U 553
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U 553 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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|---|---|
| Type : | VII C |
| Field Post Number : | 31 789 |
| Shipyard: | Blohm & Voss , Hamburg |
| Construction contract: | September 25, 1939 |
| Build number: | 529 |
| Keel laying: | November 21, 1939 |
| Launch: | November 7, 1940 |
| Commissioning: | December 23, 1940 |
| Commanders: | |
| Flotilla: |
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| Calls: | 10 patrols |
| Sinkings: |
13 ships (64,612 GRT) |
| Whereabouts: | probably lost in the North Atlantic between January 20 and 28, 1943. |
U 553 was a German submarine from the Type VII C , which during the Second World War as part of the submarine war was used.
Technical specifications
The first order to the Hamburg shipyard Blohm & Voss comprised a total of eight boats in addition to the U 553 , all of the type VII C. A submarine of this type had a length of 67 m and a displacement of 865 m³ under water. Two diesel engines, which reached a speed of 17 knots , provided the propulsion when driving over water . Two electric motors ensured a maximum speed of 7 knots under water. The armament of this submarine class - also called "Atlantic boat" - consisted of an 8.8 cm cannon and a 2 cm anti-aircraft cannon on deck, as well as four bow torpedo tubes and a stern torpedo tube until 1944 .
commander
From December 21, 1940 to January 28, 1943, Karl Thurmann was a member of Crew 29, most recently with the rank of Corvette Captain .
Calls
From April 1941 until its loss on January 22, 1943, U 553 completed a total of ten operations - mainly in the North Atlantic but also in the Caribbean and the east coast of the United States .
- June 12, 1941, British freighter Susan Maersk with 2355 GRT and Norwegian tanker Ranella with 5590 GRT sunk ( location )
- 15th October 1941 British freighter Silvercedar ( Lage ) with 4354 GRT and Norwegian freighter Ila ( Lage ) with 1583 GRT sunk
The first torpedo that U 553 fired at the Ila missed its target. The commander said, however, that he had met a ship further back in convoy SC 48, which he estimated at 4000 GRT.
- 17 October 1941 Panamanian freighter Bold Venture ( Lage ) with 3222 GRT sunk
On January 15, 1942, U 553 attacked the British tanker Diala , which did not sink despite several hits. The drifting wreck was probably sunk by U 587 in March of the same year .
- January 22, 1942, Norwegian tanker Innerøy with 8,260 GRT sunk ( Lage )
- May 12, 1942 British freighter Nicoya ( Lage ) with 5364 GRT and Dutch freighter Leto ( Lage ) with 4712 GRT sunk.
About an hour after the sinking of the Leto, U 553 torpedoed another ship which the commander thought he had sunk and estimated at 3000 GRT, but could not identify it. Of the 16 boats that sailed into American waters in April as part of the Paukenschlag company , the U 553 was the second most successful. This was not least due to the initiative of the commander, who, contrary to the orders, had decided to penetrate the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in search of enemy ships .
- June 2, 1942, British freighter Mattawin with 6919 GRT sunk ( location )
- 18th August 1942, British freighter Empire Bede ( Lage ) with 6959 GRT, Swedish freighter Blankaholm ( Lage ) with 2845 GRT and American freighter John Hancock ( Lage ) with 7176 GRT.
Both of the latter ships were sunk in an attack in which Commander Thurmann had a fan of four and a stern torpedo fired. On the morning of August 18, U 553 torpedoed three more ships, of which Commander Thurmann estimated one at 6000 and one at 5000 GRT, and believed to have sunk. These sinkings have not been confirmed.
- 9 December 1942, British freighter Charles LD with 5273 GRT sunk ( Lage )
Loss of the boat
On January 19, 1943, Commander Thurmann reported that the boat was not functioning properly because the periscope was leaking and, in his opinion, the ability to dive was limited to a depth of 100 m. The following day U 553 met with U 465 . Commander Thurmann gave his commander, Heinz Wolf, a nautical yearbook . From January 20, no more reports were received from U 553 , which was then in the North Atlantic. It can therefore be assumed that the U 553 was lost due to an average due to technical defects or human error. On January 28, 1943, U 553 was declared missing.
Literature and Sources
- 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 3: German submarine successes from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg et al. 2001, ISBN 3-8132-0513-4 .
- Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. Urbes Verlag, Graefelfing vor München 1998, ISBN 3-924896-43-7 , p. 304.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat War 1939-1945. Volume 3: German submarine successes from September 1939 to May 1945. 2001, p. 235.
- ↑ The construction contract was issued on September 25, 1939 and included U 551 to U 558 .
- ↑ After U 564 of Teddy Suhren .
- ^ Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. 1998, p. 103.
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