German submarine U-274
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-274 |
| Ordered: | 10 April 1941 |
| Builder: | Bremer Vulkan, Bremen-Vegesack |
| Yard number: | 39 |
| Laid down: | 9 January 1942 |
| Launched: | 19 September 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 7 November 1942 |
| Fate: | Sunk, October 1943 by British warships and an aircraft[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Type VIIC submarine |
| Displacement: |
769 tonnes (757 long tons) surfaced 871 t (857 long tons) submerged |
| Length: |
67.1 m (220 ft 2 in) o/a 50.5 m (165 ft 8 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: |
6.2 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull |
| Draft: | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
| Propulsion: |
2 × supercharged Germaniawerft 6-cylinder 4-stroke F46 diesel engines, totalling 2,800–3,200 bhp (2,100–2,400 kW). Max rpm: 470-490 2 × electric motors, totalling 750 shp (560 kW) and max rpm: 296. |
| Speed: |
17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged |
| Range: |
15,170 km (8,190 nmi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 150 km (81 nmi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged |
| Test depth: |
230 m (750 ft) Crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft) |
| Complement: | 44–52 officers and ratings |
| Armament: |
5 × 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four bow, one stern) 14 × G7e torpedoes or 26 TMA mines 1 × 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun (220 rounds) Various AA guns |
| Service record[2][3] | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
8th U-boat Flotilla (7 November 1942–31 July 1943) 7th U-boat Flotilla (1 August–23 October 1943) |
| Commanders: |
Oblt.z.S. Günther Jordan (7 November 1942–23 October 1943) |
| Operations: |
1st patrol: 1 September–13 September 1943 2nd patrol: 13 October–23 October 1943 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-274 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
The submarine was laid down on 9 January 1942 at the Bremer Vulkan yard at Bremen-Vegesack as 'werk' 39. She was launched on 19 September 1942 and commissioned on 7 November under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Günther Jordan.[2]
Service history
U-274 served with the 8th U-boat Flotilla for training from November 1942 to July 1943 and operationally with the 7th U-boat Flotilla from 1 August 1943.[2] She carried out two patrols, but sank no ships.
She carried out short voyages between Kiel in Germany and Bergen and Trondheim in Norway over August 1943.
1st patrol
The boat departed Trondheim on 1 September 1943 and returned to the Norwegian port twelve days later on the 13th.
2nd patrol and loss
For her second sortie, the boat headed toward the Atlantic Ocean, via the 'gap' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. She was sunk by Hedgehog and depth charges dropped by the British destroyers HMS Duncan and HMS Vidette and a B-24 Liberator of No. 224 Squadron RAF on 23 October 1943.
The pilot of the Liberator was a Swiss national serving in the RAF. The intercom in the aircraft had been inadvertently left connected to the radio. As a result, ships of the nearby convoy escort heard an improvised commentary which was a great encouragement.[4][5]
See also
- List of German U-boats
References
- Notes
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1999, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, pp. 152-153
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "The Type VIIC boat U-273 - German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
- ↑ "War Patrols by German U-boat U-274 - Boats - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
- ↑ http://uboat.net/boats/u274/htm
- ↑ Kemp, pp. 152-153
- Bibliography
External links
- U-274 at u-boot-archiv.de (German)
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Coordinates: 57°14′N 27°50′W / 57.233°N 27.833°W