German submarine U-16 (1936)
| History | |
|---|---|
 Nazi Germany | |
| Name | U-16 |
| Ordered | February 2 1935 |
| Builder | Deutsche Werke, Kiel |
| Yard number | 251 |
| Laid down | August 5 1935 |
| Launched | April 28 1936 |
| Commissioned | May 16 1936 |
| Fate | Sunk on October 25 1939 in the English Channel near Dover. 28 dead[1] |
| Class and type | Type II U-boat |
| Service record | |
| Part of: |
list error: <br /> list (help) Kriegsmarine: 3rd U-boat Flotilla |
| Identification codes: | M 13 014 |
| Commanders: |
list error: <br /> list (help) Heinz Beduhn Hannes Weingärtner Udo Behrens Horst Wellner |
| Operations: | Three |
| Victories: |
list error: <br /> list (help) One ship sunk for a total of 3,378 GRT GRT uses unsupported parameter (help) One auxiliary warship sunk for a total of 57 GRT |
German submarine U-16 was a Type IIB U-boat of the Nazi Kriegsmarine that served during World War II. It was launched on April 28 1936, under the command of Heinz Beduhn, with a crew of 23. Its last of four commanders was Horst Wellner.
From September 2 1939, until October 25 1939, U-16 took part in the laying of mines in open water in and around the English Channel, to hamper allied shipping. On September 28 1939, U-16 sank the Swedish 3,378 ton Nyland. The 57 ton French Sainte Claire was sunk by one of the mines laid by U-16 on November 21 1939.
Fate
On October 25 1939, U-16 was transiting the Dover Strait when it was attacked by HMS Puffin and HMS Cayton Wyke. Trying to avoid the depth charges from both ships, U-16 ran aground on the Goodwin Sands, an area that was notorious for both sides. U-16 was lost with all hands; other U-Boats were subsequently obliged to take the significantly longer route north of Scotland to the Western Approaches and the north Atlantic.[2]