U 860

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
U 860
( previous / next - all submarines )
Type : IX D2
Field Post Number : 54 813
Shipyard: Deschimag AG Weser , Bremen
Construction contract: June 5, 1941
Build number: 1066
Keel laying: June 15, 1942
Launch: March 23, 1943
Commissioning: August 12, 1943
Commanders:

Paul Büchel

Calls: 1 company
Sinkings:

no

Whereabouts: Sunk by an air raid on June 15, 1944 south of St. Helena

U 860 was a German submarine of the large type IX D2 , a so-called "ocean boat", which was usedby the navy during World War II . It was supposed tooperatewith the boats of the Monsun group in the Indian Ocean and off the African east coast, but was sunk when approaching the operational area.

Construction and technical data

The Bremen shipyard of Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau Aktiengesellschaft, or Deschimag for short , had been commissioned to build submarines since 1934 - at that time still circumventing the provisions of the Versailles Treaty . After the start of the war , the capacity of AG Weser was mainly used to build submarines for the Navy. All 28 boats of the large type IX D2 called “ocean boat” were built here. U 860 was part of the ninth construction contract that was awarded to this shipyard after the start of the war. The submarine displaced 1616 t over water  and 1804 t when submerged, was 87.58  m long, 7.5 m wide and had a draft of 5.35 m. For surface running the total of 5400 guaranteed  PS strong diesel engines a top speed of 19  knots , which 35.7  km / h equivalent. When underwater, the total of 1,100 hp of the two electric motors propelled the boat to a top speed of 6.9 knots - that's 12.8 km / h. At an average cruising speed of 4 knots, an IX D2 boat had a range of 57 nm when underwater, that is 105.6 km. IX D2 boats were armed with 24 torpedoes that could be ejected from 4 bow and 2 stern torpedo tubes . Albert Speer was the boat's godfather. In allusion to his name, an armored fist stretching a spear out of the water became the emblem of U 860 . Corvette Captain Paul Büchel put U 860 into service on August 12, 1943.

Flotilla affiliation

Until March 31, 1944, U 860 belonged to the 4th U-Flotilla , a training flotilla stationed in Stettin . During this time, Commander Büchel undertook training trips in the Baltic Sea to retract the boat and train the crew. On April 1, 1944, the boat was assigned to the 12th submarine flotilla , which was stationed in Bordeaux and which included all long-distance submarines that were intended for use in the Southeast Asian sea area.

commitment

USS Solomons aircraft sunk U 860

U 860 left Kiel on April 11, 1944 for its only venture. The boat was supposed to call at Penang in Malaysia , where the submarines of the Monsun group attacked the Allied ships in that sea area from an improvised submarine base. In addition, the boat had a cargo of mercury on board, which was intended for the Japanese allies. U 860 passed the Skagerrak a few days after leaving the port , ran far north around the British-controlled sea area and turned south near Iceland . U 860 passed the Azores in mid-May and at the end of the month the boat was west of Sierra Leone in the South Atlantic .

Downfall

On June 15, U 860 was west of Lüderitz Bay when the boat was attacked by several Avenger torpedo planes and Wildcat fighters from the aircraft carrier USS Solomons . The crew of U 860 succeeded in shooting down two of the attackers, then the boat sank as a result of several water bomb hits . Commander Büchel and 21 crew members were picked up a few hours later by the US destroyer USS Straub and were taken prisoner of war.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bodo Herzog: German U-Boats 1906–1966 . Karl Müller Verlag, Erlangen 1996, page 199
  2. ^ Georg Högel: Emblems, coats of arms, Malings German submarines 1939-1945. 5th edition. Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-7822-1002-7 , page 151.

literature

  • Clay Blair : The Submarine War. Volume 2: The Hunted, 1942–1945. Heyne, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-453-16059-2 .
  • Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 1: The German submarine commanders. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg a. a. 1996, ISBN 3-8132-0490-1 .
  • Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 4: German submarine losses from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg a. a. 1999, ISBN 3-8132-0514-2 .