Erwin Rostin
Erwin Rostin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 8 October 1907 Güstrow, Mecklenburg |
| Died | 30 June 1942 (aged 34) Atlantic Ocean |
| Allegiance |  Nazi Germany |
| Service |  Kriegsmarine |
| Years of service | 1933–42 |
| Rank | Kapitänleutnant |
| Unit | Schlesien |
| Commands | Minensuchboot M 98, M 21 U-158 (25 September 1941–30 June 1942) |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Erwin Rostin (8 October 1907 in Güstrow – killed in action 1 July 1942 in Atlantic Ocean) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. He is numbered thirty-one in the list of U-Boat aces of World War II.
Career
Rostin joined theReichsmarine in 1933 and served eight years on minesweepers. He was transferred to submarine training in 1941. Rostin sailed for his first combat patrol as commander of U-158 on 7 February 1942, sinking five ships (38,785 tons), including the SS Empire Celt, and damaging two (15,264 tons) of the east coast of the United States[1] His second and last patrol (4 May–30 June 1942), took him into the Gulf of Mexico where U-158 sank 12 ships (62,536 tons), one of the most successful patrols in the Kriegsmarine.[2] However it ended with the sinking of U-158 by a United States Navy PBM Mariner bomber, with all hands lost, at 32°50′N 67°28′W / 32.833°N 67.467°W. In five months Rostin sank 17 ships for a total of 101,321 GRT, and damaged two others for a total of 15,264 GRT.[3]
Summary of career
Ships Attacked
Erwin Rostin as commander of U-158 sank 17 merchant ships totalling 101,321 gross register tons (GRT), and damaged another two of 15,264 GRT.
| Date | Ship | Nationality | Tonnage | Fate[4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 February 1942 | Diloma |  United Kingdom
|
8,146 | Damaged |
| 24 February 1942 | Empire Celt | United Kingdom
|
8,032 | Sunk |
| 2 March 1942 | Finnager | United Kingdom
|
9,551 | Sunk |
| 11 March 1942 | Caribesa | United Kingdom
|
2,609 | Sunk |
| 13 March 1942 | John D. Gill |  United States
|
11,641 | Sunk |
| 15 March 1942 | Ario | United States
|
6,952 | Sunk |
| 15 March 1942 | Olean | United States
|
7,118 | Damaged |
| 25 May 1942 | Darina | United Kingdom
|
8,113 | Sunk |
| 22 May 1942 | Frank D. Baird |  Canada
|
1,748 | Sunk |
| 2 June 1942 | Knoxville City | United States
|
5,686 | Sunk |
| 4 June 1942 | Nidarnes |  Norway
|
2,647 | Sunk |
| 5 June 1942 | Velma Lykes | United States
|
2,572 | Sunk |
| 7 June 1942 | Hermis |  Panama
|
5,234 | Sunk |
| 11 June 1942 | Scheheradze | Panama
|
13,467 | Sunk |
| 12 June 1942 | Cities Service Toledo | United States
|
8,192 | Sunk |
| 17 June 1942 | Moira | Norway
|
1,560 | Sunk |
| 17 June 1942 | San Blas | Panama
|
3,601 | Sunk |
| 23 June 1942 | Major General Henry Gibbins | United States
|
5,766 | Sunk |
| 23 June 1942 | Everalda |  Latvia
|
3,950 | Sunk |
Awards
- Iron Cross (1939)
- Sudetenland Medal (20 December 1939)[5]
- Minesweeper, Submarine Hunter and Security Forces War Badge (3 January 1941)[5]
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 28 June 1942 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-158[6][7]
- U-boat War Badge (1939) posthumously on 1 July 1942[8]
- Mentioned twice in the Wehrmachtbericht (18 March 1942 and 25 June 1942)
References
- Notes
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-158 from 7 Feb 1942 to 31 Mar 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-158 from 4 May 1942 to 30 Jun 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXC boat U-158". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 April 2010.
- ^ "U-101 Successes". Uboat.net. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
- ^ a b c d Busch & Röll 2003, p. 229.
- ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 640.
- ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 365.
- ^ Busch & Röll 2003, p. 230.
- Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Kurowski, Franz (1995). Knight's Cross Holders of the U-Boat Service. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-88740-748-2.
- Range, Clemens (1974). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Kriegsmarine. Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag. ISBN 978-3-87943-355-1.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help)
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "Erwin Rostin". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
