SM UB-33
 SM UB-45 a u-boat similar to UB-33 | |
| Career (German Empire) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | UB-33 |
| Ordered: | 22 July 1915[1] |
| Builder: | Blohm & Voss, Hamburg[1] |
| Cost: | 1,152,000 German Papiermark[2] |
| Yard number: | 257[1] |
| Launched: | 5 December 1915[1] |
| Completed: | 20 April 1916[1] |
| Commissioned: | 22 April 1916[3] |
| Fate: | sunk 11 April 1918[3] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | German Type UB II submarine |
| Displacement: |
274 t (270 long tons) surfaced[2] 303 t (298 long tons) submerged[2] |
| Length: | 36.9 m (121 ft 1 in)[2] |
| Beam: | 437 m (1,433 ft 9 in)[2] |
| Draft: | 3.69 m (12 ft 1 in)[2] |
| Propulsion: |
2 × propeller shafts 2 × Benz diesel engines, 270 shp (200 kW)[2] 2 × Siemens-Schuckert electric motor, 280 shp (210 kW)[2] |
| Speed: |
9.06 knots (16.78 km/h; 10.43 mph) surfaced[2] 5.71 knots (10.57 km/h; 6.57 mph) submerged[2] |
| Range: |
7,030 nautical miles (13,020 km; 8,090 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) surfaced[2] 45 nmi (83 km; 52 mi) at 4 knots submerged[2] |
| Test depth: | 50 m (160 ft)[2] |
| Complement: | 2 officers, 21 men[2] |
| Armament: |
2 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes[2] 4 × torpedoes (later 6) 1 × 5 cm SK L/40 gun[2] |
| Notes: | 42-second diving time[2] |
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Part of: | Imperial German Navy |
| Commanders: |
|
| Operations: | 17 patrols |
| Victories: |
13 ships sunk 2 damaged 3 taken as prize |
SM UB-33 was a German Type UB II submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 22 July 1915 and launched on 5 December 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 22 April 1916 as SM UB-33.[Note 1] The submarine sank thirteen ships, damaged two others, and took a further three as prizes in seventeen patrols.[4]
UB-33 was mined and sunk around the Varne Bank on 11 April 1918.[4] The wreck of UB-33 lies 77 feet (23 m) below the surface of the water. The amount of clearance between the submarine and ships' keels passing directly overhead is very small, making it a risk for the heavy cross-channel ship traffic in the area. In 2007 efforts began to lift and move the wreck to deeper waters to ensure safety for passing ships.[5] The wreck is officially classified as a war grave and therefore it cannot be deliberately destroyed.
Notes
- ↑ "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English: His Majesty's) and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as His Majesty's Submarine.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Rössler 1979, p. 64.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 Gröner 1985, p. 50.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Gröner 1985, p. 51.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Helgason.
- ↑ Gysin, Christian; Rees, Alun (17 August 2007). "The ghost of U-Boat 33: German sub sunk in 1918 threatening to surface in Channel". Mail Online (Associated Newspapers). Retrieved 19 December 2009.
Bibliography
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: UB-33". U-Boat War in World War I. Uboat.net. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
- Gröner, Erich (1985). "U-Boote, Hilfskreuzer, Minenschiffe, Netzleger, Sperrbrecher". Die deutschen Kriegsschiffe, 1815-1945 III (Koblenz: Bernhard&Graefe). ISBN 3-7637-4802-4.
- Bendert, Harald (2000). Die UB-Boote der Kaiserlichen Marine, 1914-1918. Einsätze, Erfolge, Schicksal. Hamburg: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn GmbH. ISBN 3-8132-0713-7.
- Rössler, Eberhard (1979). "U-Bootbau bis Ende des 1. Weltkrieges, Konstruktionen für das Ausland und die Jahre 1935 - 1945". Die deutschen U-Boote und ihre Werften I (Munich: Bernhard&Graefe). ISBN 3-7637-5213-7.
Coordinates: 50°56′N 1°17′E / 50.933°N 1.283°E
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