Ship:Z-39

14.8

Z-39

Destroyer | Germany | Tier VII

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points19,600

Main Battery

150 mm/55 Tbts KC/36T on an LDrh LC/38 mount2 х 1 / 1 х 2 pcs.

Rate of Fire8 shots/min

Reload Time7 sec

Rotation Speed8 deg/sec

180 Degree Turn Time22.5 sec

Firing Range11.8 km

Maximum Dispersion103 m

HE Shell150 mm Spr.Gr.

Maximum HE Damage2,200

Chance of Fire12 %

Initial HE Velocity835 m/s

HE Shell Weight45.3 kg

AP Shell150 mm P.Spr.Gr.

Maximum AP Shell Damage3,700

Initial AP Shell Velocity835 m/s

AP Shell Weight45.3 kg

Torpedo Tubes

533 mm Vierling2 х 4 pcs.

Rate of Fire0.7 shots/min

Reload Time90 sec

Rotation Speed  deg/sec

180 Degree Turn Time7.2 sec

TorpedoG7 Steinbarsch

Maximum Damage14,400

Torpedo Speed65 knot

Torpedo Range8.5 km

AA Defense

20 mm/65 C/38 on a twin mount2 х 2 pcs.

20 mm/65 C/38 on a Flak 35 Vierling L/38 mount2 х 4 pcs.

37 mm/69 Flak M42 on an LM/42 single mount2 х 1 pcs.

37 mm/69 Flak M42 on an LM/42 mount4 х 2 pcs.

37 mm/83 SK C/30 on a Dopp LC/30 mount2 х 2 pcs.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed36 knot

Turning Circle Radius670 m

Rudder Shift Time4.5 sec

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range7.5 km

Air Detectability Range3.5 km

Battle Levels

12345678910

VII

Special

Z-39 — German special premium Tier VII destroyer.

The last sister ship of destroyer Z-23 belonged to a series of ships laid down after the start of World War II (Zerstörer 1936A Mob). She carried 150mm guns. During 1944-1945, the ship underwent an overhaul with a considerable reinforcement of her AA defenses. This, however, required that one of the ship's main guns be demounted.

Z-39 was first released for sale worldwide on 18 May 2018. As of the 0.10.5 update (June 2021) She is no longer available.

Modules

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Dispersion (m)	Maximum HE Shell Damage (HP)	Chances of HE shells causing a fire on target (%)	Maximum AP Shell Damage (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
150 mm/55 Tbts KC/36T on an LDrh LC/38 mount	8	22.5	103	2,200	12	3,700		0	0

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Z-39	19,600	6	30	2/1		2/2/2/4/2	2			0	0

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	Torpedo Tubes Reload Time (sec)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Damage (HP)	Torpedo Speed (knot)	Torpedo Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
G7 Steinbarsch	0.7	90	7.2	14,400	65	8.5		0	0

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
FKS Typ 8 Mod. 1		0		0	0

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 70,000 hp	36		0	0

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4
Slot 5

Player Opinion

Performance

Warning: The data presented in the AA Defense sidebar section may be incorrect.
Refer to the in-game Port screens for more useful data.

Z-39 has surprisingly good concealment for her tier, and for a German destroyer. In fact, most of Z-39's characteristics can be described the same way. Her 150 mm guns are some of the largest put on a destroyer in World of Warships, only matched by those available to her German compatriots Z-23 and Ernst Gaede. She has surprisingly good AA despite lacking access to Defensive AA Fire , and a decent striking arm of torpedoes which reload fairly fast and travel quickly.

The first unique thing about Z-39 is her main battery, which is comprised of 150mm rifles. These are significantly different from the main battery guns found on other Tier VII destroyers, most of which top out around 127 or 128mm in caliber. They are capable of delivery devastating salvos to enemy ships should the AP manage a full penetration, and her HE packs a good punch as well despite the limitations of German HE damage and their slow reload time. Unfortunately, Z-39’s four barrels share the same reload as Tier VI's Ernst Gaede, despite her also having four 150 mm guns with identical handling. The only thing Z-39 holds an edge on gunnery wise is her longer range, as she has a nearly kilometer advantage over Gaede. While her guns are certainly powerful, it's nothing that cannot be found a tier lower. Her torpedoes are a similar story, though the German destroyer line is somewhat known for all ships having similar torpedoes. In fact, her torpedoes are identical to the ones found on a fully upgraded Leberecht Maass, making them fairly unremarkable other than the noteworthy German traits of good speed and stealth.

Her AA is another unusual trait, possessing one of the most potent anti-aircraft arrays at her tier for a destroyer. Unfortunately, the effectiveness of this armament is dampened somewhat by the ship's lack of access to the Defensive AA Fire  consumable. As such, she loses out to those destroyers capable of using DFAA; namely, Mahan and Sims. Her health is another point of interest, following the typical German trend of having lots of it: in fact, she has the highest destroyer health at her tier. Additionally, she is the only Tier VII destroyer with access to Upgrade Slot 5, meaning she can equip Concealment System Modification 1  and reduce her detection range even farther.

Z-39 provides a good, well-balanced destroyer platform to operate from. She has a variety of tools that allow her to adapt to any situation: smoke to disengage from threats she can't handle, health and concealment to control engagements with enemy destroyers, and a solid mix of armaments to deal lethal damage to enemy vessels. All-in-all, she is a very capable ship at Tier VII.

Pros:

• Very large health pool for a Tier VII destroyer, rivaling those of Tier IX destroyers.
• AP rounds can quickly devastate cruisers with citadels at mid-to-close range.
• Fairly quick torpedo reload.
• Excellent AA suite.
• Hydroacoustic Search  and Smoke Generator  durations and ranges use Tier VIII values, instead of Tier VII.
• Has access to the Tier VIII module Concealment System Modification 1 , allowing Z-39 to sneak around the seas.

Cons:

• Takes large amounts of HE damage.
• Lackluster HE performance.
• Average torpedo alpha strike.
• AA mounts are fragile and will be destroyed under sustained fire.
• No Defensive AA Fire consumable.

Research

As a Premium ship, Z-39 has no upgrades to research.

Optimal Configuration

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Z-39 are as follows:

• Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
• Slot 2: Engine Room Protection
• Slot 3: Aiming Systems Modification 1
• Slot 4: Propulsion Modification 1
• Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1 

Slot 1 provides several options for captains. Main Armaments Modification 1 is recommended to improve the survivability of the ship's weapons. Captains can also choose to mount the Hydroacoustic Search Modification 1 or Engine Boost Modification 1 upgrades in Slot 2. These upgrades increase the action time of their specified consumable.

Commander Skills

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack				Defense
1	Grease the Gears +15% main battery traverse speed. ★★	Liquidator +30% chance (multiplicative) of causing flooding. ★★	Consumable Specialist −7.5% cooldown time of all Consumables except:  Damage Control Party ,  Repair Party .	Gun Feeder -40% time to switch shell type. ★	Incoming Fire Alert Receive a warning about a salvo fired at your ship from more than 4.5 km.	Preventive Maintenance −30% chance of main armament, engines, steering becoming incapacitated +15% to HP of secondary and AA guns.
2	Demolition Expert +1% chance of main and secondary HE shells causing a fire. +15% to the damage-inflicting area of HE shells fired at submarines.	Swift Fish +5% torpedo speed. ★★★	Consumables Enhancements +10% action time of: Hydroacoustic Search , Surveillance Radar , Smoke Generator , & Engine Boost .	Extra-Heavy Ammunition +7.5% main battery AP shell damage. +10% damage from depth charges. ★	Priority Target The detection indicator will show the number of enemies aiming at you with main battery. ★★	Last Stand The ship remains able to move and maneuver - slowly - while the engine or steering gears are incapacitated. ★★★
3	Main Battery & AA Specialist -5% main battery reload time. +10% continuous AA damage. ★★	Fill the Tubes -10% torpedo tubes reload time. ★★★	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% reload time of all armaments per 1% HP lost +0.2% AA continuous damage per 1% HP lost. ★★	Inertial Fuse for HE Shells +25% armor penetration of HE shells Base fire chance reduced by half.	Superintendent +1 charge to all consumables. ★★	Survivability Expert +350 HP per ship tier. ★★★
4	Main Battery & AA Expert +20% main battery range. +15% flak damage.	Swift in Silence So long as the ship remains undetected: +8% ship speed +5% main battery reload time. ★	Radio Location Shows the direction to the nearest enemy ship. The enemy is alerted that a bearing has been taken.. ★	Fearless Brawler +1 flak burst per salvo. -10% main battery reload when ship is spotted.	Concealment Expert -10% detectability range of the ship. ★★★	Dazzle For 15 seconds after you are detected: * +20% dispersion of enemy shells fired at you. * +8% ship speed. ★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful      ★★ - Frequently Useful      ★ - Occasionally Useful     No stars - Not Useful

Consumables

Z-39 can equip the following consumables:

• Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
• Slot 2: Smoke Generator  - 3 charges
• Slot 3: Engine Boost  - 3 charges
• Slot 4: Hydroacoustic Search  - 3 charges

Camouflage

As a premium ship, Z-39 comes with Default permanent camouflage and a set of permanent combat bonuses.

Signals

A typical flag setup for a destroyer works best for Z-39, featuring Sierra Mike (), and the two fire flags India X-Ray () and Victor Lima ().

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Charlie Kilo +5% ship HP; +2.5% squadron HP. ★★★	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration.	India Yankee -20% to fire duration. ★	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy.	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. ★
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. ★★	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time.	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts. ★★	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used.
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator .	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire .

Gallery

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  Z-39 engages an enemy destroyer.
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  Z-39 dodges enemy artillery.

Historical Info

Z-39, 1943

Construction

Builder: Germaniawerft; Kiel, Germany

Laid down: 1940

Launched: 5 August 1941

Commissioned: 21 August 1943

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Specifications

Displacement: 2,603 tons, standard

Length: 127m

Beam: 12m

Draft: 4.5m

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Machinery

6 boilers, 2 turbines

825 tons of fuel oil

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Performance

38.5 knots at 70,000 shaft horsepower

2,087 nautical miles at 19 knots

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Armament

Main

Five (1x2, 3x1) 150mm/50 C36 guns

Anti-Aircraft

Two (2x1) 37mm/83 M42 guns

Five (5x1) 20mm guns

Torpedoes

Eight (2x4) 533mm launchers

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Complement

332 of officers and men

Z-39 underway, date and location unknown. This photo was taken some time after the end of World War II, as she is sailing under the US flag.

History

Design

The destroyers of the Zerstörer 1936A class were the last class of destroyers designed by Germany before the outbreak of World War II. They were slightly larger than the preceding 1936 class, and were designed to be more stable in the seas. The hull was reinforced, and a bulge was installed at the bow to improve seaworthiness. The latter was eventually removed, however, as it proved to have negative side effects on the bow. A double rudder allowed better maneuverability than on the 1934 or 1936 classes.

The result was a 127 meter long and 12 meter wide hull with a draft of up to 4.65m. The displacement ranged between 2,600 and 3,700 tons depending on the loadout, and her engines — with a combined 70,000 shaft horsepower — would allow for a speed of 36 knots (during speed trials, speeds up to 38.5 knots were achieved). The fuel capacity gave these ships a cruising range of up to 2,500 nautical miles. The crew for a single vessel consisted of 11 officers and 320 men.

What made the 1936A class stand out from other destroyers of the era was their main battery armament. The 15cm L/48 was gun was unique to Germany, and the largest main battery rifle to be mounted on a destroyer to date. They were initially tested on the 1934-class destroyer Z-8 Bruno Heinemann, these guns were meant to counter new French and British destroyers, as well as allowing the 1936A class ships to serve as scout units and to compensate for the continual shortage of light cruisers and scouting units. There were two mountings available on the 1934A class, a single mount and a twin turret. Other than the number of guns in these mountings, they also differed in terms of gun elevations: the single mounting allowed for 30° elevations, whereas the twin turret could elevate up to 65°. Each ship of the Z-23 class was slated to receive one twin-barreled mount on the bow and three single-barreled mounts at the stern of the ship, with the sternmost two being superfiring and the central turret facing forward. The only exception for this layout was Z-28, which was used as a fleet command vessel and instead mounted four single mounts in two superfiring pairs, one at the bow and one at the aft. The Torpedo armament did not change from the 1934 series destroyers, with two quadruple 533mm torpedo tubes, and the initial anti-aircraft armament consisted of two twin 37mm Flakzwilling 30's and five single barreled 20mm FlaK 38's.

Availability issues with the 15cm twin turret meant that the first few vessels built only received four 15cm guns in single mountings. However, even the lighter armament showed that the bow was insufficiently designed and that the ships took a tremendous amount of water over the bow in the commonly rough seas of the northern Atlantic. When the twin turret was eventually installed in 1942 the issues with these guns became more noticeable. With the twin turret weighting more than four times that of a single mount, the fore ship was even more prone to being wet. As the turret was not properly designed to be waterproof the electrical systems within would often fail in heavy seas and the fixed ammunition meant that a lot of physical effort was required by the gun crews to reload the gun, which would hamper the ability to maintain a high rate of fire during combat.

With the threat from aircraft rising throughout the war, it was deemed as necessary to increase the anti-air-armament of all destroyers, resulting in the so-called “Barbara-program” which added additional AA guns for almost all ships in 1944. The proposed changes for the 1936A class ships were the removal of a 15cm single mount, and a completely new AA armament of twelve 37mm M42 and eighteen 20mm FlaK 38 guns, with the addition of 8.6cm AA rockets in four single launchers.

Z-39 was laid down on 15 August 1940, launched on 2 December 1941, and commissioned on 21 August 1943. Her commissioning was delayed almost two years due to her lengthy construction, and even after commissioning she was not fully operational until 7 January 1944.

Service

Her first operations were mine-laying duties in the Strait of Denmark until March 1944. She moved to the Gulf of Finland, joining Z-25, Z-28, and Z-35 in the 6th Destroyer Flotilla. Until late June, she and the 6th Destroyer Flotilla rotated between mine-laying duties and coastal bombardment of Soviet forces.

On 23 June, Z-39 was damaged by Soviet bombers off the coast of Estonia, and she later set sail for Kiel via Swinemünde for repairs. On 24 July while under repair at Kiel, she was hit by a bomb when the British air force raided the city; she had to be towed back to safer Swinemünde again to finish her repairs, using parts cannibalized from incomplete destroyers Z-44 and Z-45. Z-39 was sufficiently seaworthy by 28 February 1945. She was initially intended to sail for Copenhagen to finish repairs, but due to lack of fuel, she could only make it to Sassnitz. She was fully repaired by 1 April 1945. From that point forward, Z-39’s duty consisted almost entirely of escort duty and naval gunfire support for the Wehrmacht along the Baltic coastline. She also took part in several evacuation operations, joining evacuation fleets that sailed 55,000 refugees and soldiers to Copenhagen, and 20,000 soldiers and civilians to Glücksburg, arriving there on the 9 May, a day after the German Instrument of Surrender was enacted. She was decommissioned from the Kriegsmarine on 10 May 1945.

After the war, Z-39 initially went to the Royal Navy, but on 11 July 1945 she was instead handed over to the US Navy at Plymouth, arriving back in Boston on 7 August. After extensive trials, she was commissioned into the US Navy on 14 September as DD-939. The US Navy's Bureau of Ships spent time experimenting with her equipment until late 1947, whereupon she was deemed obsolete; DD-939 was transferred to the French Navy, arriving at Toulon in January 1948. Renamed Q-128, she was primarily cannibalized for her parts to repair the other ex-German French destroyers, until eventually, her remains were scrapped in 1964.

Historical Inaccuracies

• Z-39 is depicted in early 1945 condition. Her paint scheme had no camouflage by this time.
• The camouflage paintwork was only worn in 1944, when Z-39 still had three aft main gun turrets.

Historical Gallery

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  Z-39 sailing with high speed.
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  Z-39 during her early career, still lacking the additional AA that was mounted in 1944.
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  The forward 15cm twin turret on Z-39.
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  The rear section of Z-39, taken after the war. One of the main guns being clearly damaged.
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  A picture taken from directly behind Z-39.
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  This picture shows Z-39 full length from the side, giving a good impression of her profile and her armament. This picture was also taken after the war.
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  A detail shot of the second funnel. Clearly visible is the 37mm Flakzwilling 30 and the 37mm M42 single mount.
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  German destroyer Z-39 underway off Boston, Massachusetts, 12 September 1945.

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References

1. Armada: Z-39
2. German destroyer Z39 - Wikipedia
3. Type 1936A destroyer - Wikipedia
4. Monthly Wiki Spotlight - Z-39 - News - World of Warships
5. Watch the Makings of the Z-32 Destroyer at 1:42 Scale - News - World of Warships
6. 1:42 Scale: Destroyer Z-32 - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube
7. Armada: Z-39 - May 18, 2018 - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube
8. Armada: Z-39 - Oct 25, 2019 - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube

Ship Change Log

Testing Changes

• February 5, 2018:
  • Preliminary characteristics.
• March 17, 2018:
  • The ship was moved from Tier VIII to Tier VII.
• April 17, 2018:
  • The total firing arc of the rear turret were increased from 129 to 143 degrees.

• Available for testing by supertesters in the game starting from Update 0.7.2.
• First appeared on sale in May 2018.
• Update 0.7.6:
  • Minor fixes to ship textures and geometry.
• Update 0.7.10:
  • The range of the Hydroacoustic Search consumable was unified - 5 km for detecting ships, 3.5 km for detecting torpedoes.
• Update 0.7.11:
  • Became available in the game client for purchase for doubloons.
• Update 0.9.1:
  • Fixed the names of the modules of the fire control system.
• Update 0.9.4:
  • Fixed a bug due to which it was impossible to use the "Ship Equipment Modification 1" upgrade.
• Update 0.9.5:
  • Penetration of 150 mm HE shells was increased from 25 to 38 mm.
• Update 0.10.5:
  • Z-39 was removed from sale in the Armory and the Premium store.

Ships of Germany

Destroyers