German submarine U-176

U-505, a typical Type IXC boat
History
Nazi Germany
NameU-176
Ordered23 December 1939
BuilderDeSchiMAG AG Weser, Bremen
Yard number1016
Laid down6 February 1941
Launched12 September 1941
Commissioned15 December 1941
HomeportLorient, France
FateSunk, 15 May 1943
General characteristics
Class and typeType IXC submarine
Displacement
  • 1,120 t (1,100 long tons) surfaced
  • 1,232 t (1,213 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 6.76 m (22 ft 2 in) o/a
  • 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught4.70 m (15 ft 5 in)
Installed power
  • 4,400 PS (3,200 kW; 4,300 bhp) (diesels)
  • 1,000 PS (740 kW; 990 shp) (electric)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h; 21.1 mph) surfaced
  • 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h; 8.4 mph) submerged
Range
  • 13,450 nmi (24,910 km; 15,480 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 64 nmi (119 km; 74 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth230 m (750 ft)
Complement4 officers, 44 enlisted
Armament
Service record[1][2]
Part of:
Identification codes: M 47 665
Commanders:
Operations:
  • 3 patrols:
  • 1st patrol:
  • 21 July – 2 October 1942
  • 2nd patrol:
  • 9 November 1942 – 18 February 1943
  • 3rd patrol:
  • 6 April – 15 May 1943
Victories: 11 merchant ships sunk
(53,307 GRT)

German submarine U-176 was a Type IXC U-boat in Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.

Built at the DeSchiMAG AG Weser shipyard in Bremen, she was laid down on 6 February 1941, launched on 12 September and commissioned on 15 December, under the command of Kapitänleutnant Reiner Dierksen.

U-176 served with the 4. Unterseebootsflotille (U-boat flotilla) while training, and from 1 August 1942 with the 10th U-boat Flotilla, a long-range operations unit. U-176 completed three patrols, sinking 11 ships totalling 53,307 gross register tons (GRT) before she was sunk off Cayo Blanquizal by the Cuban Navy on 15 May 1943.

Design

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German Type IXC submarines were slightly larger than the original Type IXBs. U-176 had a displacement of 1,120 tonnes (1,100 long tons) when at the surface and 1,232 tonnes (1,213 long tons) while submerged.[3] The U-boat had a total length of 76.76 m (251 ft 10 in), a pressure hull length of 58.75 m (192 ft 9 in), a beam of 6.76 m (22 ft 2 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in). The submarine was powered by two MAN M 9 V 40/46 supercharged four-stroke, nine-cylinder diesel engines producing a total of 4,400 metric horsepower (3,240 kW; 4,340 shp) for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert 2 GU 345/34 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 1,000 shaft horsepower (1,010 PS; 750 kW) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.92 m (6 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[3]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h; 21.1 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h; 8.4 mph).[3] When submerged, the boat could operate for 63 nautical miles (117 km; 72 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 13,450 nautical miles (24,910 km; 15,480 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-176 was fitted with six 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and two at the stern), 22 torpedoes, one 10.5 cm (4.13 in) SK C/32 naval gun, 180 rounds, and a 3.7 cm (1.5 in) SK C/30 as well as a 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of forty-eight.[3]

Service history

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First patrol

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On 21 July 1942 U-176 sailed from Kiel, around the British Isles, and into the north Atlantic Ocean. She made her first kill on 4 August, sinking the unescorted 7,798 GRT British merchantman Richmond Castle with two torpedoes.[4]

On 7 August she joined five other U-boats in reinforcing the eight boats of wolfpack Steinbrinck in a series of attacks on Convoy SC 94.[5] On 8 August U-176 fired two salvoes of two torpedoes each at the convoy, sinking two British cargo ships, the 4,817 GRT Trehata and the 3,956 GRT Kelso, and the 7,914 GRT Greek cargo ship Mount Kassion. The next day she also sank another British ship, the 3,701 GRT Radchurch, which had been abandoned.[5] The convoy escort was then reinforced by the Polish destroyer Błyskawica and the British destroyer leader Broke. Both ships were equipped with HF/DF (radio direction-finding equipment), which helped to keep the U-boats at bay until morning.[5]

U-176 sank the 7,457 GRT British cargo ship Empire Breeze with two torpedoes on 25 August. The ship had been part of convoy ON 122;[6] the U-boat ended the patrol after 74 days at sea at Lorient in France on 2 October 1942.[7] The day after her return her captain was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class.[8]

Second patrol

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U-176 departed Lorient on 9 November 1942 and headed into the south Atlantic. On 27 November she sank the 5,922 GRT Dutch merchant ship Polydorus after a 50-hour pursuit, the longest recorded by any U-boat in the Second World War.[9]

Off Cape São Roque, Brazil, on 13 December 1942 the crew of U-176 boarded the 1,629 GRT Swedish cargo ship Scania, and sank her with scuttling charges after the crew had abandoned ship.[10] On 16 December she sank the unescorted 5,881 GRT British cargo ship Observer with two torpedoes.[11]

Prior to the sinking of Scania, a young seaman, Gottfrid Sundberg, surreptitiously photographed U-176 from Scania.[12][13][14]

U-176 arrived back at Lorient on 18 February 1943 after a patrol lasting 102 days.[15]

Third patrol

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U-176 sailed for her third and final patrol on 6 April 1943 from Lorient, sailing across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean Sea. On 1 May, her commander was notified of his promotion to Korvettenkapitän.[8]

On 13 May 1943, U-176 attacked Convoy NC 18 only five miles off the northern coast of Cuba, sinking the 2,249 GRT American tanker Nickeliner, which was loaded with 3,400 tons of ammonia water,[16] and the 1,983 GRT Cuban molasses tanker Mambí.[17]

Sinking

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US Navy report of the attack on U-176

On 15 May, the Cuban merchant ship Camagüey, and the Honduran Hanks, both loaded with sugar, sailed from Sagua La Grande, bound for Havana, escorted by the Cuban submarine chasers CS-11, CS-12, and CS-13. At 17:15 hours, a U.S. Navy Kingfisher aircraft from squadron VS-62 operating from Cuba spotted U-176 at 23°21′N 80°18′W / 23.350°N 80.300°W / 23.350; -80.300 and dropped a smoke float to mark her position about one and a half miles astern of the convoy. CS-13 located the U-boat with her sonar, attacked with depth charges and sank U-176.[18]

On 7 January 1944 K.Kapt.. Reiner Dierksen was posthumously awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold.[8]

CS-13 was commanded by the Cuban Navy's Alférez de Fragata, Mario Ramirez Delgado commanding,[19] the only Cuban national to sink a U-boat during World War II.[20] In 1946, Delgado, promoted to Lieutenant, was awarded the Orden del Mérito Naval con Distantivo Rojo (Meritorious Naval Service Order with Red Badge). Rear Admiral Samuel E. Morison, official historian of the US Navy, recognized his success in his work History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, where he also praised the ability and efficiency of the Cuban seamen.[21]

The CS-13 patrol boat, commanded by Second Lieutenant Mario Ramirez Delgado, turned toward the gas, made good contact through the sonar and launched two perfect attacks with deep charges which annihilated the U-176. This was the only successful attack against a submarine carried out by a surface unit smaller than a PCE [Patrol Craft Escort] of 180 feet. Thus, the sinking is properly considered with great pride by the small but efficient Cuban Navy.

Also present was Norberto Collado Abreu, who later found fame as the pilot of Granma, the yacht which brought Fidel Castro back to Cuba to restart the Cuban Revolution.

Wolfpacks

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U-176 took part in two wolfpacks, namely:

Summary of raiding history

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Date Ship Nationality Tonnage
(GRT)		 Fate[22]
4 August 1942 Richmond Castle  United Kingdom 7,798 Sunk
8 August 1942 Kelso  United Kingdom 3,956 Sunk
8 August 1942 Mount Kassion  Greece 7,914 Sunk
8 August 1942 Trehata  United Kingdom 4,817 Sunk
9 August 1942 Radchurch  United Kingdom 3,701 Sunk
25 August 1942 Empire Breeze  United Kingdom 7,457 Sunk
27 November 1942 Polydorus  Netherlands 5,922 Sunk
13 December 1942 Scania  Sweden 1,629 Sunk
16 December 1942 Observer  United Kingdom 5,881 Sunk
13 May 1943 Mambí  Cuba 1,983 Sunk
13 May 1943 Nickeliner  United States 2,249 Sunk

References

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  1. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXC boat U-176". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  2. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-176". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, p. 68.
  4. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Richmond Castle (Motor merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b c Helgason, Guðmundur. "Convoy SC-94". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  6. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Empire Breeze (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  7. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-176 from 21 Jul 1942 to 2 Oct 1942". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  8. ^ a b c "Korvettenkapitän Reiner Dierksen". German U-boat Commanders of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
  9. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Polydorus (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  10. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Scania (Motor merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  11. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Observer (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  12. ^ Gottfrid Sundbergs upplevelser under andra världskriget, Alandska sjoman under andra varldskriget, Mariehamn 1999, p. 100-102. ISBN 952-91-1248-3
  13. ^ Lindstrom, B., Nar m/s Scania sanktes av U-176, Rospiggen 2009, Bromma 2008, p. 67-86. ISSN 0349-0157
  14. ^ Lindstrom, B., Nar m/s Scania sanktes av U-176, fotografen bakom bilderna av u-baten trader fram, Rospiggen 2010, Bromma 2009, p. 104-113. ISSN 0349-0157
  15. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-176 from 9 November 1942 to 18 February 1943". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  16. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Nickeliner (Steam tanker)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  17. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Mambí (Steam tanker)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  18. ^ "Hitler's Sharks". uboat176.webs.com. Archived from the original on 31 August 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  19. ^ "Hundimiento del U-176" (in Spanish). www.circulonaval.com. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  20. ^ Lynn, Kenneth Schuyler (1987). Hemingway. Simon & Schuster. p. 502. ISBN 0-671-49872-X.
  21. ^ "The Sinking of German Submarine U-176". www.circulonaval.com. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  22. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-176". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 October 2014.

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Bishop, Chris (2006). Kriegsmarine U-Boats, 1939–45. Amber Books. ISBN 1-86227-352-9.
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
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