U 1199
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U 1199 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Type : | VII C |
| Field Post Number : | 42 161 |
| Shipyard: | F. Schichau shipyard in Danzig |
| Construction contract: | October 14, 1941 |
| Build number: | 1573 |
| Keel laying: | March 23, 1943 |
| Launch: | October 12, 1943 |
| Commissioning: | December 23, 1943 |
| Commanders: |
Lieutenant Rolf Nollmann |
| Flotilla: |
|
| Calls: | 2 patrols |
| Sinkings: |
no |
| Whereabouts: | Sunk on January 21, 1945 off Land's End |
U 1199 was a German type VII C submarine, a so-called "Atlantic boat ". It was used by the Kriegsmarine during the submarine war in the North Atlantic and the English Channel .
Technical specifications
The Schichau shipyard in Gdansk built a total of 64 type VII C submarines from 1941 to 1944. This model reached a speed of 17 knots with two diesel engines when traveling above water and 7.6 kn when traveling underwater with two electric motors. The storage capacity of the batteries was only sufficient for an hour at maximum underwater speed. At a lower speed, the boat could theoretically travel underwater for up to three days. A dive of this length was of course not to be expected of the crew, because the air in the Type VII C boats was already exhausted after 24 hours. This was also the usual interval for charging the batteries during a surface voyage.
Snorkel boat
Like many boats of its time, U 1199 was retrofitted with a snorkel : a ventilation hose that was suspended from a fold-out mast and had a float at the upper end that kept the snorkel exit above water. The snorkel simultaneously ensured the removal of diesel exhaust gases and the supply of fresh air to enable longer underwater journeys. The snorkel was still unpopular with the crews. Even with moderate swell, it could get under the water surface, which resulted in a change in air pressure in the boat and thus in the crew's eardrum and eye damage. If the boat was undercut too deeply, there was also the risk that the diesel engines would stall or that the exhaust gases would escape from the engine's intake ducts, which were located inside the boat, as a result of which the carbon monoxide pollution steadily increased. Publications by the High Command of the Navy from autumn 1944 pointed to further dangers of snorkeling. It was found that some impairments only appeared a few hours after completing a snorkel dive. Crew members had reported dizzy spells following the re-ventilation of the boat. In some cases the men only managed to open the tower hatch with the greatest effort, and bridge guards who had stepped out collapsed while they were in the fresh air half an hour after the start of the watch.
commander
Rolf Nollmann was in command from December 23, 1943 to January 21, 1945. He was born on December 29, 1914 in Wollmeringen, Lorraine, and joined the Navy in 1936 . He initially served as an adjutant in the 1st Schnellboot Flotilla and then went on the battleship Gneisenau . From 1941 to 1943 he served as a naval intelligence officer in Berlin and Ostend . Following his submarine training, he completed the commanding course with the 24th U-Flotilla in Memel . In November 1943 he was promoted to lieutenant captain. On December 23, 1943 he took command of U 1199 , with which he sank between Wolf Rock and the Isles of Scilly in January 1945 .
Commitment and history
U 1199 initially drove as a training boat with the 8th U-Flotilla and was subordinated to the 1st U-Flotilla as a front boat in August 1944 .
Snorkeling record
On September 14, 1944, U 1199 ran for its first patrol into the operational area on the Scottish east coast off the Moray Firth . According to Commander Nollmann's entries, the boat remained under water for 50 days on this voyage - the longest time a converted VII C boat has ever been submerged. In publications dealing with the subject of submarine warfare , this diving trip, which has been widespread by propaganda, is questioned. Although Commander Nollmann reported in his KTB that his crew had a high level of acceptance of the snorkeling system, the general dangers of snorkeling were pointed out by the Navy High Command soon after these findings were published. Commander Nollmann reported that he had sunk a steamer with 8,000 GRT on this voyage. This sinking, however, remained unconfirmed.
Sinking
On January 1, 1945 U 1199 ran out of Bergen on its second and last patrol. The North Atlantic was intended as the operational area. Before Land's End came in 1199 U on the convoy TBC 43. Commander Nollmann attacked the freighter George Hawley and damaged it severely. The freighter had to be brought to Falmouth by tug . Now U 1199 was attacked by two warships in turn.
Another diving record
In order to protect the boat from the two attacking corvettes, the Icarus and the Mignonette , Commander Nollmann had U 1199 laid aground at a depth of 80 m. There the boat was destroyed by depth charges ( Lage ). In the midst of the floating wreckage, the head helmsman of U 1199 also came to the surface of the water. Friedrich Claussen escaped from the tower hatch in 72 m water depth with a diving rescuer.
literature
- Clay Blair : The Submarine War. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. Heyne, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-453-16059-2 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 1: The German submarine commanders. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 1996, ISBN 3-8132-0490-1 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 2: U-boat construction in German shipyards. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 1997, ISBN 3-8132-0512-6 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 3: German submarine successes from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 2001, ISBN 3-8132-0513-4 .
- Ulrich Gabler : Submarine construction. 4th, revised and expanded edition. Bernard & Graefe, Bonn 1997, ISBN 3-7637-5958-1 .
- Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. Urbes Verlag, Graefelfing before Munich 1998, ISBN 3-924896-43-7 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Gabler: Unterseebotbau. 4th, revised and expanded edition. 1997, p. 78.
- ↑ Blair: The Submarine War. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. 1999, p. 737.
- ↑ Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat War 1939-1945. Volume 4: German submarine losses from September 1939 to May 1945. 1999, p. 319.
- ↑ Lt. Blair: The submarine war. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. In 1999, the Icarus was a destroyer.
- ↑ Lt. Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. 1998, also "Klausen"
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