German submarine U-64 (1939)
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | U-64 |
| Ordered | 16 July 1937[1] |
| Builder | AG Weser, Bremen |
| Yard number | 952[1] |
| Laid down | 15 December 1938[1] |
| Launched | 20 September 1939[1] |
| Commissioned | 16 December 1939[1] |
| Fate | list error: <br /> list (help) Sunk in April 1940 in Norway by a British aircraft Eight dead and 38 survivors[2] |
| General characteristics [3][4] | |
| Displacement | list error: <br /> list (help) 1,051 t (1,034 long tons) surfaced 1,178 t (1,159 long tons) submerged |
| Length | list error: <br /> list (help) 76.5 m (251 ft 0 in) overall 58.7 m (192 ft 7 in) pressure hull |
| Beam | list error: <br /> list (help) 6.8 m (22 ft 4 in) overall 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull |
| Height | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
| Draft | 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) |
| Speed | list error: <br /> list (help) 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h) surfaced 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h) submerged |
| Range | list error: <br /> list (help) 22,200 nmi (41,100 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced 118 nmi (219 km) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) submerged |
| Service record[2][5] | |
| Part of: |
list error: <br /> list (help) 2nd U-boat Flotilla (16 December 1939 – 31 March 1940) 2nd U-boat Flotilla (1 April 1940 – 13 April 1940) |
| Identification codes: | M 05 559 |
| Commanders: |
list error: <br /> list (help) Kapitänleutnant Georg-Wilhelm Schulz (16 December 1939 – 13 April 1940) |
| Operations: |
list error: <br /> list (help) 1st patrol: 1 April 1940 – 13 April 1940 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-64 was a Type IXB U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was ordered by them in July 1937. Her keel was laid down by AG Weser in Bremen in December 1938. Following about nine months of construction, she was launched in September 1939 and formally commissioned into the Kriegsmarine in December.
U-64 had a very short career and sank no enemy vessels. Having left her home port of Wilhelmshaven for her first war patrol on 6 April 1940, she was intercepted by Allied aircraft seven days later off the coast of Norway during the invasion of that country and was sunk by a bomb from a Fairey Swordfish aircraft of HMS Warspite (03).[5][6] Of her crew of 46, eight men died and 38 escaped from the sinking submarine.[2]
Construction and design
Construction
U-64 was ordered by the German Kriegsmarine on 16 July 1937 as part of Plan Z and in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Her keel was laid down on 15 December 1938 by AG Weser in Bremen as Werk 952. She was launched on 20 September 1939 and commissioned on 16 December under the command of Kapitänleutnant Georg-Wilhelm Schulz.[2]
Design
Like all Type IXB submarines, U-64 had a total output of 1,000 hp (746 kW) while submerged and 4,400 hp (3,281 kW) when surfaced. As a result, she could travel at a maximum speed of 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h) while surfaced and 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h) submerged. She had a range of 22,200 nmi (41,100 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) while on the surface and 118 nmi (219 km) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) while submerged. U-64 was equipped with six torpedo tubes (four in the bow and two in the stern) and carried a total of 22 533 mm (21 in) torpedoes. The submarine could also be equipped with 44 TMA mines. U-64's main deck gun was a 10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun[7] with 110 rounds. She also carried the standard 2 cm FlaK 30 anti-aircraft gun. She had a crew of 46 but could carry up to 56 men at any given time. After being commissioned and deployed, U-64 was stationed in the German port city of Wilhelmshaven.[3][4]
Service history
U-64 went to sea on 6 April 1940. For eight days, she roamed the North Sea in search of Allied convoys heading to Norway in support of the campaign centred around that country. During that time she encountered no enemy vessels. On 13 April, the eighth day of her first patrol, she was heaved-to in the waters off Bjerkvik in Norway, and was struck by a 350-pound bomb from a British Fairey Swordfish aircraft of HMS Warspite (03). Her deck was also riddled with machine-gun fire. The U-boat then sank to the bottom of the harbor, eight of her crew went down with her. The remaining 38 were able to escape the sinking vessel and were picked up by German mountain troops stationed ashore. They later formed the crew of U-124.[2][8]
References
- ^ a b c d e "U-64 Type IXB". ubootwaffe.net. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ a b c d e Helgason, Guðmundur. "U-64". German U-boats of WWII. Uboat.net. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "Type IXB". U-Boat War in World War II. Uboat.net. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ a b "Type IX U-Boat". German U-boat. Uboataces.com. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by U-64". U-boat patrols. Uboat.net. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ Kemp, p. 65.
- ^ Campbell, John Naval Weapons of World War Two ISBN 0-87021-459-4 pp.248&249
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol info for U-64 (First patrol)". U-boat patrols. Uboat.net. Retrieved 31 May 2010.