Hello Mr. tore,
In 1943 the Germans moved the hand wheel for venting the bow buoyancy tank from the forward torpedo room to the forward control room pressure hull above the hatch on the starboard side.
This was a significant and intentional change... I assume that the Germans wanted to vent the bow buoyancy tank to decrease the diving time; especially on a U-boat with the wider Atlantic bow. They would not need to vent the bow buoyancy tank on a standard dive, but in an Alarm Dive it may be advantageous...
In order to keep the horizontal balance, then I assume they would vent the aft buoyancy tank as well. The bow buoyancy tank would not need to be blown when surfacing because of the bow angle and height and with the open slots at the bottom of the tank; it would naturally drain. The only issue would be blowing the aft/stern buoyancy tank in this scenario, and that should be a normal function for the aft torpedo room crewman who have to assure the aft buoyancy tank is blown before starting the Junkers air compressor...
Comments?
Where is the stern buoyancy tank blowing valve located it the aft torpedo room?
Regards,
Don_