German submarine U-857
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | U-857 |
| Ordered: | 5 June 1941 |
| Builder: | DeSchiMAG AG Weser, Bremen |
| Yard number: | 1063 |
| Laid down: | 16 November 1942 |
| Launched: | 25 May 1943 |
| Commissioned: | 16 September 1943 |
| Fate: | Sank due to unknown causes in April 1945 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Class and type: | Type IXC/40 submarine |
| Displacement: | 1,144 t (1,126 long tons) surfaced 1,257 t (1,237 long tons) submerged |
| Length: | 76.76 m (251 ft 10 in) o/a 58.75 m (192 ft 9 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: | 6.86 m (22 ft 6 in) o/a 4.44 m (14 ft 7 in) pressure hull |
| Height: | 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) |
| Draft: | 4.67 m (15 ft 4 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × MAN M 9 V 40/46 supercharged 9-cylinder diesel engines, 4,400 hp (3,281 kW) 2 × SSW GU 345/34 double-acting electric motors, 1,000 hp (746 kW) |
| Speed: | 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) surfaced 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h; 8.4 mph) submerged |
| Range: | 13,850 nmi (25,650 km; 15,940 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 63 nmi (117 km; 72 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged |
| Test depth: | 230 m (750 ft) |
| Complement: | 4 officers, 44 enlisted |
| Armament: |
|
German submarine U-857 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service during the Second World War. She was ordered on 5 June 1941, laid down on 16 November 1942, and launched on 25 May 1943. For her operational lifespan, she was commanded by Kapitänleutnant Rudolf Premauer and had a crew complement of 59.
Service History
She undertook three patrols, the first was for training. She sank two ships for a total tonnage of 15,259 gross register tons (GRT), and damaged one other ship on her last two patrols.[2] She sank Belgian Airman on 14 April 1945, Swiftscout on 18 April 1945 and damaged Katy on 23 April 1945.
Fate
U-857 went missing in April 1945 in the North Atlantic Ocean off the east coast of the United States. All hands were lost, and no wreckage was found.
The U-boat had been claimed to have been sunk by depth charge hedgehogs off the coast of Massachusetts in April 1945 by USS Gustafson and was also thought to have been possibly sunk by USS Coffman.[3] However more recent commentary surmised that Gustafson had not hit her, and her loss is currently unexplained.[4][5] Her wreck currently lies off of Cape Cod.[6]
Summary of raiding career
| Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) | Fate[7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 April 1945 | Belgian Airman | .svg.png){kind=small} Belgium |
6,959 | Sunk |
| 18 April 1945 | Swiftscout |  United States |
8,300 | Sunk |
| 23 April 1945 | Katy |  Norway |
6,825 | Damaged |
References
- ↑ Gröner 1985, pp. 105-7.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXC/40 boat U-857". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
- ↑ Sinking of U 548
- ↑ Niestlé, Axel "German U-boat Losses During World War II: Details of Destruction" (Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1998)
- ↑ "USCG-U-857". 26 January 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
- ↑ Ship Wreck Data
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-857". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 13 February 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.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXC/40 boat U-857". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- http://shipwreck.findthedata.org/l/67/U-857 Ship Wreck Data
| ||||||||||||||