U 439
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U 439 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Type : | VII C |
| Field Post Number : | 47 968 |
| Shipyard: | F. Schichau GmbH , Danzig |
| Construction contract: | January 5, 1940 |
| Build number: | 1490 |
| Launch: | October 11, 1941 |
| Commissioning: | December 20, 1941 |
| Commanders: |
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| Flotilla: |
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| Calls: | 4 activities |
| Sinkings: |
no |
| Whereabouts: | Sunk in a collision on May 4, 1943 near Cape Finisterre |
U 439 was a Type VII C submarinethat was used by the former German Navy during the Second World War in the submarine warfare .
Technical specifications
The Schichau shipyard in Gdansk built a total of 64 type VII C submarines from 1941 to 1944. The propulsion by two diesel engines enabled this type to travel over water at a speed of 19 knots . When submerged, a VII C-boat reached a speed of 8 knots with the help of its two electric motors. However, the power of the batteries only guaranteed this top speed for an hour. At a lower speed, however, the boat could theoretically travel underwater for up to three days. A dive of this length could of course not be expected of the crew, because the air in the Type VII C boats was already very exhausted after 24 hours. This was also the usual interval for charging the batteries by generators during a surface voyage.
Boat sign
Like most German submarines of its time, the U 439 also had boat-specific symbols, which were usually selected by the crew during their training period and attached to the tower , as well as being carried in a sheet metal version on caps and boats . At first it was a stylized drawing of a riding boot, the spur of which pokes a man smoking cigar - possibly Winston Churchill - in the buttocks. It was an allusion to the name of the first commandant. After the change of command in the spring of 1943, the sign of the boat also changed to a church that marched on two boots - as a " tippelte church" again an allusion to the name of the commandant, now Helmut von Tippelskirch.
Commanders
- Wolfgang Sporn was born on September 12, 1912 and joined the Reichsmarine in 1934 . He served as a company commander in the coastal defense department in Danzig and in the 9th Replacement Marine Artillery Department in Gotenhafen . In the spring of 1941, Sporn completed his submarine training and served as an officer on watch on U 569 . On December 20, 1941, Sporn took command of U 439 , which he held until spring 1943.
- Helmut von Tippelskirch was born on December 7th, 1917 in Cuxhaven and joined the Navy in 1937 . At the beginning of the war he served in the 1st minesweeping flotilla, later he was used as a commander in the 3rd clearing boat flotilla in the English Channel . After von Tippelskirch had completed his submarine training in the spring of 1942, he was the 1st officer on watch on the U 160 until the end of the year . Following his U-boat commanders course, Oberleutnant zur See von Tippelskirch took command of U 439 on February 18, 1943 .
Use on North Africa convoy
In support of the Tunisian campaign , the Allies increasingly organized the transport of supplies through the Mediterranean in the spring and summer of 1943 to support and strengthen the British, US and French armed forces in the North African theater of war. U 439 was chasing a convoy of motor torpedo boats , while U 659 was operating in the same sea area on a convoy consisting of landing craft , but had lost it. Both convoys were ordered to the Mediterranean.
Sinking
On May 4, both submarines met near the convoy pursued by U 439 , which Commander Stock believed he had identified on U 659 as the MTB convoy. At that moment his boat was running 15 knots and was about to overtake U 439 , which the latter failed to notice due to the negligence of the first officer on watch who had to guard the relevant sector. The U 439 , which was running at seven knots at that moment , rammed U 659 near the tower , which led to a water ingress, as a result of which U 659 sank rapidly. Commandant von Tippelskirch ordered “full back”, whereupon U 439 reversed into a torrent. The interaction of the water entering the exhaust pipes of the diesel engine as a result of this breaker and the damage caused by the previous collision led to the U 439 also beginning to sink over the bow ( position ). Two hours later, the British trawler Coverley reported that it had rammed an object floating under the water in this area of the sea, which could have been U 439 . Nine crew members survived the sinking.
Literature and Sources
- 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 .
- 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
- ^ Georg Högel Embleme coat of arms Maling's German submarines 1939–1945 Koehler's publishing company, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7822-1002-7 , page 106
- ↑ Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat War 1939-1945. The German submarine commanders , Verlag ES Mittler & Sohn, Hamburg 1996, ISBN 3-8132-0490-1 , page 243
- ↑ Martin Middleton: Convoy - German submarines chase allied convoys. Moewig Taschenbuchverlag. Rastatt. ISBN 3-8118-4342-7 . Page 303.
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