Hunt and Kill
Page 30
May 7, 1942: U-505 returns to Lorient, completing 86-day patrol.
Total distance traveled = 13,253 nautical miles (12,937 surfaced [97.6%], 316 submerged [2.4%].
May 7-June 6, 1942: Docked at Lorient for repairs and refitting; crew leave.
June 7-August 25, 1942: Third operational cruise, combat patrol in the Caribbean.
June 30-August 1: In operations area (a defective compass affected navigation throughout the patrol).
June 28: U-505 encounters and sinks US freighter Sea Thrush (5,447 GRT), bound from Philadelphia to Capetown via Trinidad with a cargo of Army supplies at 22.40 N/61.10 W, three torpedoes fired, two hits; all 41 crewmen, 14 US Army passengers and 11 Naval Armed Guard personnel survived.
June 29: U-505 encounters and sinks American Liberty ship Thomas McKean (7,191 GRT) en route from New York to the Persian Gulf with a cargo of planes, tanks and war supplies for Russia at 22.00 N/ 60.00 W; two torpedoes fired, one hit plus 72 rounds of 10.5cm artillery; 38 crewmen and 13 Naval Armed Guard personnel survived, three of the latter and one crewman were killed or died of wounds.
July 22: Encounters Columbian schooner Roamar, recently renamed Urios (110 GRT), which tries to flee despite several warning shots and is sunk by 22 rounds of 10.5cm gunfire at 12.24 N/ 81.28 W, 12 miles from Callo Bolivar; all 23 Colombian crew and passengers (including four women) lost; thereafter many U-505 crewmen attribute the submarine’s subsequent bad luck to this incident, although it is not the cause of Colombia’s eventual declaration of “belligerency” against Germany in November 1943.
July 31: Loewe’s worsening illness (appendicitis) leads him to request permission to break off the patrol and return home.
August 8: Rendezvous with milchkuh U-463 to receive fuel.
August 20: Chance encounter with outbound U-214, to whom U-505 transfers surplus supply of tea.
August 25: Return to Lorient, completing a 79-day patrol.
Total distance traveled = 13,340 nautical miles (12,842 surfaced [96.3%], 498 submerged [3.7%].
August 25-October 3, 1942: docked at Lorient for repairs and refitting.
September 15: Loewe transfers command to Oblt.z.S. Peter Zschech.
October 4-December 12, 1942: Fourth operational patrol, again to the Caribbean.
October 22: Rendezvous with homeward-bound U-514 to transfer Kaptlt. (I) Förster, who returns to Lorient after briefly supervising the new chief engineer, Oblt. (I) Josef Hauser.
November 1: Arrives in operational area off Trinidad.
November 6-7: Attacks and sinks British freighter Ocean Justice (7,173 GRT) bound from Durban to Trinidad with 600 tons of manganese ore at 10.06 N / 60.00 W; four torpedoes fired, two hits at long range (2000 meters); all 54 crewmen, including nine British naval and military gunners, survive.*
November 7: Unsuccessful attack on unidentified freighter (two torpedo misses).
November 9-10: Problems noted with radar-detection gear.
November 10: U-505 surprised on the surface SE of Trinidad by British Hudson aircraft (RAF 53 Squadron) piloted by Australian F/Sgt. R. R. Sillcock, who since August has already damaged U-155 and U-173 with his attacks; Sillcock releases four depth-charges, one of which scores a direct hit near the aft 3.7cm deck gun; damage includes a puncture in the pressure hull, the loss of the port diesel engine, and leaks in the outer fuel tanks on the port side, as well as the severe wounding of II.W.O. Stolzenberg and another crewman; the force of the explosion also destroys the attacking Hudson, killing Sillcock and his four crewmen.
* Because of the differences in maintaining time, U-505 recorded her attack on Ocean Justice in the early hours of November 7 (Berlin time); the crew of her victim placed the time of the sinking during the evening of November 6 (local time).
November 11: Effected repairs allow U-505 a limited diving capability; return voyage begins.
November 22: Rendezvous with milchkuh U-462 (U-68 and U-332 also present), during which U-505 receives oil, fresh provisions, and spare parts; Lt.z.S. Stolzenburg is transferred to U-462 for medical treatment and return to Germany, Lt.z.S.d.R. Knoke comes aboard as a replacement for the remainder of the patrol; some welding repairs to the hull and bridge of U-505 are also completed.
November 24: Abortive pursuit and attack on an unidentified Allied merchantman; six torpedoes fired without effect.
November 30: Rendezvous with milchkuh U-461 for radar detector equipment replacements and medical supplies.
December 12: Return to Lorient, completing a shortened 69-day patrol.
Total distance traveled = 10,876 nautical miles (10,250 surfaced [94.2%], 626 submerged [5.8%]
December 13, 1942-June 30, 1943: U-505 laid up in Lorient for major repairs and reconstruction of bridge platform to accommodate new anti-aircraft battery.
January 14, 1943: Heavy Allied air raids devastate Lorient, U-boat crews transfer residence to “Lager Lemp” outside the city.
February 10-26, 1943: Entire crew on leave to U-505 sponsor city Schliersee (Bavaria) and to U-boat recreation facility in Wiessee.
July 1, 1943: Departs Lorient but develops leak on first test dive, returns for repairs July 2.
July 3-13: Departs on patrol, but problems encountered with radar detection gear and hydrophones, later with radio; while transiting Bay of Biscay U-505 surprised and depth-bombed by aircraft on July 8, followed by depth-charging by Allied warships; though not seriously damaged; a significant oil leak convinces Zschech to return to Lorient.
July 14-31: In port for repairs; investigation reveals complete corrosion of the rubber gaskets on the ballast tanks’ ventilation and emergency vent valves, and corrosion of the two new batteries installed.
August 1-2: U-505 departs again, but unidentifiable cracking noises in the hull during practice dives prompts a return to port.
August 3-13: In port for examination, problem not identified.
August 14-15: Departs again, on first deep practice dive cracking noises return and a tear develops in the air-intake mast, forcing return to base.
August 16-20: In port for repairs.
August 21-22: Departs again, but oil leak causes return to port.
August 23-September 17: In port for repairs, problem again identified as corroded rubber seals to vents on the ballast tanks; new radar detector gear (“Wanze G2,” also called “Hagenuk”) received. (Note: several sources attribute most of these problems to sabotage by French dockyard workers, several of whom were reportedly tried and shot; the U-505 war diary contains no information on this subject).
September 18-30: Aborted patrol; on September 19 the starboard exhaust valve proved not watertight, personally inspected and repaired by a visit of the 10th Flotilla Chief Engineer; on September 23 U-505 crash-dived to elude an aircraft, after which the starboard electrical motor and the main ballast pump fell out of action; the motor was repaired but the pump could not be, compelling another return to Lorient.
During the aborted missions of July 1-September 30, U-505 traveled a total of 3,293 nautical miles, of which 2,649 (= 80.4%) were on the surface and 644 (= 19.6%) submerged.
October 1-8, 1943: In port for repairs to the main ballast pump and other minor problems; new radar detector “Naxos” equipment installed.
October 9-November 7: Curtailed patrol due to suicide of commanding officer.
October 24: After a relatively quiet passage through the Bay of Biscay, U-505 is apparently attacked in the evening by Allied warships and depth-charged. During this action Zschech shoots himself in the head and is pronounced dead about 90 minutes later. I.W.O. Oblt.z.S Paul Meyer assumed command, and after burying Zschech at sea on October 25, returned to Lorient November 7.
Total distance traveled = 2,211 nautical miles (1,254 surfaced [=56.7%], 957 submerged [= 43.3%].
November 8-December 20, 1943: Refitting and repairs in Lorient.
November 18: Oblt.z.S.d.R. Harald Lange assumes command of U-505.
December 20-21: Aborted patrol when U-505 deve
lops a leak on her first practice dive and returns to base.
December 21-24: Repairs in Lorient.
December 25, 1943-January 2, 1944: U-505 departs on patrol but diverted to rescue operation for survivors of German vessels lost in Bay of Biscay battle of December 28, 1943.
December 28: Audible sounds of artillery gunfire and explosions during the afternoon followed by an evening message from BdU to alter course and join with other U-boats to search for survivors.
December 29: Over the course of the day U-505 recovers 34 survivors from nine life-rafts of torpedo-boat T25, including commanding officer Korv.Kapt. Wirich von Gartzen; at day’s end U-505 puts about to return and is directed to the port of Brest.
January 2, 1944: While approaching port a short-circuit results in a fire in the starboard electrical motor, quickly extinguished; while docking the starboard diving plane fin and shaft is accidentally damaged.
Total distance traveled = 865 nautical miles (651 surfaced [=75.3%], 214 submerged [= 24.7%].
January 2-March 16, 1944: Docked at Brest for repairs and refitting; during this time U-505 receives new crewmen and three new T-5 acoustic torpedoes.
March 16-June 4, 1944: U-505’s final patrol off the west coast of Africa, operational area Freetown, Sierra Leone-Monrovia, Liberia
March 16: Departure from Brest.
March 19-20: While transiting the Bay of Biscay U-505 crash-dives five times to avoid aircraft indicated by “Naxos” radar detector.
April 7: Rendezvous with homeward-bound U-123 to provide current radio cipher keys.
April 24-May 23: In operational area; few targets seen, none attacked; during this period U-505 is hampered by a substandard radar set and a jammed bow-cap on torpedo tube II.
May 23: Begins return passage.
May 30-June 2: While moving east and northeast of the Cape Verde Islands U-505 crash dives eight times to avoid aircraft indicated by “Naxos” and “Wanze” radar detectors.
June 4: U-505 attacked and captured by Task Group 22.3 at 21.30’ N/19.20’W, ca. 150 miles west of Cape Blanco, West Africa.
Total distance traveled prior to capture = 7,977 nautical miles, 6,044 surfaced [= 75.8%], 1,933 submerged [= 24.2%].
Sources
Primary
War diary (Kriegstagebuch) of U-505; accounts of Allied merchant ship losses among records of the U.S. Tenth Fleet, Record Group 38, National Archives-College Park, Md.; copies of U-505 administrative records available at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago; and U-505 subject folders at the U-Boot-Archiv, Cuxhaven.
Secondary
Hans Joachim Decker, “404 Days! The War Patrol Life of the German U-505,” United States Naval Institute Proceedings, 86, 3 (March 1960), 33-45.
Hans Jacob Goebeler with John P. Vanzo, Steel Boats, Iron Hearts: The Wartime Saga of Hans Goebeler and the U-505 (Holder, FL: Wagnerian Publications, 1999).
A shorter chronology is provided in Kenneth Wynn, U-Boat Operations of the Second World War, Vol 1: Career Histories, U1-U510 (Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press, 1997), 323-24.
Appendix C
Statement of Commanding Officer
Oblt.z.S.d.R. Harald Lange, U-505
given while at sea aboard
USS Guadalcanal on June 15, 1944
On June 4th about 1200 I was moving under water on my general course when noise bearings were reported. I tried to move to the surface to get a look with the periscope. The sea was slightly rough and the boat was hard to keep on periscope depth. I saw one destroyer through West, another through Southwest and a third at 160 degrees. In about 140 degrees I saw, far off, a mass that might belong to a carrier. Destroyer #1 (West) was nearest to me, at about 1/2 mile. Further off I saw an airplane, but I had no chance to look after this again because I did not want my periscope seen. I dove again and quickly, with noise, because I couldn’t keep the boat on periscope depth safely. I suppose that I must have been seen by the airplane because if these heavy boats are rolling under the surface they make a large wake.
I had not reached the safety depth when I received two bombs at a distance and then close after them two heavy dashes, from depth charges perhaps. Water broke in; light and all electrical machinery went off and the rudders jammed. Not knowing exactly the whole damage or why they continued bombing me, I gave the order to bring the boat to the surface by pressed air.
When the boat surfaced, I was the first on the bridge and saw now four destroyers around me, shooting at my boat with caliber and anti-aircraft. The nearest one, in now through 110 degrees, was shooting with shrapnel into the conning tower. I got wounded by numerous shots and shrapnels in both knees and legs and fell down. At once I gave the order to leave the boat and to sink her. My chief officer, who came after me onto the bridge, lay on the starboard side with blood streaming over his face. Then I gave a course order to starboard in order to make the aft part of the conning tower fire lee at the destroyer to get my crew out of the boat safely. I lost consciousness for I don’t know how long, but when I awoke again a lot of my men were on the deck and I made an effort to raise myself and haul myself aft. By the explosion of a shell I was blown from the first antiaircraft deck down onto the main deck; the explosion hit near the starboard machine gun.
I saw a lot of my men running on the main deck, getting pipe boats (individual life rafts) clear. In a conscious moment, I gave notice to the chief that I was still on the main deck. How I got over the side I don’t know exactly, but I suppose by another explosion. Despite my injuries I somehow managed to keep afloat until two members of my group brought a pipe boat and hoisted me into it; my lifejacket had been punctured with shrapnel and was no good. During all this time I could not see much because in the first seconds of the fight I had been hit in the face and eye with splinters of wood blasted from the deck; my right eyelid was pierced with a splinter.
When I sat in the pipe boat I could see my boat for the last time. Some of my men were still aboard her, throwing more pipe boats into the water. I ordered the men around me to give three cheers for our sinking boat.
After this I was picked up by a destroyer where I received first aid treatment. Later, on this day, I was transferred to the carrier hospital and there I have been told by the Captain that they captured my boat and prevented it from sinking.
Notes
No Target Too Far: The Genesis, Concept, and Operations
of Type IX U-Boats in World War II
by Eric C. Rust
1. An online version of the treaty text exists at: http://www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwi/versailles.xhtml.
2. Arguably the best, constantly updated and most convenient resource for information on German submarines in both World Wars is the U-boat Net website at: http://uboat.net.
3. Article IV of the Washington Treaty regulated the size of the naval establishments of Britain, the United States, Japan, France and Italy in a ratio of 5:5:3:1.75:1.75. In other provisions, the treaty placed limits on the tonnage and armament of certain classes of warships. The full text of the treaty is available in print, and online: http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/pre-war/1922/nav_lim.xhtml.
4. This was evidenced in Germany’s endless improvisations, compromises, and experiments all the way into the later stages of the Second World War.
5. A summary and discussion of the Z-Plan can be found in Jak P. Mallmann Showell, The German Navy in World War II: A Reference Guide to the Kriegsmarine, 1935-1945 (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1979), 23-24.
6. For a detailed list of Germany’s actual and anticipated naval building program, consult Erich Gröner, Die Schiffe der deutschen Kriegsmarine und Luftwaffe 1939-45 und ihr Verbleib, 7th rev. ed. (Munich: Lehmanns, 1972).
7. To avoid possible national embarrassment in case it was sunk by the enemy, the Deutschland was later renamed Lützow. Scheer and Spee were prominent naval leaders in World War I.
8. August K. Muggenthaler’s work, German Raiders of World War II (Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1977), remains one
of the finest on the subject.
9. Four additional experimental designs were labeled V80, V300, WA201 and Wk202. They relied on the revolutionary “Walter turbine” concept and never saw frontline deployment.
10. Numerous publications and internet websites offer statistics on the characteristics and wartime fate of German submarines. One of the best-researched is Axel Niestlé, German U-Boat Losses during World War II: Details of Destruction (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1998). For a reasonably accurate listing of Axis submarine successes against Allied shipping consult Jürgen Rohwer, Axis Submarine Successes, 1939-1945, rev. ed. (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1999).
11. National Archives Microfilm Publication T 1022, roll 1724, item PG 32173, Supplement to KTB 1/Skl, Teil C, Heft IV, “Ubootkrieg” (1941), 5.
12. Operation Deadlight involved the deliberate scuttling of surviving German U-boats after the war by the British in the eastern Atlantic, often after or as part of weapons experiments.
13. U-Boot-Archiv Cuxhaven-Altenbruch, “Wasserbombenschäden an U-Booten Typ IX,” in Folder “Untersuchungen über Wabo- u. Fliebo-Schäden,” 37.
14. Corraborating evidence in Bundesarchiv-Militärarchiv (BA-MA), RM 98/358, KTB U-154, entry for July 3, 1943, and post-war testimony.
15. See “The Monsun Boats,” at: http://uboat.net/ops/monsun2.htm.
16. Michael Gannon, Operation Drumbeat: The Dramatic True Story of Germany’s First U-Boat Attacks along the American Coast in World War II (New York: Harper & Row, 1990).
17. Two areas receiving increased attention are the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. A fine account of operations here is Gaylord T. M. Kelshall, U-Boat War in the Caribbean (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1994).
18. A slightly dated but generally reliable account of these operations and Allied countermeasures is L. C. F. Turner, War in the Southern Oceans, 1939-1945 (Capetown: Oxford University Press, 1961).