Albatros F543
| This page is about the Italian gunboat Albatros F543. For the German motor torpedo gun boat, see Albatros. |
Contents
Description
Laid down on 27 June 1953, launched on 18 July 1954, and entered into service on 1 June 1955, the Albatros F543 was the first ship of the Albatros-class corvettes to be built. With the role of convoy flanking and anti-submarine search, she was in service from 1955 until October 1962 under the 10th A/S Squadron of the 1st Naval Division. She would only carry out escort missions, submarine search operations, and intercoastal patrols, and in fact, she would be used for Fisheries Surveillance in the Sicilian Channel until June 1983 when she was transferred back to La Spezia, only to be removed from service after 3 years and decommissioned in 1986.
Introduced in Update "Wind of Change", the Albatros F543 is a very good corvette thanks to its firepower: the SMP 3 cannons can only equip HE and HE-VT shells, but thanks to its continuous and quick firing without overheating compared to other 76 mm cannons, you can cause a lot of surface damage destroying the enemy ship by explosive damage and continuous crew loss. Meanwhile the 40 mm Breda-Bofors cannons with their rapid fire rate can quickly destroy any small targets. Additionally, the 76 mm are able to be equipped with HE-VT, and the Albatros is equipped with a radar that can lock on to enemy aircraft, so it will be child's play to destroy enemy aircraft.
General info
Survivability and armour
The survivability of the Albatros F543 is decently able to withstand several enemy hits, the crew consists of 117 people so you have decent survivability against enemy damage to the hull, armaments, and fires on the ship. However, if the ship is under continuous enemy fire, it is not able to respond to enemy fire because many times they will start to shoot down all your armaments first so in the end try to avoid such situations where possible.
Mobility
For a frigate, the Albatros F543 is very manoeuvrable and decently fast, which allows it to dodge some enemy fire coming towards your ship and also to dodge any torpedoes or enemy bombs. It can accelerate both forward and backward quickly, but it struggles to slow down, so, in this case, it can help to steer left and right to slow down further.
| Mobility Characteristics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Game Mode | Upgrade Status | Maximum Speed (km/h) | |
| Forward | Reverse | ||
| AB | |||
| Upgraded | 54 | 25 | |
| RB/SB | |||
| Upgraded | 39 | 18 | |
Modifications and economy
| Seakeeping | Unsinkability | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Focus on unlocking OM-2 HE and OM-2 HE-VT shells after repairs and extinguishers to give you an advantage in firepower against both naval and air targets
Armament
Primary armament
The main armament is composed of two 76 mm SMP 3 in single positions, located one in front and one in the back. They do not overheat. The guns can only be loaded with high-explosive shells: OM-1 and OM-2. OM-2 has more explosive filler than OM-1, and these bullets are able to disable any component present in enemy ships from the armament up to the engines thanks to its explosive potential. Always try to disable the enemy armament before any other component.
In contrast, the HE-VT shells are perfect for shooting down enemy air targets from long to short range, and this projectile also has great explosive power with 0.864 kg of explosive so can destroy even a strategic bomber (B-17, He 177, etc) with a single shot.
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 100 m | 1,000 m | 2,000 m | 3,000 m | 4,000 m | 5,000 m | ||
| OM-1 HE | HE | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| OM-2 HE | HE | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| OM-2 HE-VT | HE-VT* | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | |||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| OM-1 HE | HE | 930 | 6.3 | 0 | 0.1 | 777.6 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
| OM-2 HE | HE | 930 | 6.43 | 0 | 0.1 | 864 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
| Proximity-fused shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Arming distance (m) |
Trigger radius (m) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | |||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| OM-2 HE-VT | HE-VT* | 930 | 6.43 | 0 | 0.1 | 500 | 15 | 864 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |
Secondary armament
The secondary armament consisting of a twin 40 mm Breda-Bofors turret is a great secondary for the simple fact that you have a high rate of fire and can use this armament against both coastal ships except those that have high survivability (LE Orla, HMS Peacock) and in particular very effective against air targets due to rapid fire and the radar which you can use to manually lock on to aircraft and shoot them.
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| HEI-T | HEFI-T | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | |||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| HEI-T | HEFI-T | 1,000 | 0.96 | 0 | 0.1 | 184 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
Additional armament
The Albatros can also be equipped with two Mk.10 Hedgehog mortars and two B TG 100 depth charge launchers, both of which are submarine-specific armaments but being that they are not in War Thunder, you can use them against both small and large ships, both of which cause severe hull damage, incapacitating the enemy ship and causing it to flood quickly.
Usage in battles
When preparing to use the Albatros F543 in battle, it is advisable to start with another ship or boat, allowing the enemy to approach closer to your spawn. Once the conditions are right, spawn the Albatros F543 (this will usually be at the destroyer spawn since it is a frigate). Engage the enemy vessels using your 76 mm cannons: while stock, you will only have the OM-1, but after researching the OM-2 HE, you will be able to inflict significant damage to enemy ships due to the explosive mass of the shell. Aim your shots at the main guns and then at the bridge to disable the enemy's most lethal armament. Keep an eye on the radar for incoming enemy planes, and use the 40 mm Bofors-Breda to take them down. Alternatively, lock onto the enemy plane and take shots with the 76 mm OM-2 HE-VT to effectively shoot down the plane attacking you or an ally. For air and naval targets, the 40 mm Bofors-Breda can be left in AI mode. Depending on the map, it's recommended to play around a sheltered position for safety to take cover if the main armament gets destroyed.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent AA armament
- The main armament does not overheat
- Search and Track radar for air targets
Cons:
- Low speed and acceleration
- Don't have any AP rounds
History
Albatros-class
The Albatros-class consisted of 10 ships built by Italy to give to some NATO nations using American funds to increase the defence capabilities of these nations under the Mutual Defence Assistance Program. All Albatros-class corvettes were originally equipped with two 76 mm SMP 3 cannons placed at the front and rear, a twin 40 mm Breda-Bofors turret at the rear, and a Hedgehog launcher to attack submarines. Later, the various nations would alter the armament to their own configurations.
Of the Albatros-class, 3 corvettes would be built for Italy, 4 corvettes for Denmark (known as the Triton-class), 2 corvettes for Indonesia (heavily modified and slightly enlarged, forming the Pattimura-class), and finally 1 corvette for the Dutch navy.
Service history
Laid down on 27 June 1953, launched on 18 July 1954 and entered into service on 1 June 1955, the Albatros F543 was the first ship of the Albatros class to be built, to support allied ships in convoy in the role of submarine-destroyer and in defence against enemy small ships, and to patrol the coasts. She was assigned to the 10th A/S Squadron of the 1st Naval Division until October 1962, and on 4 March 1956, she was awarded the combat flag by the ANMI (Associazione Nazionale Marinai d'Italia) Group of Ivrea in Genoa. After active service, she went on to serve as a training ship, carrying out fishing surveillance missions in the Sicilian Channel until June 1983, before being permanently transferred to La Spezia where, in 1986, she was taken out of service and decommissioned.
Devblog
In the early 1950s, the Italian Ansaldo shipyard designed a new class of corvettes that subsequently ended up being selected by NATO to equip several member states' navies under the Mutual Defence Assistance Program (MDAP). As a result, Ansaldo initially received orders to construct a total of eight ships, of which three were destined for service in the Italian navy, one with the Dutch and the last four with the Danish navy. Several years after the initial order was placed, Indonesia also expressed interest in procuring the Albatros-class corvette, as it became known, for its own navy and subsequently placed an order for two vessels to be constructed.
The Albatros-class was the first series of warships constructed by Italian shipyards following the end of WWII. Albatros itself was completed and commissioned in 1955, with the remainder of the ships being delivered to their respective operators until 1957. In service, the Albatros corvettes experienced some issues with their primary weapon - the automatic 76mm SMP 3 cannons - being considered too complex. Despite this and the vessels perceived lacklustre speed, Albatros-class corvettes were considered successful and would end up serving up until the early 1990s before the Italian navy finally decommissioned their last vessels from active service.
Media
- Skins
- Videos
See also
External links
| 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 |
