SM U 51
| SM U 51 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Technical specifications | ||
| Submarine type: | Two-hull ocean-going boat | |
| Submarine class: | U 41 improved type | |
| Displacement: | 715 tons (above water) 902 tons (under water) |
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| Length: | 65.2 m | |
| Width: | 6.4 m | |
| Draft: | 3.6 m | |
| Max. Depth: | ||
| Drive: | Diesel engines 2 × 1200 PS E-machines 2 × 600 PS |
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| Driving range: | 9,400 nm at 8 kn (above water) 55 nm at 5 kn (under water) |
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| Armament | 2 bow tubes / 2 stern tubes / 8 torpedoes 2 × 8.8 cm (artillery) |
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| Crew: | Kptlt. Walter Rumpel (fallen) and 46 men |
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| Speed: | 17.1 knots (above water) 9.1 knots (under water) |
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| Calls: | 1 patrol | |
| Successes: | ||
| Whereabouts: | on July 14, 1916 sunk 43 (dead) 4 survivors |
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SM U 51 was a German submarine of the further developed type U 41 , which was used by the German Imperial Navy during the First World War .
history
The order for the boat was awarded to the Germania shipyard in Kiel on August 23, 1914 . The keel was laid on December 19, 1914, the launch on November 25, 1915, the commissioning under Lieutenant Walter Rumpel finally took place on February 24, 1916.
After its commissioning on February 24, 1916, the boat belonged to the 1st Flotilla until May 25, 1916. From May 25, 1916 until its sinking, the boat belonged to the 2nd Flotilla.
During its service, U 51 undertook a patrol without sinking the ship.
First patrol
When leaving the mouth of the Ems, U 51 was on July 14, 1916 at position 53 ° 56 ' N , 7 ° 55' E. of the British submarine HMS H5 (Lt. H. "Crom" Varley) sunk. Varley had not received an assignment from the British Admiralty for this area of the sea. Out of "boredom" he had left the operating area assigned to him and had run into more promising waters. Of two torpedoes shot down , one hit U 51 below the tower. Despite being in enemy waters, Varley showed up to take German survivors to England as evidence of the sinking. The H 5 was however taken under fire by two German torpedo boats and forced to dive. After several hours of pursuit, H 5 escaped.
In U 51 , 18 survivors and the commander crowded into the bow space . Since there weren't enough diving rescuers , they waited for slow death by suffocation . After four hours they tried to get out, but only two of the men in the bow reached the surface of the water. Three other men were released from the stern compartment, one of whom died when surfacing.
The boat was lifted in November 1968. 21 dead were recovered and buried in the Osterholz cemetery in Bremen . A memorial there commemorates the accident and the crew members who died.
See also
literature
- Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. Urbes, Graefelfing 1998, ISBN 3-924896-43-7 .
- Eberhard Rössler : Development, construction and properties of the German submarines from the beginnings to 1943. Bernard and Graefe, Bonn 1996, ISBN 3-86047-153-8 ( History of the German submarine building , volume 1).
- Harald Bendert: Submarines in a duel . 2nd Edition. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg 2004, ISBN 3-8132-0832-X .
Web links
- U 51 at uboat.net (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ The SM stands for His Majesty and refers to the then ruling German Kaiser Wilhelm II. It reads completely: His Majesty's U-boat , for surface units His Majesty's ship - SMS for short .
- ^ Cenotaph on the Osterholz cemetery in Bremen
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