U 140 (Navy)
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U 140 (Kriegsmarine) ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Type : | II D |
| Field Post Number : | M 05 988 |
| Shipyard: | German works , Kiel |
| Construction contract: | September 25, 1939 |
| Build number: | 269 |
| Keel laying: | November 16, 1939 |
| Launch: | June 28, 1940 |
| Commissioning: | August 7, 1940 |
| Commanders: |
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| Calls: | 3 activities |
| Sinkings: |
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| Whereabouts: | sunk on May 5, 1945 in Wilhelmshaven itself |
U 140 was a German submarine from type II D , which in World War II by the German navy was used.
history
The order for the boat was awarded to the shipyard Deutsche Werke , Kiel , on September 25, 1939 . The keel was laid on November 16, 1939, the launch on June 28, 1940. The commissioning under Oberleutnant zur See Hans Peter Hinsch finally took place on August 7, 1940.
After its commissioning on August 7, 1940 until November 30, 1940, the boat belonged to the 1st U-Flotilla in Kiel as a training boat . After that, from December 1, 1940 to December 31, 1940, it became a front boat in the 1st U-Flotilla in Kiel. After serving at the front, the U 140 came to the 22nd U-Flotilla in Gotenhafen as a school boat . At the beginning of the war against the Soviet Union , the boat was front boat in the 22nd U-Flotilla in Gotenhafen from June 22, 1941 to August 31, 1941, before being used again as a school boat from September 1, 1941 to March 31, 1945 was used in the 22nd U-Flotilla in Gotenhafen. Most recently, U 140 was a training boat in the 31st U-Flotilla in Hamburg from April 1, 1945 to May 5, 1945 .
Use statistics
Under commanders Hinsch and Hellriegel, U 140 completed three operations in the North Atlantic and the central Baltic Sea. Hinsch sank three ships in the Atlantic within a week. On his patrol in the Baltic Sea Hellriegel sank a Soviet submarine weighing 206 t.
First venture
The boat left Kiel on November 20, 1940 at 8:15 a.m. and arrived in Bergen on November 24, 1940 at 7:04 a.m. to supplement it . It left Bergen on the same day at 7:00 p.m. and arrived in Kiel on December 20, 1940 at 7:30 p.m. On this 31-day and approximately 3,900 nm long journey into the North Atlantic , west of the North Channel , three ships with 12,388 GRT were sunk.
- 3rd December 1940: sinking of the British steamer Victoria City with 4,739 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo . He had loaded steel and was on his way from New York to London via Halifax . The ship was a straggler of Convoy HX-90 with 32 ships. It was a total loss with 43 dead.
- December 8, 1940: sinking of the Finnish sailing ship Penang ( Lage ) with 1,997 GRT. The sailor was sunk by a torpedo. He had loaded grain and was on his way from Port Victoria (located on the Yorke Peninsula ) to Cork . It was a total loss with 18 dead.
- December 8, 1940: sinking of the British steamer Ashcrest ( Lage ) with 5,652 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had steel loaded and was on his way from Philadelphia to Middlesbrough . The ship was a straggler of Convoy SC-13 with 32 ships. It was a total loss with 37 dead.
Second venture
Under the command of Hans-Jürgen Hellriegel, the boat left Gotenhafen on June 19, 1941 at 11:30 p.m. and returned there on June 30, 1941 at 10:00 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this twelve-day expedition into the central Baltic Sea and off Libau .
Third company
The boat left Gotenhafen on July 7, 1941 at 12:00 p.m. and returned there on July 24, 1941 at 10:00 p.m. On this 18-day and 1,217 nm over and 470 nm underwater expedition in the Baltic Sea, off Ösel , Dagö and off Öland , a submarine with 206 t was sunk.
- July 21, 1941: sinking of the Soviet submarine M-94 ( Lage ) with 206 t. The submarine was sunk by a torpedo.
A short time later, Hellriegel shot a torpedo at another submarine. When looking for signs of a hit, it was observed that shipwrecked people from the first sinking were rescued from land with boats.
Whereabouts
The boat was self- sunk by its crew on May 5, 1945 in Wilhelmshaven in the western chamber of the IV entrance (Raederschleuse) according to the rainbow order that had existed for a long time, but was canceled by Grand Admiral Dönitz on the evening of May 4, 1945 .
Notes and individual references
- ↑ Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat 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 , page 116
literature
- Clay Blair : The Submarine War. Volume 1: The Hunters. 1939-1942. Heyne, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-453-12345-X .
- Clay Blair: The Submarine War. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. Heyne, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-453-16059-2 .
- Robert M. Browning Jr .: US Merchant Vessel War casualties of World War II. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis MD 1996, ISBN 1-55750-087-8 .
- 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 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 4: German submarine losses from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 1999, ISBN 3-8132-0514-2 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 5: The knight's cross bearers of the submarine weapon from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg et al. 2003, ISBN 3-8132-0515-0 .
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