from a booklet printed by Electric Boat
Sent by JERRY LEE EDWARDS (2241-1992)

We read that Leonardo da Vinci, the Florentine inventor and artist, developed plans for an underwater warship but he kept them secret. He was afraid that his submarines would make war even more frightful than it already was.

Did You Know?
by Oblt. Ernst Schmidt (10-1983)

On November 13, 1941 U-81 under LT FRITZ GUGENBERGER (269-+-1987), the British Aircraft Carrier HMS ARK ROYAL was torpedoed in the Mediterranean east of Gibraltar? It sunk after listing for more than 12 hours. During that time, all but one of her crew were taken off.

LCDR VON TIESSENHAUSER (268-1987) sunk the British battleship HMS BARHAM in the eastern Mediterranean on 25 November, 1941? 859 men died as the magazines exploded. It was the only British battleship sunk by U-Boats on the high seas.

LT Paulsen in U-557 sank the British cruiser HMS GALATEA on 14th December, 1941 off Alexandria?

Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub

The 11th U-Bootwaffe Officer to win the OAK LEAF CLUSTER to his KNIGHTS CROSS was KPLT REINHARD HARDEGEN (102-LIFE-1985), Skipper of U-147 and U-123. This award was made 23 April, 1942.

GEFALLEN U-BOOTFAHRER LIST

As you know our friends from the U-Boot Ehrenmal in Kiel have entrusted me with a very rare document - the COMPLETE list of all U-Bootfahrer who were killed during World War II. I am putting all these names onto our computer file, but this is a much greater task than I had guessed! So far, all those whose last name begins with "A" is on the list. Out of a force of approximately 39,000 men, 32,000 did not return! This will be a very long list and will take time, but I am plugging away.

Once this list is completed, I will put the names of the 3,505 American NAVY men of the SILENT SERVICE who were lost in service on the computer as well. This will not take as long as the list of fallen German submarine sailors, but it is every bit as important.

FRANKREICH-ZULAGE

From the list of U-Boat slang compiled by MIKE KOSS (299-1987), we find that this was the extra pay for U-Bootfahrer serving in France. This was a real problem since the extra pay showed up 2 to 3 months after the men served. Later in the War, this additional pay frequently showed up after the man was lost in the Atlantic.

FEUERLAND BASE is LOCATED!

The last operational Germal Naval base of World War II has been located at the southern tip of South America. It was this base GRAF SPEE was headed when she encountered the ROYAL NAVY cruiser group of HMS AJAX, HMS ACHILLES and HMS EXETER but the resultant battle and the fear of the RN cruisers following her to this secret base caused OKM to deny Captain Langsdorf permission to go to FEURRLAND base. The result was the loss of GRAF SPEE in Montevideo Harbor.

Oh Boat Joe of the Oh-One-Oh

We are beginning another "TRIVIA" section here. A great many submarine Skippers had nicknames and we are going to try to bring them to you on the pages of our KTB Magazine on a monthly basis. We will try to not only bring the nicknames, but the story behind how the Skippers earned them. There is no need to send answers here, but this is more to help you expend your knowledge of Submarine history. We hope you enjoy this column, and we thank KEN HENRY (1468-1990) for this suggestion.

So, for this issue let's twist your brain. Do you know who was OH BOAT JOE OF THE OH-ONE-OH?

We'll tell you in KTB #106 next month. And let me ask ALL our MEMBERS now - can YOU send us more nicknames of submarine Skippers and the reasons for those nicknames? Thanks in advance.

Answer

Far-East Boats

From the list compiled by WERNER K. HOFFMANN (327-LIFE-1987), we learn that U-532 made the voyage from her French base to the I.J.N. base at Pulu-Penang. There is no mention of her cargo or mission.

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:

11. The German U-Boat ace who was accidentally shot and killed by a German sentry AFTER the War had ended was Wolfgang Luth, the second highest scoring submarine Skipper of World War II. Luth had earned the KNIGHTS CROSS with OAK LEAF CLUSTER, CROSSED SWORDS & DIAMONDS. He commanded four different U-Boats during the War, and was on the Staff of GrossAdmiral Donitz at the end of the War. When a group of SHARKHUNTERS was in Germany in 1992, we were at the very spot where this accident occurred. There is a large stone monument to this well-loved Skipper on the spot where he was shot.

12. The US NAVY submarine that sank three Japanese submarines in three days was USS BATFISH. Many BATFISH vets are Members of SHARKHUNTERS including two of her three Skippers. BATFISH is now a Memorial in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

13. It was USS SEALION II under CDR G. T. Reich that sank the only IJN battleship sunk by American subs during World War II. As you read in our current catalog, they had a recording machine running in the CON of SEALION while this action took place and you may have a copy of this tape.....check the catalog for ordering instructions.

14. The first American submarine to sink a TIN CAN during World War II was S-44 when she sank KAKO on 10 August, 1942.

15. The 1st submarine sunk by aircraft fire in the War was the Italian ARGONAUTA. She was sunk by a British SUNDERLAND on 28 June, 1940.

Now that you have all gotten these answers, let's twist your memory a little more for KTB #106 next month. Do you know.....

16. What was the 1st I.J.N. submarine sunk by aircraft fire in WW II?

17. What two submarines sank Soviet ships in error during the War?

18. What American sub incorrectly identified the US NAVY salvage ship USS EXTRACTOR - and sank her!

19. Who was the only American submarine Skipper to be relieved of his command of a JAPANESE submarine for cause?

20. What distinction does Captain Donald MacIntyre (ROYAL NAVY) hold? (If you miss this one, turn in your copy of GOLDEN HORSESHOE)

Answers