Hans Witt

Hans-Ludwig Witt
File:Hans Witt.jpg
Born	(1909-12-25)25 December 1909 Bautzen
Died	13 February 1980(1980-02-13) (aged 70) Hamburg-Poppenbüttel
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1929–45
Rank	Korvettenkapitän
Commands	U-161 U-129 U-3524
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Hans-Ludwig Witt (25 December 1909 in Bautzen – 13 February 1980 in Hamburg-Poppenbüttel) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. With nineteen ships sunk for a total of 100,773 gross register tons (GRT), he was the thirty-second highest scoring U-Boat ace of World War II.

Career

Witt joined the Reichsmarine in 1929, and in October 1940 entered U-boat training, taking command of U-161 as part of training flotilla 4th U-boat Flotilla in July 1941. He then took command of U-129 as a member of 2nd U-boat Flotilla in May 1942. Witt sailed on three successful combat patrols in the western Atlantic and the Caribbean between May 1942 and July 1943, sinking 19 ships for a total of 100,773 GRT, including Mexican tankers Tuxpam and Las Choapas.

Witt spent a year on the BdU staff, before returning to active duty in January 1945 commanding U-3524, one of the new Type XXI Elektroboote that were commissioned under U-boat commanders such as Adalbert Schnee, Peter-Erich Cremer, Carl Emmermann and Erich Topp to try and turn the tide in the Atlantic. However, Witt sailed on no combat patrols and sank no ships in his new U-boat. He died in 1980.

Summary of career

Summary of raiding history

Date	Name	Flag	Tonnage	Fate
10 June 1942	L. A. Christensen	Norway	4,362	Sunk
12 June 1942	Hardwick Grange	United Kingdom	9,005	Sunk
17 June 1942	Millinrocket	United States	3,274	Sunk
27 June 1942	Las Choapas	Mexico	2,005	Sunk
27 June 1942	Tuxpam	Mexico	7,008	Sunk
1 July 1942	Taspe	Soviet Union	6,320	Sunk
12 July 1942	Tachirá	United States	2,325	Sunk
19 July 1942	Port Antonio	Norway	1,266	Sunk
23 July 1942	Onodaga	United States	2,309	Sunk
16 October 1942	Trafalgar	Norway	5,542	Sunk
23 October 1942	Reuben Tipton	United States	6,829	Sunk
30 October 1942	West Kebar	United States	5,620	Sunk
5 November 1942	Astrell	Norway	7,595	Sunk
5 November 1942	Meton	United States	7,027	Sunk
2 April 1943	Melbourne Star	United Kingdom	12,806	Sunk
24 April 1943	Santa Catalina	United States	6,507	Sunk
4 May 1943	Panam	Panama	7,277	Sunk

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (23 August 1942)
  • 1st Class (23 August 1942)
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (23 August 1942)
• U-boat Front Clasp (7 October 1944)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 December 1942 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-129

References

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). 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)
• 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 Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)

External links

• Helgason, Guðmundur. "Hans-Ludwig Witt". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 14 April 2015.