Hans-Ludwig Witt | |
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Born | 25 December 1909 Bautzen |
Died | 13 February 1980 Hamburg-Poppenbüttel |
(aged 70)
Allegiance | Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany |
Service/branch | Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine |
Years of service | 1929–1945 |
Rank | Korvettenkapitän |
Commands held | 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.
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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 highly-decorated U-boat commanders (like Schnee, Cremer, Emmermann and Topp) in an attempt to turn the tide in the battle of the Atlantic. However, Witt sailed on no combat patrols and sank no ships in his new U-boat. He died in 1980.[1]