CHARLES HOFFERT (4247-1995) really enjoys his Membership. In fact, when he first came on board, he wrote: “Thank you for my first issue of KTB. I want you to know it met all my expectations and am looking forward to future issues & continued Membership. Even the advertisements are interesting and informative.”

He goes on to say that the history of REINHARD HARDEGEN (102-LIFE-1985) and his U-123 are of particular interest to him. In the 1960’s he learned about Operation ‘DRUMBEAT’ and the five boats that participated and in particular, he learned that one of the boats had just about everything go wrong that could. He sends the following about the ‘jinxed’ patrol of U-125 as this boat joined that famous Operation ‘PAUKENSCHLAG’ or ‘DRUMBEAT’.

Kapitänleutnant Ulrich Folkers

• Upon departing Lorient on 18 December, 1941 for American waters, U-125 inadvertently crossed paths with a British convoy and was detected. She was severely depth charged, sustaining five near misses. Damage included broken torpedo tube locking levers, depth gauges, and gyro compass rosettes;
• Encountering heavy seas on 29 December, U-125 suffered more damage to its net deflectors, antenna and outer torpedo tube covers;
• From 1 January through the 12th of 1942, continued heavy seas interrupted outboard repairs. Two mis-firings and the failure of torpedo tube Number 4 outer cover to open allowed a 7,000 ton tanker to escape in the darkness;
• On 25 January, two more mis-firings resulted in another 7,000 ton tanker’s escape.

(HARRY’s NOTE: U-125 reported that one torpedo was fired, and that it did hit and detonate against a tanker stopped in the water. This was SS OLNEY. In the log of SS OLNEY, it was recorded that an unidentified German U-Boat did attack, but without any hits. SS OLNEY was an American Flag ship, built in 1920 in Oakland, California; was owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Shipping Company; and she was 7,290 tons. Her dimensions were 426 feet length, 57 feet beam, and drew 33 feet.)

• Early in the morning of 26 January, a single shot at a heavily laden freighter 150 miles east of Cape Hatteras. Finally, after forty days of frustration, the next two shots from her stern tubes were hits and the target sank in fourteen minutes. That evening, another 8,000 ton freighter was sighted but it escaped in the darkness.

Officers and crew of U-125 in a relaxed moment

(HARRY’S NOTE: U-125 sank the 5,666 ton American steamer SS WEST IVIS. She was built in 1919, was owned and operated by Pope & Talbot Inc., her Master was Alfred C. Larsen, and she was making approximately 10 knots when she was hit. There is no record of the ‘8,000 ton freighter’ which got away.)