German submarine U-418
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-418 |
| Ordered: | 20 January 1941 |
| Builder: | Danziger Werft, Danzig |
| Yard number: | 119 |
| Laid down: | 21 October 1942 |
| Launched: | 11 July 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 21 October 1942 |
| Fate: | Sunk by a British aircraft in Bay of Biscay, June 1943[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 kn (19 km/h) surfaced 150 km (81 nmi) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) 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] | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
8th U-boat Flotilla (21 October 1942–30 April 1943) 1st U-boat Flotilla (1 May–1 June 1943) |
| Commanders: |
Oblt.z.S. Gerhard Lange (21 October 1942–1 June 1943) |
| Operations: | 24 April–1 June 1943 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-418 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
She carried out one patrol. She was a member of three wolfpacks. She did not sink or damage any ships.
She was sunk by a British aircraft in the Bay of Biscay in June 1943.[3][4]
Service history
The submarine was laid down on 21 October 1941 at the Danziger Werft (yard) at Danzig (now Gdansk), as 'werk' 119, launched on 11 July 1942 and commissioned on 21 October under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Gerhard Lange.
She served with the 8th U-boat Flotilla from 21 October 1942 and the 1st flotilla from 1 May 1943.
Patrol and loss
U-418 left Kiel on 24 April 1943 and headed for the Atlantic Ocean via the 'gap' between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. The boat was attacked, (but it was not reported), by a British Catalina flying boat of No. 210 Squadron RAF on 30 May. One man was killed, two others were wounded. The aircraft sank on its return to Pembroke Dock, but was later salvaged.
U-418 was sunk on 1 June 1943 by rockets from a British Bristol Beaufighter of 236 Squadron in the western Bay of Biscay.
References
- Notes
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1997, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, pp. 122-123
- ↑ "The Type VIIC boat U-418 - German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
- ↑ http://uboat.net/boats/u417/htm
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1997, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, pp. 122 and 123
- Bibliography
See also
- List of German U-boats
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Coordinates: 47°05′N 8°55′W / 47.083°N 8.917°W