German submarine U-427
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-427 |
| Ordered: | 5 June 1941 |
| Builder: | Danziger Werft, Danzig |
| Yard number: | 128 |
| Laid down: | 27 July 1942 |
| Launched: | 6 February 1943 |
| Commissioned: | 2 June 1943 |
| Fate: |
Surrendered, 8 May 1945 Scuttled, 21 December 1945 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| 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: | 4.72 m (15 ft 6 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × supercharged Germaniawerft 6-cylinder, 4-stroke F46 diesel engines totalling 2,800–3,200 hp (2,100–2,400 kW). Max rpm: 470-490 2 × electric motors, totalling 750 shp (560 kW) |
| 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) Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft) |
| Complement: | 44-52 officers and ratings |
| Armament: |
|
| Service record[2][3] | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
8th U-boat Flotilla (2 June 1943–1 June 1944) 7th U-boat Flotilla (1 June–31 July 1944) 11th U-boat Flotilla (1 August–4 November 1944) 13th U-boat Flotilla (5 November 1944–28 February 1945) 14th U-boat Flotilla (1 March–8 May 1945) |
| Commanders: |
Oblt.z.S. Graf Carl-Gabriel von Gudenus (2 June 1943–8 May 1945) |
| Operations: |
1st patrol: 25 September–1 October 1944 2nd patrol: 30 October–14 November 1944 3rd patrol: 4 December 1944–24 February 1945 4th patrol: 9–20 April 1945 5th patrol: 21 April–2 May 1945 |
| Victories: | None |
German submarine U-427 was a Type VIIC U boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
Built by Danziger Werft, Danzig, the U-boat was laid down on 27 July 1942, launched on 6 February 1943 and commissioned on 2 June 1943 with a crew of 53 under their Austrian commander Oberleutnant Graf Carl-Gabriel von Gudenus. It survived until the end of the war. Ironically, most U-boats achieved notoriety for the number of kills they achieved, or the total tonnage of the vessels they sank, but in the case of U-427 fame was achieved in a different way.[4]
From its first voyage, on 20 June 1944, until the end of the war, U-427 never destroyed any of its targets. It fired torpedoes at two vessels, HMCS Haida and HMCS Iroquois on 29 April 1945, missing both, but it was for its ability to survive under harrowing circumstances that U-427 became known. In April 1945, leading up to, during, and after those two attacks, U-427 survived 678 depth charge attempts. On 2 May 1945, U-427 returned to its base at Kilbotn, Norway, where it remained for the few remaining days before Germany's surrender.[4][5][6]
U-427 surrendered at Narvik, Norway, on 8 May 1945, and was transferred to Loch Eriboll, Scotland, on 19 May, and later to Loch Ryan as part of "Operation Deadlight" when it was sunk on 21 December 1945 at 56°04′N 09°35′W / 56.067°N 9.583°WCoordinates: 56°04′N 09°35′W / 56.067°N 9.583°W.
References
- ↑ Gröner 1985, pp. 72-74.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-427". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-427". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 U-Boat Operations: U-427, ubootwaffe.net
- ↑ Ship details: U-427, ubootwaffe.net
- ↑ Ship details: HMCS Iroquois, ubootwaffe.net
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.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-427". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 26 December 2014.7.htm U-427 at U-boat.net]
- U-427 at ubootwaffe.net