WALTER GODINHO (5514-1998) has more information for STEVE GRABOWSKI (5898-1999) on German surface raiders.

ATLANTIS Ship 16, ex-GOLDENFELS of 7,862 tons and with her twin M.A.N. diesels (6,400 hp) her top speed was 17 knots with a range of 35,000 miles @ 10 knots. In addition to her normal armament of guns - six 5.9 inch (these were removed from the old battleship SCHLESIEN), one 75mm, two 37mm AA, two 20mm, four torpedo tubes and four hundred twenty mines she also carried two Heinkel He 114 planes and later Arado 197. Her crew size naturally varied, but 347 men was usually her compliment. She sunk or captured 22 ships including 3 prizes with a total of 145,697 tons. Her cruise was an astonishing 622 days lasting from 11 March 1940 to 22 November 1941 which included the time it took to get her crew home after she was sunk. This constituted the longest rescue at sea in history - from the southern Atlantic to French ports, they towed all these small boats.

EDITOR NOTE - Her demolitions Officer was JOHANN-HEINRICH FEHLER (32-+-1984) and the pilot of the scout plane was Bulla. When FEHLER took over U-234 for her run to Japan with uranium and war secrets, he took Bulla along first as a passenger then after discovering that his I.W.O. was a homosexual, FEHLER put the I.W.O. off the ship and made Bulla his I.W.O. for the patrol to Japan, which actually ended up in Portsmouth, NH.

ORION Ship 36, ex-KURMARK of 7,021 gross tons, and with her twin M.A.N. diesels of 6,400hp, her top speed was 16 knots with a range of 60,000 miles @ 10 knots. Her compliment was usually 350 men and she mounted six 5.9 inch guns, one 75mm, two 37mm, two 20mm, four torpedo tubes, four hundred twenty mines and she carried two planes - Arado 197 which were later replaced with Nakajima 90-11. She sank or captured 8 ships totaling 48,477 tons on her own plus half of the 21,125 tons she sank together with KOMET. Her cruise lasted 510 days from 4 April 1940 to 23 August 1941 when she returned to Europe.

There will be more on the raiders in KTB #152 next month.

DER DEUTSCHE this ship came to the Kriegsmarine in 1940 as a transport then on 18 February 1941 she became an accommodation ship in Danzig; 3 April 1941, U-boat depot ship in Gotenhafen; 12 July 1944, troop transport; 2 February 1945, refugee transport; 3 May 1945 bombed off Fehharn and grounded; 1947 - salvaged and went to the USSR; 9 June 1950 - Russian ship, renamed ASIA.

DEUTSCHLAND ship came to the Kriegsmarine 17 December 1940 as an accommodation ship; 16 December 1941, U-boat depot ship in Gotenhafen; 1943, transferred to Danzig; 1945, refugee transport; 3 April 1945, bombed by TYPHOON aircraft of 2nd TAF, set afire, capsized and sank off Neustadt, Lübeck bay. 1948 - raised and broken up.

ESSO HAMBURG this ship came to the Kriegsmarine in 1939 as a U-boat supply ship; 4 June 1941 was located by the cruiser HMS LONDON and the destroyer HMS BRILLIANT. She was scuttled by her crew to avoid capture.

EUROPA this ship came to the Kriegsmarine in October 1939 as an accommodation ship in the Wesermünde; 18 June 1940 intended Seelöwe special transport; 1942 intended conversion to aircraft carrier; December 1942, aircraft carrier project abandoned; 22 December 1942, intended troop transport; May 1945, taken by the US; 25 August 1945, US Navy troop transport AP 177; 8 June 1948 sold to France, became LIBERTE.

GENERAL ARTIGAS this ship came to the Kriegsmarine in October 1939 as an accommodation ship in Hamburg; 25 July 1943 bombed by RAF bombers, set afire in the Kuhwarder Hafen, Hamburg, burned out and capsized; 1945/1946 she was raised and broken up in Hamburg.

IBERIA this ship came to the Kriegsmarine 17 June 1940 as an accommodations ship in Gotenhafen; 1945 she was transferred to Kiel; 9 June 1945 she was given to Britain; 18 February 1946 she was given to Russia; 15 April 1947 she became the Russian POBEDA.