German submarine U-307
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-307 |
| Ordered: | 20 January 1941 |
| Builder: | Flender Werke, Lübeck |
| Yard number: | 307 |
| Laid down: | 5 November 1941 |
| Launched: | 30 September 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 18 November 1942 |
| Fate: | Sunk by depth charges, 29 April 1945[1] |
| General characteristics [2] | |
| Class and 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 |
| Height: | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
| 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 × GL RP 137/c 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: | 8,500 nmi (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) 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: |
|
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
8th U-boat Flotilla (18 November 1942–30 April 1943) 11th U-boat Flotilla (1 May–31 October 1943) 13th U-boat Flotilla (1 November 1943–29 April 1945) |
| Commanders: |
Oblt.z.S. Friedrich-Georg Herrle (18 November 1942–1 December 1944) Oblt.z.S. Erich Krüger (2 December 1944–29 April 1945) |
| Operations: | 13 patrols |
| Victories: | 2 vessels (7,226 GRT) |
German submarine U-307 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The U-boat was laid down on 5 November 1941, and commissioned on 18 November 1942.
Service history
Despite carrying out 13 war patrols between July 1943 and April 1945, U-307 sank only two vessels; the 7,176-ton American Liberty ship SS William S. Thayer on 30 April 1944, fifty miles south of Bear Island, and the 50-ton Norwegian Army motor boat Lennox in Van Mijenfjorden, Spitsbergen, on 18 August 1944.
In September 1944, together with the supply ship Carl J. Busch, U-307 transported the men of Operation Haudegen, a German military meteorological mission, to Svalbard.
Wolfpacks
U-307 took part in twelve wolfpacks, namely.
- Wiking (5 September - 8 October 1943)
- Monsun (3 October - 23 November 1943)
- Eisenbart (28 October - 8 December 1943)
- Boreas (28 February - 10 March 1944)
- Thor (17–26 March 1944)
- Donner (17–20 April 1944)
- Donner & Keil (20 April - 3 May 1944)
- Grimm (31 May - 6 June 1944)
- Trutz (8 June - 10 July 1944)
- Rasmus (6–13 February 1945)
- Hagen (13–21 March 1945)
- Faust (21–29 April 1945)
Fate
U-307 was sunk on 29 April 1945 in the Barents Sea near Murmansk, Russia, in position 69°24′N 33°44′E / 69.400°N 33.733°ECoordinates: 69°24′N 33°44′E / 69.400°N 33.733°E by depth charges from the British Loch class frigate HMS Loch Insh. There were 37 dead and 14 survivors.
Summary of raiding career
| Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Displacement | Fate[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 April 1944 | William S. Thayer |  United States |
7,176 | Sunk |
| 18 August 1944 | Lennox |  Norway |
50 | Sunk |
References
- ↑ Kemp 1999, p. 254.
- ↑ Gröner 1985, pp. 72-74.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-307". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German) IV (Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler). ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
- Gröner, Erich (1985). U-Boote, Hilfskreuzer, Minenschiffe, Netzleger, Sperrbrecher. Die deutschen Kriegsschiffe 1815-1945 (in German) III (Koblenz: Bernard & Graefe). ISBN 3-7637-4802-4.
- Kemp, Paul (1999). U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. London: Arms & Armour. ISBN 1-85409-515-3.
External links
- Hofmann, Markus. "U 307". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-307". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 26 December 2014.