is only 3 kilometres you'll need to get a bit closer to the target or choke point than you would with other torpedoes, there's also no 'Torpedo mode' modification to allow for more travel distance, so there's no way to increase the range, this makes engaging Destroyers on the open sea quite tricky, as you'll need to make yourself vulnerable to be able to reach the torpedoes effective range.
 +
 
 +
=== Special armament ===
 +
<!-- ''Depth charges, mines, rocket launchers and missiles are also effective in skilled hands and can take an off-guard opponent by surprise. Evaluate the ammunition of this type of armament and rate its performance in combat. If there are no special armaments, remove this section.'' -->
 +
{{main|Type 95 depth charge}}
  
 
This boat can carry twelve Type 95 depth charges, which can be dropped to maim other naval targets, they have rather limited viability though as most MTBs will be able to outrun the explosion, however they are useful for sneaking up on the larger ships, as if you can reach them unnoticed one or two of these depth charges will sink the vessel, although overall they have quite limited viability in battle currently.
 
This boat can carry twelve Type 95 depth charges, which can be dropped to maim other naval targets, they have rather limited viability though as most MTBs will be able to outrun the explosion, however they are useful for sneaking up on the larger ships, as if you can reach them unnoticed one or two of these depth charges will sink the vessel, although overall they have quite limited viability in battle currently.
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== Usage in battles ==
 
== Usage in battles ==
 
<!-- ''Describe the technique of using this ship, the characteristics of her use in a team and tips on strategy. Abstain from writing an entire guide – don't try to provide a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought. Talk about the most dangerous opponents for this vehicle and provide recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of playing with this vehicle in various modes (AB, RB, SB).'' -->
 
<!-- ''Describe the technique of using this ship, the characteristics of her use in a team and tips on strategy. Abstain from writing an entire guide – don't try to provide a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought. Talk about the most dangerous opponents for this vehicle and provide recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of playing with this vehicle in various modes (AB, RB, SB).'' -->
A good positioning of the autocannons combined with a decent survivability and a small hitboxes of the guns and gunners behind the shields makes it possible to play T-51b in a very aggressive fashion, being able to easily out-damage most of the boats on its and lower BRs. Where the boat struggles is against a high-caliber shells, especially armor-piercing that will penetrate everything, head-to-tail. A good manoeuvrability makes it easy to avoid enemy torpedoes, but a relatively large size combined with a pitiful anti-air capability means that the enemy dive-bombers have to be avoided by a smart positioning rather than the raw firepower or dodging the bombs.
+
[[File:T-51b 1.jpg|thumb|420x420px|The T-51b engaging an American sub-chaser]]
 +
The T-51b is a fairly defensive boat. Its lack of ability to engage surface targets from the front means that it lacks the viability to be truly aggressive. It does however work fairly well defensively. The 25mm cannons have a fairly wide arc of fire towards the rear of the boat, so if this section is pointed towards the enemy the cannons can really do some damage. Aiming to engage from this setup is really the most consistent way to safely play the T-51b, sailing around on the move and engaging targets like most conventional MTBs would isn't going to work due to the large dead zones.
  
T-51b benefits the most from mobility upgrades. Default shells are perfectly usable, while the targetting speed is great regardless the upgrades. An interesting thing to consider would be unlocking the armor-piercing bullets - these allow a relatively quick and easy disposal of the [[S-38]], [[S-100]], [[LS 3]] or [[G-5]], a boats where damaging multiple components through the ships really counts, making T-51b nearly a hard-counter to them, especially if they try a direct, frontal attack. On the other hand, the [[Dark (Family)|Dark-class]] with its high-caliber, quick-firing autocannon is a deadly enemy for the T-51b, and should be avoided whenever possible.
+
Try and utilise the terrain of the map to protect yourself and angle the rear of the vessel towards where enemy boats are likely to come from. Aim to stay somewhat stationary while doing this as well, if you get caught out you can simply accelerate off and lay smoke as you're already facing away from the enemy. Also, try not to pick a location where enemies can potentially engage you at close range, this vessel is large, fairly slow to react, and can only fire from the back, so enemies can quite easily outmanoeuvre the T-51b if given the chance, the 25mm guns will work well up to around 2000 meters, so there's no need to stay at very close range, as all this does is allow enemies to take advantage of your weaknesses easier.
 +
 
 +
=== Modules ===
 +
{| class="wikitable"
 +
! Tier
 +
! colspan="2" | Seakeeping
 +
! colspan="2" | Unsinkability
 +
! colspan="2" | Firepower
 +
|-
 +
| I
 +
| Dry-Docking||
 +
| Tool Set||
 +
| 25 mm APT belt
 +
|-
 +
| II
 +
| ||Rudder Replacement
 +
| Fire Protection System||Smokescreen
 +
| 25 mm HEIT belts||
 +
|-
 +
| III
 +
| Propeller Replacement||
 +
| ||
 +
| Primary Armament Targeting||Depth Charges
 +
|-
 +
| IV
 +
| ||Engine Maintenance
 +
| New Pumps||
 +
| Artillery Support||
 +
|-
 +
|}
  
 
=== Pros and cons ===
 
=== Pros and cons ===
[[File:T-51b vs S-38b.jpg|thumb|right|T-51b engaging [[S-38b]] in point-blank range, a spread-out guns with an excellent guidance speed allow to track enemies even with an extreme angular speed]]
 
 
<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".'' -->
 
<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".'' -->
  
 
'''Pros:'''
 
'''Pros:'''
 
+
* Great damage potential from the 25mm cannons
* Great damage potential from the 25 mm cannons
+
* Four high damage torpedoes for engaging close range targets
* 360° gun cover with at least two guns being able to shoot at any given target
 
* Crew spread all around the boat makes it tricky to sink, even if none of them are behind the armor
 
* Forward gun shield stops High Explosive bullets (e.g. {{Annotation|HEI|High explosive incendiary}}, {{Annotation|HEF|High explosive fragmentation}}, {{Annotation|IAI|Immediate-action incendiary}}, {{Annotation|FI-T|Fragmentation incendiary tracer}}) or even rockets (like from [[BM-14-17]]) without suffering structural damage to the ship, though a higher caliber shells are very likely to damage the frontal section of the hull by the overpressure.
 
  
 
'''Cons:'''
 
'''Cons:'''
 
+
* Short maximum distance for the torpedoes
* Extremely narrow angles where all 3 guns can be used at the same time.
+
* Large dead zone for the cannons
* Two forward guns have just ±10° where both can be used (even though visually there's no obstruction for a far greater horizontal guidance)
+
* Fairly slow and unresponsive for an MTB
* Limited number of guns in a varied positions and with an unintuitive firing angles, making it difficult to snipe enemy dive-bombers from a safe distance
+
* Comparatively large, unarmoured target
* A relatively large boat with a sub-pair maximum speed and an unimpressive manoeuvrability makes for an easier target
 
* [[Type 2 (450 mm)|Torpedoes]] have a limited usability due to having just 3&nbsp;km range at 72&nbsp;km/h
 
  
 
== History ==
 
== History ==
 
<!-- ''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ship in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the ship and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Ship-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the ship's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).'' -->
 
<!-- ''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ship in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the ship and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Ship-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the ship's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).'' -->
 +
[[File:T-51b 2.jpg|thumb|537x537px|The T-51b in sail]]
 
The Type Ko MTB (甲型魚雷艇, T-51) is a Japanese large MTB inspired by the German S-boots.
 
The Type Ko MTB (甲型魚雷艇, T-51) is a Japanese large MTB inspired by the German S-boots.
This boat is separated into two group: No.10 class MTB (T-51a) and No.11 class MTB (T-51b).
+
This boat is separated into two group: No.10 class MTB (T-51a) and No.11 class MTB (T-51b) (Currently, the in-game model is a mix of the two classes' features).
  
 
After the completion of the No.1 class MTB ([[Type T-1|T-1]]), news about activity of the German [[S-38|Schnellboot (S-boot)]] from Europe reached the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). They started to copy the S-boot design, but they had only a simple sketch and one civilian motor boat owned by the Mitsui family built by Lürssen (a builder of S-boot). In that time, the Japanese did not have the experience to produce a wood-and-iron mixed large boat, so at first they built one prototype. ("Vessel No.600", later No.10 MTB)
 
After the completion of the No.1 class MTB ([[Type T-1|T-1]]), news about activity of the German [[S-38|Schnellboot (S-boot)]] from Europe reached the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). They started to copy the S-boot design, but they had only a simple sketch and one civilian motor boat owned by the Mitsui family built by Lürssen (a builder of S-boot). In that time, the Japanese did not have the experience to produce a wood-and-iron mixed large boat, so at first they built one prototype. ("Vessel No.600", later No.10 MTB)
Line 107: Line 118:
  
 
== Media ==
 
== Media ==
<!-- ''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.'' -->
+
''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''
<gallery>
 
T-51b 2.jpg|Pre-[[Update "Drone Age"]] T-51b model
 
T-51b 1.jpg|Pre-[[Update "Drone Age"]] T-51b engaging an American sub-chaser
 
</gallery>
 
;Skins
 
 
 
* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=jp_t51b Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]
 
  
 
== See also ==
 
== See also ==
 
''Links to articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
 
''Links to articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
 
 
* ''reference to the series of the ship;''
 
* ''reference to the series of the ship;''
 
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''
 
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''
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== External links ==
 
== External links ==
 
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
 
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
 
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
 +
* ''encyclopedia page on the ship;''
 
* ''other literature.''
 
* ''other literature.''
  
===References===
+
==References==
 
<references>
 
<references>
 
<ref name="ShigeruNavy">Makino Shigeru [牧野茂] & Fukui Shizuo [福井静雄], ''Navy Shipbuilding Technology Overview [海軍造船技術概要]'' (Konnichi no Wadaisha, 1987), pp.716-719.</ref>
 
<ref name="ShigeruNavy">Makino Shigeru [牧野茂] & Fukui Shizuo [福井静雄], ''Navy Shipbuilding Technology Overview [海軍造船技術概要]'' (Konnichi no Wadaisha, 1987), pp.716-719.</ref>

Revision as of 17:07, 10 May 2020

Rank IV USSR | Premium | Golden Eagles
Tu-1 Pack
jp_t51b.png
Type T-51b
Research:48 000 Specs-Card-Exp.png
Purchase:180 000 Specs-Card-Lion.png
Show in game

Description

GarageImage Type T-51b.jpg


The Type T-51b is a rank III Japanese motor torpedo boat with a battle rating of 2.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy".

General info

Survivability and armour

The T-51b is unarmoured, apart from the 4 mm of steel making up the hull. It's a fairly large vessel for its class, and also not the fastest either, this means it will take a higher amount of damage comparatively, and will likely not survive incoming fire for very long. It does however have four compartments, so if fire is concentrated over a small area it can survive for a short amount of time.

Mobility

The T-51b isn't a hugely fast vessels by MTB standards, reaching a max of 52 km/h in RB, and 73 km/h in AB. It's also a fairly long boat, so it has a fairly wide turning circle, and takes some time to adjust direction. Its acceleration and speed in reverse also isn't too impressive. Overall, it's fast enough to cruise around the map and reach the spots it needs to, but it does lack the overall mobility to get out of trouble when fighting faster craft.

Armament

Primary armament

Dead zones on the cannon mounting

The T-51b is equipped with a triple 25 mm mounting, which on the surface offers huge damage potential: a single 25mm cannon is a powerful, the presence of three of these cannons can lead for a very high damage output. However, because of the shield present around the mounting, it does have a significant dead-zone, meaning that the cannons can't fire at a surface target in the red sections of the diagram to the right. This can make the T-51b quite a tedious vehicle to engage other vessels with. The 25 mm cannons come with three belts:

  • Universal- Predominantly HE rounds with an AP round, good for combating all types of vessels but not the most powerful.
  • API- Predominantly AP rounds with one HE round, good for combating armoured vessels.
  • HEIT- Full HE belt with few tracers, the highest damage potential against light craft, but little viability against armoured targets.

Overall, taking a mix of API and HEIT belts to switch between will let you cause maximum potential damage to all kinds of boats. The HEIT belt will cause impressive damage to lightly armoured boats- although they are slightly harder to aim as there are few tracers, and the API rounds will shred through the various armoured vessels and support craft you'll meet.

Torpedo armament

Main article: Type 2 (450 mm)

The T-51b is armed with four Type 2 torpedoes, they will easily destroy any MTB or large support craft, but as the maximum range is only 3 kilometres you'll need to get a bit closer to the target or choke point than you would with other torpedoes, there's also no 'Torpedo mode' modification to allow for more travel distance, so there's no way to increase the range, this makes engaging Destroyers on the open sea quite tricky, as you'll need to make yourself vulnerable to be able to reach the torpedoes effective range.

Special armament

Main article: Type 95 depth charge

This boat can carry twelve Type 95 depth charges, which can be dropped to maim other naval targets, they have rather limited viability though as most MTBs will be able to outrun the explosion, however they are useful for sneaking up on the larger ships, as if you can reach them unnoticed one or two of these depth charges will sink the vessel, although overall they have quite limited viability in battle currently.

Usage in battles

The T-51b engaging an American sub-chaser

The T-51b is a fairly defensive boat. Its lack of ability to engage surface targets from the front means that it lacks the viability to be truly aggressive. It does however work fairly well defensively. The 25mm cannons have a fairly wide arc of fire towards the rear of the boat, so if this section is pointed towards the enemy the cannons can really do some damage. Aiming to engage from this setup is really the most consistent way to safely play the T-51b, sailing around on the move and engaging targets like most conventional MTBs would isn't going to work due to the large dead zones.

Try and utilise the terrain of the map to protect yourself and angle the rear of the vessel towards where enemy boats are likely to come from. Aim to stay somewhat stationary while doing this as well, if you get caught out you can simply accelerate off and lay smoke as you're already facing away from the enemy. Also, try not to pick a location where enemies can potentially engage you at close range, this vessel is large, fairly slow to react, and can only fire from the back, so enemies can quite easily outmanoeuvre the T-51b if given the chance, the 25mm guns will work well up to around 2000 meters, so there's no need to stay at very close range, as all this does is allow enemies to take advantage of your weaknesses easier.

Modules

Tier Seakeeping Unsinkability Firepower
I Dry-Docking Tool Set 25 mm APT belt
II Rudder Replacement Fire Protection System Smokescreen 25 mm HEIT belts
III Propeller Replacement Primary Armament Targeting Depth Charges
IV Engine Maintenance New Pumps Artillery Support

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Great damage potential from the 25mm cannons
  • Four high damage torpedoes for engaging close range targets

Cons:

  • Short maximum distance for the torpedoes
  • Large dead zone for the cannons
  • Fairly slow and unresponsive for an MTB
  • Comparatively large, unarmoured target

History

The T-51b in sail

The Type Ko MTB (甲型魚雷艇, T-51) is a Japanese large MTB inspired by the German S-boots. This boat is separated into two group: No.10 class MTB (T-51a) and No.11 class MTB (T-51b) (Currently, the in-game model is a mix of the two classes' features).

After the completion of the No.1 class MTB (T-1), news about activity of the German Schnellboot (S-boot) from Europe reached the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). They started to copy the S-boot design, but they had only a simple sketch and one civilian motor boat owned by the Mitsui family built by Lürssen (a builder of S-boot). In that time, the Japanese did not have the experience to produce a wood-and-iron mixed large boat, so at first they built one prototype. ("Vessel No.600", later No.10 MTB)

The No.600 prototype was laid down in July 1942 by Yokohama Yacht Tsurumi factory and completed in November 1943. But because of the worsening of the war situation, they started mass-production the ship design before testing the prototype. Just afterwards, the Japanese receive official detailed drawings of 95-ft type S-boot. Basically, design of future T-51 and S-boat was similar, but there was much for the Japanese to learn.

In the designing of No.600, the Japanese simplified lots of part and material. Due to how well-crafted the S-boot design was, the simplification caused several problems. Though measures were taken to mitigate the problems, the vessel stability was not enough and so there were difficulties putting the ship into practical use.

No.600 was equipped with four Mark 71 Model 6 engines (water-cooled, 920 HP), which were a copy of the Italian MAS-451 MTB engines. There were two shafts, with two engines connected to one shaft by Vulkan coupling. However, this configuration caused an increase of weight and so the prototype exceeded the planned displacement of 84.2 tons, and instead reached 89.6 tons and so the maximum speed decreased. Because of this, the boat was redesigned into the No.11 class MTB, which eliminated the coupling and so each engine had their own shaft. With this, the single No.10 class design (No.600 prototype) was named the T-51a, with the redesigned No.11 class as the T-51b that would be the model for subsequent boat numbers.

Armaments was also redesigned between the two class. The T-51a had one 25 mm twin machine gun and four 45 cm torpedoes, while the T-51b had three 25 mm single machine guns and two torpedoes.

No.10 (T-51a), No.13 and No.16 were built at Yokohama Yacht Tsurumi factory, while the other boats were built by a new shipyard, Yokohama Yacht Choshi factory. A total of ten Type Ko MTBs were laid down, but only 8 boats were completed (No.10 - No.17). Construction of Type Ko was cancelled in August 1944. No.18 was planned to equip a small diesel engine, but it was not completed. The construction of Type Ko MTBs was delayed because the No.11 class MTBs need to resolve problem discovered during the testing of No.10 class MTB. Also the Mk.71 Mod.6 engines required advanced manufacturing technology and so production of engine was also delayed.

No.10 MTB was dispatched to Truk island just after completion, but a fire broke out and sank due to air raid. No.12 MTB was brought out from Choshi to Yokosuka to equip weapons, but just after that was completed, she sunk due to an electric motor spark that ignited the gasoline and subsequently exploded.

Other vessels was deployed to the Special Attack corps, but most of them did not experience the actual battle. Only one boat deployed at Habu port of Izu Oshima attacked an enemy submarine.

Also, No.16 MTB equip only two engine. She used space of other engines for hold and used for tender boat of other small MTBs and midget submarines at Kawadana Assault Corps.[1][2]

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to 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.

External links

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  • topic on the official game forum;
  • encyclopedia page on the ship;
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References

  1. Makino Shigeru [牧野茂] & Fukui Shizuo [福井静雄], Navy Shipbuilding Technology Overview [海軍造船技術概要] (Konnichi no Wadaisha, 1987), pp.716-719.
  2. Imamura Yoshinobu [今村好信], (2011) Story of Japanese Torpedo Boats [日本魚雷艇物語] (Kojin-sha, 2011) pp.55-60.


Japan boats
Motor torpedo boats  Type T-1 · Type T-14 · Type T-14 (mod. 1) · Type T-38 · Type T-51a · Type T-51b · PT-15 · PT-808
Motor gun boats  Ha-Go (mod. 1) · Type 4 (mod. 2) · Type 4 (Mod 4) · Asagao (YTE-01) · PG 02
Armoured gun boats  Soukou-Tei · Soukou-Tei No.4
Gunboats  Chidori