U 97 (Navy)

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U 97 (Kriegsmarine)
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Type : VII C
Field Post Number : M 19 988
Shipyard: Germania shipyard , Kiel
Construction contract: May 30, 1938
Build number: 602
Keel laying: September 27, 1939
Launch: August 15, 1940
Commissioning: September 28, 1940
Commanders:
  • September 28, 1940 - May 1942
    Lieutenant Udo Heilmann
  • May 1942 - October 15, 1942
    Oberleutnant zur See Friedrich Bürgel
  • February 2, 1943 - June 16, 1943
    Lieutenant Captain Hans-Georg Trox
Calls: 13 activities
Sinkings:

16 ships (71,237 GRT)

Whereabouts: Sunk on June 16, 1943 in the Mediterranean west of Haifa

U 97 was a German submarine of type VIIC that in World War II by the German navy was used.

history

The order for the boat was awarded to the Germania shipyard in Kiel on May 30, 1938 . The keel was laid on September 27, 1939, the launch on August 15, 1940, the commissioning under Lieutenant Udo Heilmann finally took place on September 28, 1940. Like many German submarines of its time, the boat carried an emblem that had been chosen by the first in command, Udo Heilmann: a seahorse on a blue background.

After its commissioning on September 28, 1940 to October 31, 1941, the boat was part of the 7th U-Flotilla as a training and front boat, first in Kiel and then in St. Nazaire . After the U 97 was relocated to the Mediterranean Sea , it belonged to the 23rd U-Flotilla in Salamis from November 1, 1941 to April 30, 1942, and to the 29th U- Flotilla from May 1, 1942 to its sinking on June 16, 1943. Flotilla in La Spezia .

Use statistics

During its service, U 97 completed thirteen operations on which sixteen ships with a total tonnage of 71,237 GRT were sunk and one with a tonnage of 9,718 GRT was damaged.

First venture

The boat was launched on February 17, 1941 at 8:00 am from Kiel, and ran on March 7, 1941 at 12:10 to Lorient one. On this 19-day-long and approximately 3,300 nm above and 188 nm underwater venture in the North Atlantic , west of Ireland , three ships with 16,761 GRT were sunk and one ship with 9,718 GRT was damaged.

  • February 24, 1941: sinking of the British steamer Mansepol ( Lage ) with 4,894 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo . He was ballasted and on his way from Cardiff to Halifax . The ship belonged to convoy OB-289 with 25 ships. There were two dead and 37 survivors.
  • February 24, 1941: sinking of the British steamer Johnathan Holt ( Lage ) with 4,973 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had general cargo and twelve passengers on board and was on his way from Liverpool to West Africa. The ship belonged to convoy OB-289. 41 crew members and ten passengers were killed, four crew members and two passengers were rescued.
  • February 24, 1941: Sinking of the British tanker British Gunner ( Lage ) with 6,894 GRT. The tanker was sunk by a torpedo. He was ballasted and on his way from Swansea to Aruba . The ship belonged to convoy OB-289. There were three dead and 41 survivors.
  • February 24, 1941: Damage to the Norwegian tanker GC Brøvig with 9,718 GRT. The tanker was damaged by a torpedo. He was in ballast and was on his way to New York . He belonged to convoy OB-289.

Second venture

The boat left Lorient on March 20, 1941 at 12:00 p.m. and entered St. Nazaire on April 10, 1941 at 7:00 p.m. On this 22-day and approx. 4,700 nm above and 244 nm underwater expedition in the North Atlantic, southwest and west of Ireland, three ships with 20,510 GRT were sunk.

  • March 23, 1941: Sinking of the British tanker Chama ( Lage ) with 8,077 GRT. The tanker was sunk by four torpedoes. He was in ballast and was on his way from Ardrossan to New York. The ship belonged to convoy OG-56 with 35 ships. It was a total loss with 59 dead.
  • March 24, 1941: sinking of the Norwegian steamer Hørda ( Lage ) with 4,301 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had unknown cargo on board and was en route from Liverpool to Halifax (Nova Scotia). The ship belonged to convoy OG-56. It was a total loss with 30 dead.
  • April 4, 1941: Sinking of the British tanker Conus ( Lage ) with 8,132 GRT. The tanker was sunk by three torpedoes. He was ballasted and on his way from Swansea and Milford Haven to Curaçao . The ship belonged to convoy OB-304 with 36 ships. It was a total loss with 59 dead.

Third company

The boat left St. Nazaire on May 1, 1941 at 5:45 p.m., and returned there on May 30, 1941 at 11:15 a.m. During this 29-day and approx. 5,600 nm above and 346 nm underwater expedition in the North Atlantic, the western Biscay and southwest of Ireland, three ships with 17,852 GRT were sunk.

  • May 6, 1941: sinking of the British steamer HMS Camito (F. 77) ( Lage ) with 6,833 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. It was a Royal Navy training ship . There were no losses.
  • May 6, 1941: sinking of the Italian tanker Sangro ( Lage ) with 6,466 GRT. The tanker was sunk by a torpedo. He was a British pinch. There were eight survivors.
  • May 8, 1941: sinking of the British steamer Ramillies ( Lage ) with 4,553 GRT. The steamer was sunk by two torpedoes. He had loaded 3,074 tons of coke and was on the way from Tyne via Oban to Baltimore . The ship belonged to the disbanded convoy OB-317 with 23 ships.

Fourth venture

The boat left St. Nazaire on July 2, 1941 at 9:30 p.m., and returned there on August 8, 1941 at 6:00 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 37-day and approximately 6,000 nm over and 270 nm underwater venture into the central North Atlantic.

Fifth venture

The boat left St. Nazaire on September 20, 1941 at 4:30 p.m. and entered Salamis on October 28, 1941 at 11:50 a.m. On this 38 day long and 5,198 nm above and 1,008 nm underwater undertaking, on which the breakthrough through the Strait of Gibraltar succeeded on September 26, 1941 and was operated in the eastern Mediterranean off Sollum , two ships with 1,966 GRT were sunk.

  • October 17, 1941: sinking of the Greek steamer Samos ( Lage ) with 1,208 GRT. The steamer was sunk by two torpedoes. He had loaded military equipment and was on his way from Alexandria to Tobruk . There were 31 dead and three survivors.
  • October 17, 1941: sinking of the British tanker Pass of Balhama ( Lage ) with 758 GRT. The tanker was sunk by two torpedoes. He had petrol loaded and was on his way from Alexandria to Tobruk. It was a total loss with 18 dead.

Sixth venture

The boat left Salamis on December 23, 1941 at 3:00 p.m. and returned there on January 9, 1942 at 10:15 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 17 day long and 1,402 nm above and 519 nm underwater undertaking in the eastern Mediterranean, off Lesbos and Cape Baba .

Seventh venture

The boat left Salamis on January 12, 1942 at 3:00 p.m., and returned there on January 31, 1942 at 11:30 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 20-day and 1,719 nm over and 503 nm underwater expedition into the eastern Mediterranean off Tobruk.

Commander Udo Heilmann moved with U 97 on February 3rd, 1942 from Salamis to La Spezia where the boat arrived on February 8th, 1942.

Eighth venture

The boat left La Spezia on March 14, 1942 at 4:25 p.m. and entered Salamis on March 30, 1942 at 9:30 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 17-day and approx. 1,800 nm above and 308 nm underwater expedition into the eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea .

Ninth venture

The boat left Salamis on April 5, 1942 at 4:00 p.m. and entered La Spezia on May 12, 1942 at 8:22 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 37-day and approximately 3,300 nm above and 877 nm underwater venture into the eastern Mediterranean off Tobruk.

Tenth venture

The boat left La Spezia on June 15, 1942 at 17:28, and entered Salamis on July 4, 1942 at 12:00. U 97 entered Messina on June 18, 1942 as a supplement and left again on the same day. On this 19-day and 2,398 nm over and 452 nm underwater expedition into the eastern Mediterranean, off Tobruk, the coast of Palestine and Haifa , three ships of 3,974 GRT were sunk.

  • June 28, 1942: sinking of the Greek steamer Memas ( Lage ) with 1,755 GRT. The steamer was sunk by two torpedoes. He had an unknown cargo and was en route from Alexandria to Famagusta . There were eight dead and 17 survivors.
  • June 28, 1942: sinking of the British steamer Zealand ( Lage ) with 1,433 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had jet fuel loaded and was on his way from Port Said to Famagusta. The ship was part of the Metril convoy with three ships. There were 14 dead and 19 survivors.
  • July 1, 1942: sinking of the British steamer Marilyse Moller ( Lage ) with 786 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had petrol loaded and was on his way from Beirut and Alexandria to Port Said. The ship belonged to the Nugget convoy . There were 31 dead and four survivors.

Eleventh venture

The boat left Salamis on July 22, 1942 at 4:40 p.m. and returned there on August 4, 1942 at 11 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 14-day and approx. 2,100 nm above and 328 nm underwater expedition into the eastern Mediterranean.

Commander Friedrich Bürgel moved with U 97 on August 20, 1942 from Salamis to Patras and on August 21, 1942 from Patras to Tarant, on August 27, 1942 from Tarant to Messina, and on August 28, 1942 from Messinan to La Spezia.

Twelfth venture

The boat was launched on April 10, 1943 at 15:00 of La Spezia, and ran at 8:36 pm on May 3, 1943 Pola one. U 97 entered Messina on April 12, 1943 for repairs and left again on the same day. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 23-day and approx. 2,900 nm over and 405 nm underwater venture into the eastern Mediterranean.

Thirteenth venture

The boat left Pola on June 5, 1943 at 2:00 p.m. and was sunk on June 16, 1943. On this twelve-day expedition in the eastern Mediterranean, off Tobruk and west of Haifa, two ships with 10,174 GRT were sunk.

  • June 12, 1943: sinking of the Dutch steamer Palima ( Lage ) with 1,179 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had an unknown cargo on board and was en route from Port Said to Beirut. There were 24 dead and 37 survivors.
  • June 15, 1943: Sinking of the British tanker Athel Monarch with 8,995 GRT. The tanker was sunk by a torpedo and is located about 19 kilometers from the city of Netanya , 182 meters below sea level. He had loaded 13,600 tons of heating oil and was on the way from Beirut to Port Said . There were four dead and 47 survivors. In 2017 the Israeli company Marine Projects Jam-Jafo discovered the wreck.

Whereabouts

On June 16, 1943, U 97 in the Mediterranean Sea, west of Haifa by water bombs an Australian PBO-1 Hudson T of RCAF -Squadron 458 in position "33 ° 0  N , 34 ° 0 '  O submerged marine-grid square CP 5599th 27 crew members were killed and 21 were saved.

U 97 lost one crew member during its service life up to the sinking.

literature

  • Clay Blair : The Submarine War. Volume 1: The Hunters. 1939-1942. Heyne, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-453-12345-X .
  • 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 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 .
  • 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 .
  • Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 5: The knight's cross bearers of the submarine weapon from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler and Son, Hamburg a. a. 2003, ISBN 3-8132-0515-0 .
  • Erich Gröner : Die Handelsflotten der Welt 1942 and supplement 1944. JF Lehmanns Verlag, Munich 1976, ISBN 3-469-00552-4 (reprint of the 1942–1943 edition).
  • Erich Gröner: Search list for ship names (= The merchant fleets of the world. Supplementary volume). JF Lehmanns Verlag Munich 1976, ISBN 3-469-00553-2 (reprint of the 1943 edition).
  • Paul Kemp: The German and Austrian submarine losses in both world wars. Urbes Verlag, Graefelfing before Munich 1998, ISBN 3-924896-43-7 .

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ 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 54
  2. ↑ Israelnetz.de of December 21, 2017: Wreck of a bombed ship discovered near Netanya