U 741
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U 741 ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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|---|---|
| Type : | VII C |
| Field Post Number : | 41 306 |
| Shipyard: | F. Schichau shipyard , Danzig |
| Construction contract: | June 5, 1941 |
| Build number: | 1544 |
| Keel laying: | April 30, 1942 |
| Launch: | February 4, 1943 |
| Commissioning: | April 10, 1943 |
| Commanders: |
Oberleutnant zur See (the reserve) Gerhard Palmgren |
| Flotilla: |
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| Calls: | 5 patrols |
| Sinkings: |
1 warship (246 t) |
| Whereabouts: | sunk in the English Channel on August 15, 1944 |
U 741 was a German type VII C submarine . It was used by the Kriegsmarine in the North Atlantic and Biscay during the Second World War in 1944 .
Technical specifications
The F. Schichau shipyard in Danzig was only integrated into the war armaments after the German occupation of Poland and built a total of 62 VII-C boats from 1941 to 1944. U 741 was a so-called "Atlantic boat " from a series commissioned in June 1941, which comprised a total of six boats: U 741 to U 746. A VII-C boat was 66.5 m long and displaced 760 t of water. With its 3000 hp diesel engine it made speeds of up to 17 knots over water and had a maximum range of 9500 nautical miles . The coat of arms of the U 741 was a palm tree in the desert sand on the tower - as with many of the German submarine coats of arms, an allusion to the name of the commander Gerhard Palmgren.
Snorkel
boat U 741 was equipped with a snorkel that allowed a longer underwater journey. Since this modification ensured a supply of fresh air on the one hand and discharged the toxic diesel exhaust on the other hand, “snorkel boats ” had longer dwell times under water. The diesel engines could be used underwater and the boat was better protected from being discovered.
The submarine snorkel in the type VII boats was designed as a foldable mast with internal tubes for supply and exhaust air, which also had a float at the top. When the snorkel was cut under the surface of the water, the swimmer prevented water from being sucked in and thus getting into the submerged boat.
Criticism of the snorkel system
The use of the snorkel was criticized by the crews of the submarines. Teams expressed concern that the snorkel swimmer would be easy to spot on the surface of the sea and that its undercutting in choppy seas would provoke a vacuum inside the boat. In addition, the discharge of diesel exhaust gases is inadequate and the gas volume leads to dizziness and even fainting. Radio operators reported that a "snorkeling" boat caused noise that made it impossible to overhear possible enemy vehicles.
history
Commander was on 10 April 1943 until the fall on 15 August 1944 Gerhard Palmgren (* 1919 in Kassel) before first watch officer on U 441 .
U 741 sailed until October 1943 as a training boat with the 8th U-Flotilla stationed in Danzig in the Baltic Sea. On November 1 of the same year the boat was assigned to the 1st U-Flotilla as a front boat (partly entrusted with transport tasks).
On November 25, 1943, U 741 set out from Kiel for the first patrol, during which the boat operated west of Ireland in the North Atlantic. On January 27, U 741 finally reached Brest , the base of the 1st U-Flotilla . From there, U 741 made three more enemy voyages, but without sinking or damaging ships. The last of these voyages ended in July 1944 in the fortified port of Le Havre . The snorkel of U 741 was rammed and severely damaged by an Allied ship on July 12. Commandant Palmgren decided to call at Le Havre - contrary to the order of the flotilla chief Hans-Rudolf Rösing to return to Brest.
U 741 left Le Havre on August 3, 1944 on its last patrol. The strategic goal of the mission was to take part in the defense against Operation Overlord . The part of the English Channel upstream from Le Havre was intended as the operational area . On August 15, U 741 torpedoed and sank a British infantry landing craft (HMS LST 404) with 246 GRT ( Lage ) during the attack on convoy FTM 69 .
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Following the torpedoing of LST 404 , as a precaution, Commander Palmgren put the boat aground at a depth of 60 meters . Nevertheless, U 741 was recorded by the British corvette HMS Orchis via ASDIC . The Orchis attacked the German submarine with submarine mortars and depth charges and destroyed the foredeck of the submarine until it was unable to dive ( location ).
A small group managed to gather in the undamaged stern of the U 741 and attempt to surface with the help of the diving rescuers. However, the flooding of the aft ship required for this took longer than the capacity of the diving rescuers was sufficient. Only a man with a second dive rescuer finally managed to reach the surface. The man was rescued by the corvette Orchis . Leo Leuwer died at the age of 93 in Essen on October 20, 2013.
Notes and individual references
- ^ Georg Högel: Emblems, coats of arms, Malings German submarines 1939-1945. 5th edition. Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7822-1002-7 , p. 142.
literature
- Clay Blair : The Submarine War. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. Heyne, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-453-16059-2 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 2: U-boat construction in German shipyards. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg a. a. 1997, ISBN 3-8132-0512-6 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 3: German submarine successes from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg a. a. 2001, ISBN 3-8132-0513-4 .
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