U 3034
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U 3034 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Type : | XXI |
| Field Post Number : | M-52 197 |
| Shipyard: | AG Weser , Bremen |
| Construction contract: | November 6, 1943 |
| Build number: | 1193 |
| Keel laying: | November 14, 1944 |
| Launch: | January 21, 1945 |
| Commissioning: | March 31, 1945 |
| Commanders: |
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| Flotilla: |
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| Calls: | no ventures |
| Sinkings: |
no depressions |
| Whereabouts: | Sunk by its own crew in the Geltinger Bay on May 5, 1945 |
U 3034 was a large German "electric" submarine of the XXI type ofthe Kriegsmarine in World War II . It was the last submarine of this type put into service in the Weser area.
Construction and delayed commissioning
The construction contract for the boat took place on November 6, 1943, the order date for all Type XXI boats, and was awarded to AG Weser in Bremen. After the transport of the individual sections, the keel was laid on November 14, 1944 with hull number 1193. The finished boat was launched after a two-month construction period. The commissioning has not yet taken place because the boat and its sister boat U 3036 were damaged on February 25, 1945 during the remaining equipment in an air raid by British mosquito fighter planes. While U 3034 was only slightly damaged, the shipyard's large floating dock V was badly damaged and U 3036 capsized, which meant that it could no longer be put into service. After the damage had been repaired, U 3034 was put into service on March 31, 1945 under the command of First Lieutenant Wilhelm Prehn, the former head helmsman of U 97 . The boat had a boat emblem, which was also worn by the crew on the boat : a bottlenose dolphin on a blue coat of arms. This symbol came about when Commander Prehn called for a competition during the building instruction . On the day of commissioning, the bottlenose dolphin emblem was chosen. The representation and the name "Bottlenose dolphin" should symbolize that the boat is "fast, agile and can be found on all seas". Just a few days after commissioning, the original crew was transferred to Flensburg and used in land combat. U 3034 was taken over by the crew of U 3505 , which was sunk in Kiel, under Lieutenant Horst Willner .
Sinking of U 3034
On May 5th, Commander Willner decided to sink the boat himself according to the rainbow order . After most of the crew had already been on land, Willner, the chief engineer (LI) Deutschmann and a chief engineer stayed on board and took the boat to the middle of the Geltinger Bay . After the secret items had been destroyed, U 3034 was sunk at 7:23 a.m. Willner later said: “Now I didn't intend to sink my boat immediately. At first I wanted my crew to come ashore safely and in order. So my precaution turned out to be correct, to take the fishing cutter with me and have the duffel bags packed. I sent the I WO with the first cutter tour. He was supposed to find quarters on a nearby farm. Meanwhile I saw how ship after ship sank in the bay. But I also saw that many people jumped into rubber dinghies and drifted with them towards the sea, and losses could not be avoided. During our further disembarkation, a boat with Braßfahrt approached me, manned by high admiralty and generals. One of them yelled at me and why I hadn't sunk my boat yet, I was going to be tried on a court martial. I yelled back just as loudly that I would take care of my crew first, and then the boat. They turned around cursing. When my crew was ashore with their equipment, I drove the boat with the LI and the chief machinist to about the middle of the Geltinger Bay and sank it there - after the secret items had been destroyed - at 7:23 a.m. From the sinking U 3034 we jumped into the cutter that brought us to the crew. ”The boat was later lifted and broken off.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ 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.
- ^ Eckard Wetzel: U 2540. The legendary German submarine type XXI. 2012, pp. 189-190.
literature
- 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 .
- Fritz Köhl: From the original to the model: Uboottyp XXI. A picture and plan documentation. With the collaboration of Eberhard Rössler. Bernard and Graefe, Koblenz 1988, ISBN 3-7637-6000-8 .
- Eberhard Rössler : submarine type XXI. 8th edition. Bernhard & Graefe Verlagsgesellschaft, Bonn 2013, ISBN 978-3-7637-6218-7 .
- Eckard Wetzel: U 2540. The legendary German submarine type XXI. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2012, ISBN 978-3-613-03492-1 .