Action of 23 April 1945
| Action of 23 April 1945 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of World War II, Pacific War | |||||||
 The wreck of U-138. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States |
.svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Herman Edward Miller |
 Fritz Schneewind | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1 submarine | 1 submarine | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| none |
54 killed, 1 wounded prisoner, 1 submarine sunk | ||||||
| ||||||
The Action of 23 April 1945 was a submarine engagement of World War II that occurred in the Java Sea between Nazi Germany and the United States. It resulted in the last sinking of a German U-boat in Asian waters during the Pacific War and was one of only a few actions of the theater involving German forces.
Action
United States Navy personnel on USS Besugo, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Herman Edward Miller, made radar contact with U-183 at about 01:00 off the southern coast of Borneo while patrolling the area. Underwater, the Americans fired a spread of torpedoes and one struck the U-boat which had a Japanese flag painted on the side, it sank quickly at position 04°50′S 112°52′E / 4.833°S 112.867°E with 54 men still aboard, including Kapitänleutnant (Lieutenant Commander) Fritz Schneewind. Afterward, the Americans surfaced and rescued one wounded German warrant officer and took him prisoner.[1]