German submarine U-173
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-173 |
| Ordered: | 23 December 1939 |
| Builder: | AG Weser, Bremen |
| Yard number: | 1013 |
| Laid down: | 21 December 1940 |
| Launched: | 11 August 1941 |
| Commissioned: | 15 November 1941 |
| Fate: | Sunk, 16 November 1942[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Type IXC submarine |
| Displacement: |
1,120 t (1,100 long tons) surfaced 1,232 t (1,213 long tons) submerged |
| Length: |
76.8 m (252 ft 0 in) overall 58.7 m (192 ft 7 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: |
6.8 m (22 ft 4 in) overall 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull |
| Height: | 9.4 m (30 ft 10 in) |
| Draft: | 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) |
| Propulsion: |
2 × MAN M9V40/46 supercharged 9-cylinder diesel engines, 4,000 hp (2,983 kW) 2 × SSW GU345/34 double-acting electric motors, 1,000 hp (746 kW) |
| Speed: |
18.2 knots (33.7 km/h) surfaced 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h) submerged |
| Range: |
24,880 nmi (46,080 km; 28,630 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced 117 nautical miles (217 km; 135 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged |
| Test depth: | 230 m (750 ft) |
| Complement: | 48 to 56 |
| Armament: |
6 × torpedo tubes (four bow, two stern) 22 × 55 cm (22 in) torpedoes 1 × 10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun[2] (110 rounds) |
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
4th U-boat Flotilla (15 November 1941–30 June 1942) 2nd U-boat Flotilla (1 July–16 November 1942) |
| Commanders: |
Fregkpt. Heinz-Ehler Beuke (15 November 1941–October 1942) Oblt.z.S. Hans-Adolf Schweichel (October 1942–16 November 1942) |
| Operations: | Two |
| Victories: |
One auxiliary warship sunk, of (9,359 GRT); two auxiliary warships damaged, (18,285 tons) one warship damaged, (1,630 tons) |
German submarine U-173 was a Type IXC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
She was laid down at the AG Weser yard in Bremen as werk 1013, launched on 11 August 1941 and commissioned on 15 November with Fregattenkapitän Heinz-Ehler Beuke in command.
U-173 began her service career with training as part of the 4th U-boat Flotilla. She was re-assigned to the 2nd flotilla for operations on 1 July 1942.
Operational career
1st patrol
The boat departed Kiel on 15 June 1942, moved through the North Sea and negotiated the 'gap' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. She crossed the Atlantic Ocean and entered the Caribbean Sea. She entered Lorient, on the French Atlantic coast, on 20 September.
2nd patrol
The submarine attempted the disruption of the Operation Torch landings (the invasion of North Africa) on 11 November 1942. She attacked convoy UGF-1 which was at anchor in Fedhala Roads. She hit three ships, sinking one and damaging two more. One of the damaged vessels, the destroyer USS Hambleton, was towed to nearby Casablanca where Seabees cut the ship in two, removed about forty feet of hull, then joined the two halves together again. She survived the war.
A few days later and further north, U-173 torpedoed but did not sink, the USS Electra, on 15 November. This vessel also survived the war, not being broken up until 1974.
Loss
The boat was sunk by depth charges from the American destroyers USS Woolsey, Swanson and Quick in the Atlantic Ocean off Casablanca (33°40′N 07°35′W / 33.667°N 7.583°W) on 16 November 1942.
Summary of Raiding Career
| Date | Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) |
Fate[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 November 1942 | USS Hambleton |  United States Navy |
1,630 | Damaged |
| 11 November 1942 | USS Joseph Hewes | United States Navy |
9,359 | Sunk |
| 11 November 1942 | USS Winooski | United States Navy |
10,172 | Damaged |
| 15 November 1942 | USS Electra | United States Navy |
8,113 | Damaged |
References
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1997, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, p. 96
- ↑ Campbell, John Naval Weapons of World War Two ISBN 0-87021-459-4 pp.248 and 249
- ↑ "Ships hit by U-173". Uboat.net. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
External links
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Coordinates: 33°40′N 7°35′W / 33.667°N 7.583°W