Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub

The 10th Kriegsmarine Officer to win the OAK LEAF CLUSTER was KPLT ERICH TOPP (118-LIFE-1985), Skipper of U-57 and U-552. TOPP was the 87th member of the German Armed Forces to win the EICHENLAUB, and he won his on 11 April 1942.

At right: Topp

Far East Boats

From the information received from WERNER K. HOFFMANN (327-1987), we read that U-511 sailed to a Japanese submarine base with a cargo that included a 3,000 hp motor, various guns, and a special guest on board - Japanese Vice Admiral Nomura!

According to files here, U-511 sailed from Lorient headed for Penang over 10 May, 1943 to 17 July of that year. This was the boat that, under Fritz Steinhoff, was the first submarine in history to fire missiles while submerged. This was done in June of 1942, and HEINZ REHSE (254- 1987) was part of the crew during the missile firing and also when U-511 was turned over to the IJN upon her arrival at Penang.

Did You Know...

by OBLT Ernst Schmidt (10-1983)

U-Boat crews who surrendered their boats after May 7, 1945 (V-E Day) to the Allies, were taken prisoner of war? The last official group of POWs were released on July 10, 1948 from England.

39,000 U-Boatmen served voluntarily during World War II? Of these, 32,000 died in action. Casualties were 92%; 82% killed and 10% taken prisoner of war.

.... from early 1943, German U-Boats rarely survived their first patrol?

Onkle Karlschohn

From a list of U-Boat Slang compiled by MIKE KOSS (299-1987), we find that this was a nickname for GrossAdmiral Karl Donitz with high regard. Now, for KTB #105 next month, what was FRANKREICH-ZULAGE? Type X-A German U-Boat

These were to be ocean-going mine-laying U-Boats about 2,500 tons with external mine shafts amidships and along each side, as well as internal shafts that projected above and below the pressure hull. The design was too crowded, leaving too little space inside the pressure hull for normal crew operations, so the design was scrapped, and the TYPE X-A was more or less made over into the TYPE X-B which did go into production.

"Mystery" U-Boats?

Information has recently come into our hands regarding two large U-Boats that were based, more or less, in Vigo, Spain whose missions were never combat, but always secret trips to South America and other places. This information says that they did not have the normal U-Numbers assigned and that one departed Spain AFTER the War ended, headed for Argentina.

According to this information, the ENIGMA machine had 2 extra keys that were only for ABWEHR use. Who were the Skippers of these boats? What were their missions? Keep reading -- we are currently translating all these documents.

Dollar for Dollar

Dollar for dollar and man for man, the submarine was the US NAVY's most economical weapon in WW II. During World War H, the US NAVY's SILENT SERVICE comprised only 1.6% of all the personnel in the US NAVY, but the American submarines sank 54% of all enemy shipping.

In World War II, approximately 10 % of the German U-Boat Skippers sank approximately 90% of the Allied shipping sunk.

During World War II, one out five American submarine sailors did not return - but fewer than one out of five German U-Boat sailors lived to return home.

Quiz

This little quiz began in KTB #102 and is only intended to help improve your knowledge of submarine AND naval history. The answers to last month's questions are:

6. The American submarine that fired the last torpedo and sank the last Japanese ship in World War II is USS TORSK (AGSS 423) . She was commissioned in December 1944 and sank the last Japanese combatant ship on 14 August, 1945. TORSK is now a Memorial in Baltimore and is open to the public.

7.The last of Germany's ten armed merchant cruisers to be sunk was MICHEL, sunk by USS TARPON (SS 175) off Japan in October of 1943. WERNER KREYMANN (1907-1991) lost his brother on MICHEL. Germany's merchantmen raiders sank 133 Allied ships of 830,000 tons. USS TARPON sank off Cape Hatteras while being towed as a dead hulk to Baltimore for scrapping on 26 August, 1957. TARPON is visited by divers in that area.

8.The 1st CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR was awarded to CDR Howard Gilmore (posthumously in 1943) of USS GRO WLER (SS 215). Gilmore ordered the bridge cleared while he alone remained topside to maneuver GROWLER to safety after she had rammed a Japanese gunboat. Gilmore was seriously wounded in the gunbattle that followed and realized that he could not safely make it down the hatch, so he gave his famous order "TAKE HER DOWN and he perished in the sea when his submarine dived away from him. Although seriously damaged, GROWLER safely returned to base.

9.The 1st Japanese submarine sunk by a Hedgehog was I-175 on 5 February, 1944. Hedgehogs, and the smaller version called Mousetraps, were adopted by the US NAVY in 1942. They were clusters of bombs that broke into a pattern when fired from a surface ship and exploded on contact.

10. The first Japanese submarine that sank itself when a crewman failed to secure a torpedo door was I-169. She made an emergency dive when attacked by American planes. There were several attempts to raise the sub and rescue her crew, but all failed and the crew perished. (NOTE - at least one German UBoat was sunk by a crewman who failed to operate the toilet in the head properly)

Here are some more brain-teasers for KTB #105 next month:

11. What high-scoring German U-Boat ACE was shot and killed accidentally by a sentry for failing to give a password?

12. What US NAVY submarine sank three Japanese submarines in three days?

13. What was the US NAVY submarine that sank the only I.J.N. battleship in the War, and what was the battleship?

14. What US NAVY sub sank the first "Tin Can " in the War?

15. What was the first submarine sunk by aircraft fire in the War, and who sank her?

Answers to 11-15