German submarine U-464
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-464 |
| Ordered: | 15 August 1940 |
| Builder: | Deutsche Werke, Kiel |
| Yard number: | 295 |
| Laid down: | 18 March 1941 |
| Launched: | 20 December 1941 |
| Commissioned: | 30 April 1942 |
| Fate: | Sunk, 20 August 1942 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | German Type XIV submarine |
| Displacement: | 1,668 long tons (1,695 t) surfaced 1,932 long tons (1,963 t) submerged |
| Length: | 67.1 m (220 ft 2 in) overall 47.5 m (155 ft 10 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: | 9.35 m (30 ft 8 in) overall 4.9 m (16 ft 1 in) pressure hull |
| Height: | 11.7 m (38 ft 5 in) |
| Draft: | 6.5 m (21 ft 4 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × Germaniawerft F46 supercharged 6-cylinder diesel engines, 3,200 hp (2,400 kW) 2 × SSW Gu343/388-8 double-acting electric motors 750 hp (560 kW) |
| Speed: | 14.9 knots (27.6 km/h) surfaced 6.2 knots (11.5 km/h) submerged |
| Range: | 12,350 nmi (22,870 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h) surfaced 55 nmi (102 km) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) submerged |
| Test depth: | 240 m (790 ft) |
| Complement: | 53–60 men |
| Armament: | • 2 × 37 mm AA guns • 2 × 20 mm AA guns |
| Service record[1][2] | |
| Part of: | 4th U-boat Flotilla (30 April–1 August 1942) 10th U-boat Flotilla (1–20 August 1942) |
| Commanders: | Kptlt. Otto Harms (30 April–20 August 1942) |
| Operations: | 1st patrol: 14 August 1942–20 August 1942 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-464 was a Type XIV supply and replenishment U-boat ("Milchkuh") of the of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.
Her keel was laid down on 18 March 1941, by Deutsche Werke of Kiel. She was commissioned on 30 April 1942 with Kapitänleutnant Otto Harms in command. Harms commanded her for her entire career.[1]
[edit] Fate
U-464 was lost on her first patrol. As a supply boat, she avoided combat. On 20 August 1942, south-east of Iceland, she was attacked by a US PBY Catalina aircraft. Although the aircraft dropped all its bombs without sinking the boat, two crewmen were killed during the attack, and the boat was left unable to dive. While U-464 could still make some eight knots, it was only a matter of time before another aircraft or ship would find and destroy her. Harms spotted a ship nearby and decided to scuttle U-464.[1]
The 60 ton Icelandic merchant vessel Skaftfellingur sighted the distressed U-boat and began rescue operations. The seven-man Icelandic crew placed the 52 German survivors in the bow of their ship and guarded them with a machine gun on the bridge. Later that same day the ship rendezvoused with a pair of British destroyers and turned the German prisoners over to them.[1]
The Kriegsmarine officially published a different version: the U-boat crew boarded the trawler by force, captured its crew, and was heading for Germany when they were intercepted by the destroyers and taken prisoner.[1]
In July 1999 a squadron of Deutsche Marine submarines visited Reykjavík to honor the Icelandic seamen who rescued the U-boat crew.[1]
[edit] References
- Notes
- ^ a b c d e f "The Type XIV boat U-464 - German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/u464.htm. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
- ^ "War Patrols by German U-boat U-464 - Boats - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/patrols/u464.html. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
- Bibliography
[edit] See also
|
|
||||||||
