U 3032
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U 3032 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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 Rune of life, sign of the boat |
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| Type : | XXI |
| Field Post Number : | 52 110 |
| Shipyard: | AG Weser , Bremen |
| Construction contract: | November 6, 1943 |
| Build number: | 1191 |
| Keel laying: | November 9, 1944 |
| Launch: | January 10, 1945 |
| Commissioning: | February 12, 1945 |
| Commanders: | |
| Flotilla: |
February 12, 1945 - May 3, 1945 |
| Calls: | no ventures |
| Sinkings: |
no depressions |
| Whereabouts: | Sunk by air raid off Fehmarn on May 3, 1945 , 28 dead and 32 survivors |
U 3032 was a Type XXI submarine ofthe German Navy in World War II . The large submarines of this type were designed for use at sea and had considerable battery power, which enabled them to travel underwater for longer periods. These boats were therefore also referred to as "electric submarines".
Construction and technical data
The AG Weser received the first construction contract for the manufacture of the boats of the "electric boat" type XXI at the beginning of July 1943, but the contract was canceled a few months later. The next construction contract for XXI boats was issued on November 6, 1943. The contract included the 35 boats with the numbers U 3001 to U 3035 . Type XXI boats were manufactured in individual parts using the so-called section construction method and then delivered to the shipyards from the factories, some of which were located far inland. Only then were the eight sections joined together to form a boat.
Like most German submarines of its time, U 3032 also had a boat-specific logo on the tower . It was a Germanic rune: the Elhaz , the so-called "life rune". Commander Horst Slevogt , who had previously commanded the U 62 , which also had this symbol , brought the symbol from his previous command with him to U 3032 . The sign was created through a modification of the tactical sign of the submarine defense, a downward pointing arrow that was on the tower of U 62 when Slevogt took over the boat. He let the tip of the arrow extend downwards, creating a Germanic rune.
Sinking
The boat was on May 3, 1945 in the vicinity of some other submarines that had moored at the south-eastern tip of the island of Fehmarn on a naval target ship. The small ship formation was discovered and attacked by British air forces. Commander Slevogt decided to use the boat's artillery to fight the aircraft and initially succeeded in driving away the attackers. An officer from the staff of the FdU training , Viktor Schütze , who then came alongside with a tug , commanded Slevogt to sink U 3032 . Shortly afterwards, the British planes attacked again. In the meantime, the majority of the submarine crew was on the tug, only the chief engineer (LI) and Slevogt himself remained on U 3032 to initiate the self-sinking of the boat by opening the valves. The boat received several hits from Hawker Typhoon fighter-bombers . Eventually U 3032 sank northeast of the Staberhuk lighthouse . The departing tug with the crew of the boat was also shot at by the aircraft, resulting in numerous deaths and ultimately causing the boat to sink. Slevogt and the LI, who swam in the water after the sinking of U 3032 , were rescued by a torpedo boat, which then went alongside the sinking tug and picked up the survivors.
32 men of the 60-strong crew of U 3032 , among them the slightly injured commander, survived the sinking of the boat.
Individual evidence
- ^ Eckard Wetzel: U 2540. The submarine at the German Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven. Karl Müller, Erlangen 1996, ISBN 3-86070-556-3 , p. 54.
- ^ Georg Högel: Emblems, coats of arms, Malings German submarines 1939-1945. 5th edition. Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7822-1002-7 , p. 181.
- ^ Georg Högel: Emblems, coats of arms, Malings German submarines 1939-1945. 5th edition. Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7822-1002-7 , page 48.
- ↑ Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat 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 , pages 349-350