German submarine U-157 (1941) | |
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Career | ![]() |
Name: | U-157 |
Ordered: | 25 September 1939 |
Builder: | AG Weser, Bremen |
Yard number: | 999 |
Laid down: | 21 October 1940 |
Launched: | 5 June 1941[1] |
Commissioned: | 15 September 1941[2] |
Fate: | Sunk, 13 June 1942[3] |
General characteristics | |
Type: | Type IXC submarine |
Displacement: |
1,120 t (1,100 long tons) surfaced 1,232 t (1,213 long tons) submerged |
Length: |
76.8 m (252 ft 0 in) o/a 58.7 m (192 ft 7 in) pressure hull |
Beam: |
6.8 m (22 ft 4 in) o/a 4.4 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull |
Height: | 9.4 m (30 ft 10 in) |
Draft: | 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) |
Propulsion: |
2 × MAN M9V40/46 supercharged 9-cylinder diesel engines, 4,400 hp (3,281 kW) 2 × SSW GU345/34 double-acting electric motors, 1,000 hp (746 kW) |
Speed: |
18.2 knots (33.7 km/h) surfaced 7.7 knots (14.3 km/h) submerged |
Range: |
24,880 nmi (46,080 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced 117 nmi (217 km) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) submerged |
Test depth: | 230 m (750 ft) |
Complement: | 48 to 56 |
Armament: |
• 6 × torpedo tubes (four bow, two stern) • 22 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedoes • 1 × 10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun[4] (110 rounds) • AA guns |
Service record[5][6] | |
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Part of: |
4th U-boat Flotilla (15 September 1941–31 May 1942) 2nd U-boat Flotilla (1–13 June 1942) |
Commanders: |
KrvKpt. Wolf Henne (15 September 1941–13 June 1942) |
Operations: |
1st patrol: 30 April–10 May 1942 2nd patrol: 18 May–13 June 1942 |
Victories: | 1 commercial ship sunk (6,401 GRT) |
German submarine U-157 was a Type IXC U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 21 October 1940 at the AG Weser yard in Bremen, launched on 5 June 1941, and commissioned on 15 September under the command of Korvettenkapitän Wolf Henne. After training with the 4th U-boat Flotilla, U-157 was transferred to the 2nd U-boat Flotilla for front-line service on 3 June 1942.[5]
Service history[]
1st patrol[]
U-157 sailed from Kiel on 30 April 1942, around the British Isles, and arrived at Lorient, France, eleven days later on 10 May.[7]
2nd patrol[]
The U-boat left Lorient on 18 May 1942 and sailed across the Atlantic to the Caribbean Sea.[8] There, on 11 June, she torpedoed and sank[9] the unescorted 6,401-ton American tanker Hagan about five miles off the north coast of Cuba. The ship, loaded with 22,676 barrels of blackstrap molasses, was hit in the engine room, destroying the engines and causing at least one boiler to explode. About a minute later a second torpedo struck, and the tanker began to sink by the stern. The crew abandoned ship in two lifeboats, but two officers and four crewmen were lost. The boats, containing 38 men, both landed in Cuba.[10]
U-157 was sunk two days later, on 13 June, south-west of Key West, in position 24°13′N 82°03′W / 24.217°N 82.05°WCoordinates: 24°13′N 82°03′W / 24.217°N 82.05°W, by depth charges from the US Coast Guard cutter USS Thetis. All 52 crew were lost.[3][5]
References[]
- Notes
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars, 1999, Arms & Armour, ISBN 1-85409-515-3, p. 82.
- ↑ Kemp, p. 82.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kemp, pp. 82-83.
- ↑ Campbell, John Naval Weapons of World War Two ISBN 0-87021-459-4 pp.248&249
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "The Type IXC boat U-157 - German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net". uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/u157.htm. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
- ↑ "War Patrols by German U-boat U-157 - Boats - uboat.net". uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/patrols/u157.html. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
- ↑ "Patrol of U-boat U-157 from 30 Apr 1942 to 10 May 1942 - U-boat patrols - uboat.net". uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/patrols/patrol_3967.html. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
- ↑ "Patrol of U-boat U-157 from 18 May 1942 to 13 Jun 1942 - U-boat patrols - uboat.net". uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/patrols/patrol_3968.html. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
- ↑ http://uboat.net/boats/patrols/patrol_3968.html
- ↑ "Hagan (Steam tanker) - Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net". uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/1786.html. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
- Bibliography
External links[]
- U-157 at u-boot-archiv.de (German)
See also[]
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The original article can be found at German submarine U-157 (1941) and the edit history here.