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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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German Submarine U-116 (1941)
German submarine U-116 was a Type XB minelaying U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.

She was ordered on 31 January 1939 and laid down on 1 July at Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft, Kiel, as yard number 615. She was launched on 3 May 1941 and commissioned under the command of Korvettenkapitän Werner von Schmidt on 26 July of that year.

Service history

1st patrol

After a period of training as part of the 2nd U-boat Flotilla, U-116 was assigned to the front-line as part of the 1st U-boat Flotilla on 1 February 1942. She sailed from Kiel on 4 April 1942, bound for Bergen, Norway, via Heligoland, and departed Bergen on 25 April, circling the British Isles before arriving at Lorient in occupied France, on 5 May.

2nd patrol

U-116 sailed from Lorient on 16 May 1942 on a patrol to the mid-Atlantic lasting 25 days, arriving back at her homeport on 9 June, without any success.

3rd patrol

U-116 was more successful on her third patrol which took her south to the coast of West Africa, attacking Convoy OS-33 south of the Azores on 12 July 1942. Soon after midnight she fired one torpedo at the 7,093 GRT merchant ship Cortona, causing some damage; although the ship was then sunk by U-201. Nine hours later U-116 fired two torpedoes into the 4,284 GRT British merchant ship Shaftesbury, which sank in 15 minutes. The U-boat returned to Lorient on 23 August, after 58 days at sea.

4th patrol

For her fourth patrol, U-116 sailed under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Wilhelm Grimme. Leaving Lorient on 22 September 1942, she sent her last radio message on 6 October whilst in the North Atlantic at position 45°00′N 31°30′W / 45.000°N 31.500°W / 45.000; -31.500, and was never heard from again. 56 men were lost with her.

Summary of raiding history

Date Name Nationality Tonnage
(GRT) 		Fate
12 July 1942 Cortona  United Kingdom 7,093 Damaged
12 July 1942 Shaftesbury  United Kingdom 4,284 Sunk

References

  1. ^ Kemp 1999, pp. 92–93.
  2. ^ Kemp, pp. 92-93.
  3. ^ Gröner 1991, pp. 76–77.
  4. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type XB boat U-116". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  5. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-116". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  6. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-116 from 25 Apr 1942 to 5 May 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  7. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-116 from 16 May 1942 to 9 Jun 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  8. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Cortona (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  9. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Shaftesbury (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  10. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-116 from 27 Jun 1942 to 23 Aug 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  11. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-116 from 22 Sep 1942 to 6 Oct 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  12. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-116". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 October 2014.

Bibliography

  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
  • Kemp, Paul (1999). U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. London: Arms & Armour. ISBN 1-85409-515-3.
  • Hofmann, Markus. "U 116". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  • Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type X boat U-116". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
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