German submarine U-600
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-600 |
| Ordered: | 22 May 1940 |
| Builder: | Blohm & Voss, Hamburg |
| Yard number: | 576 |
| Laid down: | 25 January 1941 |
| Launched: | 16 October 1941 |
| Commissioned: | 11 December 1941 |
| Fate: | Sunk 25 November 1943 in the North Atlantic in position 40°31′N 22°07′W / 40.517°N 22.117°W, by depth charges from HMS Bazely and HMS Blackwood. |
| 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: | 4.74 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: | 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 & ratings |
| Armament: |
|
| Service record[2] | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
5th U-boat Flotilla (11 December 1941 - 31 July 1942) - Training 3rd U-boat Flotilla (1 August 1942 - 25 November 1943) |
| Commanders: |
Kptlt. Bernhard Zurmühlen (11 December 1941 - 25 November 1943) |
| Operations: |
1st patrol: 14 July - 22 September 1942 2nd patrol: 22 November - 27 December 1942 3rd patrol: 11 February - 26 March 1943 4th patrol: 25 April - 11 May 1943 5th patrol: 12 June – 10 September 1943 6th patrol: 7–25 November 1943 |
| Victories: |
5 merchant ships sunk (28,600 GRT) 3 merchant ships damaged (19,230 GRT) |
German submarine U-600 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 25 January 1941 by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg as yard number 576, launched on 16 October 1941 and commissioned on 11 December 1941 under Kapitänleutnant Bernhard Zurmühlen.
Service History
The boat's service began on 11 December 1941 with training as part of the 5th U-boat Flotilla. She was transferred to the 3rd Flotilla, operating out of La Pallice, France, on 1 August 1942 for active service in the North Atlantic.
In 6 patrols she sank five merchant ships, for a total of 28,600 GRT, plus three merchant ships damaged.
Wolfpacks
U-600 took part in eight wolfpacks, namely
- Draufgänger (29 November – 11 December 1942)
- Raufbold (11–22 December 1942)
- Knappen (19 February 1943 - 25 February 1943)
- Burggraf (4–5 March 1943)
- Raubgraf (7–20 March 1943)
- Drossel (29 April - 5 May 1943)
- Schill 1 (16–22 November 1943)
- Weddigen (22–25 November 1943)
Fate
U-600 was sunk on 25 November 1943 in the North Atlantic in position 40°31′N 22°07′W / 40.517°N 22.117°WCoordinates: 40°31′N 22°07′W / 40.517°N 22.117°W, by depth charges from Royal Navy frigates HMS Bazely and HMS Blackwood. All 45 hands were lost.
Summary of raiding career
| Date | Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) |
Fate[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 August 1942 | Vivian P. Smith |  United Kingdom |
130 | Sunk |
| 13 August 1942 | Delmundo |  United States |
5,032 | Sunk |
| 13 August 1942 | Everelza |  Latvia |
4,520 | Sunk |
| 29 October 1942 | Kosmos II |  Norway |
16,966 | Sunk |
| 8 December 1942 | James McKay | United States |
6,762 | Sunk |
| 24 February 1943 | Ingria | Norway |
4,391 | Damaged |
| 17 March 1943 | Irénée Du Pont | United States |
6,125 | Damaged |
| 17 March 1943 | Nariva | United Kingdom |
8,714 | Damaged |
| 17 March 1943 | Southern Princess | United Kingdom |
12,156 | Sunk |
References
- ↑ Gröner 1985, pp. 72-74.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-600". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-600". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 May 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.
- Edwards, Bernard (1996). Dönitz and the Wolf Packs - The U-boats at War. p. 161. ISBN 0-304-35203-9.
- Sharpe, Peter (1998). U-Boat Fact File. Great Britain: Midland Publishing. ISBN 1-85780-072-9.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-600". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 29 December 2014.