U 504

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
U 504
( previous / next - all submarines )
Type : IX C
Field Post Number : M 45 926
Shipyard: German shipyard , Hamburg
Construction contract: September 25, 1939
Build number: 294
Keel laying: April 29, 1940
Launch: April 24, 1941
Commissioning: July 30, 1941
Commanders:
Calls: 7 activities
Sinkings:

16 ships (85,299 GRT )

Whereabouts: Sunk on July 30, 1943 northwest of Cape Ortegal

U 504 was a German submarine from the Type IX C , which in the Second World War by the Navy was used.

Construction and commissioning

The boat was on 29 April 1940, the German shipyard in Hamburg set to Kiel . The Deutsche Werft built the boats of this type as a replica of the Deschimag AG Weser, which had been commissioned with the construction of these boats until then. On April 24, 1941 , the submarine was launched and on July 30, 1941, it was put into service with a crew of 53 under the command of Corvette Captain Fritz Poske .

Mission history

U 504 undertook seven patrols on which 15 ships were sunk, another - the American steamer Anne Hutchinson - was classified as a total loss (total tonnage of the 16 ships: 85,299 GRT).

First venture

  • U 504 left Kiel on January 6, 1942 and reached Lorient , France , on January 20. No ships were sunk.

Second venture

The boat left Lorient on January 25th. The West Atlantic, especially the east coast of the USA, was planned as the operational area. On April 1st, U 504 returned to Lorient. On this voyage, Commander Poske sank four ships.

  • February 22, 1942: Sinking of the American Republic (5,287 GRT) ( Lage )
  • February 23, 1942: Sinking of the American WD Anderson (10,227 GRT) ( location )
  • February 26, 1942: sinking of the Dutch Mamura (8,245 GRT) ( location )
  • March 16, 1942: Sinking of the British Stangarth (2,802 GRT; driving in convoy OS-20) ( Lage )

Third company

The third mission of U 504 lasted from May 2nd to July 7th 1942. Commander Poske sank six ships on this venture.

  • May 29, 1942: sinking of the British Allister (1,597 GRT)
  • June 8, 1942: sinking of the British Rosenborg (1,512 GRT) ( location )
  • June 8, 1942: sinking of the Honduran Tela (3,901 GRT) ( location )
  • June 11, 1942: sinking of the Dutch Crijnssen (4,282 GRT) ( location )
  • June 11, 1942: sinking of the American American (4,846 GRT) ( location )
  • June 14, 1942: Scuttling of the Latvian Regent (3,280 GRT) ( location )

Fourth venture

U 504 left Lorient on August 19 and returned on December 11 after a patrol in the South Atlantic. On this venture, Commander Poske sank five ships and damaged one so badly that it reached the port but later had to be abandoned.

  • October 17, 1942: Sinking of the British Empire Chaucer (5,970 GRT) ( Lage )
  • 23 October 1942: sinking of the British City of Johannesburg (5,669 GRT) ( location )
  • October 26, 1942: Fatal damage to the American Anne Hutchinson (7,176 GRT) ( location )
  • October 31, 1942: sinking of the British Reynolds (5,113 GRT) ( location )
  • October 31, 1942: Sinking of the British Empire Guidon (7,041 GRT) ( Lage )
  • November 3, 1942: sinking of the Brazilian Porto Alegre (5,187 GRT) ( location )

Fifth and sixth ventures

On January 19, 1943, U 504 ran out on its first patrol under the command of Wilhelm Luis. The boat returned to Lorient on March 24th without scoring. On April 21st it ran again to another unsuccessful venture in the mid-Atlantic. When returning to France, the boat ran into Bordeaux.

  • No sinking.

Sinking

During the seventh company was U 504 on 30 July 1943 approximately 170  nautical miles (310 km) northwest of Cape Ortegal at 15:43 by depth charges of the British sloops HMS Kite , HMS Woodpecker , HMS Wren and HMS Wild Goose under the command of Frederic John Walker sunk at 45 ° 33 ′  N , 10 ° 56 ′  W. All 53 crew members were killed.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d 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 , p. 213.
  2. ^ A b c d e Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat War 1939–1945. Volume 2: U-boat construction in German shipyards. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 1997, ISBN 3-8132-0512-6 , pp. 494 – p. 495.