PETER HANSEN (251-LIFE-1987) spent time working for the ABWEHR (the German Secret Service) during WW II and he has information that is known to a mere handful of people. He gives this secret information especially to SHARKHUNTERS. Here he tells us:

We Learn More about the PK Men

Many P. K. (Propaganda Kompanie) Men were not exactly welcomed by the enlisted men or petty officers aboard U-Boats. They took up space and created extra work, and usually they were initially completely lost and often seasick too.

Photo of Prien on a German magazine after his daring entry into Scapa Flow and sinking HMS ROYAL OAK

However, these P. K. fellows had absolutely NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with political indoctrination of either enlisted men or officers, and many were a lightning rod for practical jokes, and subjected to a sailor’s yarn and invented stories, to pull their respective legs…..but if they attempted to become trained and insisted to get integrated into the crew and do normal sea duty jobs, they were gradually accepted.

They were not well liked

I only recall one who had freshly arrived from Berlin and was cured of his political propaganda delusions within a very few days because the crew made him so miserable and played so many tricks on him that he saw the light fast as to what was undesired and disliked.

Another P. K. old timer was ‘Walfisch’ (whale) Esmarch, who did recorded reports for radio station use, including the U-47 return report under Günther Prien from Scapa Flow into Wilhelmshaven and many others, also filming for the newsreels. His nickname ‘Walfisch’ was given to him because he was such a huge fellow of enormous weight.

Very Suspicious – ‘Black’ Boats?

You hit one of the real mystery cases here! U-906 launched on 28 June 1944 and commissioned on 15 July 1944, and U-908 launched on 27 April 1944 and NEVER commissioned, both constructed on the Stülken Werft in Hamburg, both destroyed and declared thereafter as scrap on 31 December 1944 after being bombed to pieces by British aircraft.

U-908 seemingly never had a commanding officer assigned. From U-906 assigned captain was transferred before taking over because both U-Boats were unsatisfactorily built and Admiral von Friedeburg did not permit acceptance by the German Navy due to technical deficiencies. In fact, the balance of the construction order to Stülken was entirely cancelled for U-909 through U-920, and Stülken was scratched from the U-Boat building program entirely.

Trained captains and crews were short then already and could not be kept sitting around waiting for shipyards to get off their #%& so they were reassigned at that time period quickly. Furthermore, record keeping was already somewhat incomplete and sporadic at that time, due to widespread bombing destruction of both suppliers and well as transport connections and navy installations, including administrative ones.

EDITOR NOTE – there was more information on these possible ‘Black’ boats in KTB #100 some time ago. There has always been suspicions of these ‘Black’ boats, so-called for their clandestine use, and sometime in 2003 you will read some startling facts on these boats and these operations – none of which were put in writing.

ESPADON (SAILFISH)

This submarine is in St. Nazaire and that is why I suggest that you visit these pens in the future, even though St. Nazaire has nothing to recommend it. After it was bombed out, together with Lorient, crews were lodged in nearby La Baule, a resort town.

ESPADON is a pure Type XXI copy except that the French added a chamber for divers who could leave from there or return to the chamber clandestinely from the submerged submarine or, if required, also while it was surfaced too. The ex-French Navy guides who take people through the submarine give an excellent idea of what it was like aboard that boat.

The hotels are still in business where the 3rd U-Bootflottille had their headquarters, and also where the crews and officers were lodged, as La Rochelle was never bombed and thus its historic, almost medieval charm, is still fully preserved. It is one of the most delightful towns one can visit in France and it also offers good shopping, so the ladies like it – and there are reasonable restaurants in this town too.

EDITORS NOTE – we intend to visit these places on our 2003 ‘Patrol in Europe’. Watch for the details, coming soon.

The headquarters of the 6th and 7th U-Bootflotille were located in La Bauel, as the ‘Brass’ liked these hotels much better and the driving time was only about twenty minutes.