German submarine U-279
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-279 |
| Ordered: | 10 April 1941 |
| Builder: | Bremer Vulkan, Bremen-Vegesack |
| Yard number: | 44 |
| Laid down: | 31 March 1942 |
| Launched: | 16 December 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 3 February 1943 |
| Fate: | Sunk, October 1943 by an American 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 (3 February 1943–31 July 1943) 9th U-boat Flotilla (1 August–4 October 1943) |
| Commanders: |
Kptlt. Otto Finke (3 February–4 October 1943) |
| Operations: |
One patrol: 4 September–4 October 1943 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-279 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
The submarine was laid down on 31 March 1942 at the Bremer Vulkan yard at Bremen-Vegesack as 'werk' 44. She was launched on 16 December 1942 and commissioned on 3 February 1943 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Otto Franke.[2]
Service history
U-279 served with the 8th U-boat Flotilla for training from February to July 1943 and operationally with the 9th flotilla from 1 August 1943.[2] She carried out one patrol, but sank no ships. She was a member of one wolfpack.
Patrol and loss
The boat departed Kiel on 4 September 1943. She entered the Atlantic Ocean after negotiating the 'gap' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. She was sunk exactly a month after her departure (4 October), by depth charges dropped from a US Ventura aircraft southwest of Iceland.[4] There were men in boats and in the water, but the Ventura could not call for assistance. Its radio had been put out of commission during the attack.[5][6]
Forty-eight men died; there were no survivors.
Previously recorded fate
The submarine was initially categorized as having been sunk by a British Liberator southwest of Iceland on 4 October 1943.
References
- Notes
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1999, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, pp. 147-148
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "The Type VIIC boat U-279 - German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
- ↑ "War Patrols by German U-boat U-279 - Boats - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
- ↑ Kemp, pp. 147-148
- ↑ http://uboat.net/boats/u279/htm
- ↑ http://www.u-boot-archiv.de/dieboote/u0276.html U-279 at u-boot-archiv.de
- Bibliography
External links
- U-279 at u-boot-archiv.de (German)
See also
- List of German U-boats
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