| German submarine U-55 (1939) | |
|---|---|
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
| Name: | U-55 |
| Ordered: | 16 July 1937 |
| Builder: | Germaniawerft, Kiel |
| Cost: | 4,439,000 Reichsmark |
| Yard number: | 590 |
| Laid down: | 2 November 1938 |
| Launched: | 19 October 1939 |
| Commissioned: | 21 November 1939 |
| Fate: | Sunk 30 January 1940 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Type VIIB U-boat |
| Displacement: |
753 t (741 long tons) ↑ 857 t (843 long tons) ↓ |
| Length: |
66.5 m (218 ft 2 in) o/a 48.8 m (160 ft 1 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: |
6.2 m (20 ft 4 in) overall 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull |
| Draught: | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
| Propulsion: |
2 × supercharged MAN 6 cylinder, 4-stroke M 6 V 40/46 diesel engines totalling 2,800–3,200 bhp (2,100–2,400 kW) Max rpm 470-490 ↑ 2 × AEG GU 460/8-276 electric engines totalling 750 shp (560 kW) ↓ |
| Speed: |
17.9 kn (33.2 km/h) 8 kn (15 km/h) |
| Range: |
8,700 nmi (16,112 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h)↑ 90 nmi (170 km) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) |
| Test depth: | 230 m (750 ft). Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft) |
| Complement: | 44 to 48 officers and ratings |
| Armament: |
|
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
7th U-boat Flotilla (21 November 1939 – 30 January 1940) |
| Commanders: |
Kptlt. Werner Heidel (21 November 1939–30 January 1940) |
| Operations: | 16–30 January 1940 |
| Victories: | Six ships sunk for a total of 15,853 gross register tons (GRT) |
German submarine U-55 was a Type VIIB U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was ordered on 16 July 1937 and laid down on 2 November 1938 at Krupp Germaniawerft in Kiel as Werk 590. Launched on 19 October 1939, she went into service on 21 November 1939 under the command of Kapitänleutnant (Kptlt.) Werner Heidel.[1]
Wartime activity[]
U-55 began her first and only war patrol on 16 January 1940, under Heidel's command; he had previously sunk two ships in U-7. She sank four small freighters sailing independently, then attacked convoy OA-80G on 29 January. U-55 sank two more ships before coming under concerted attack from the convoy's escorts, supported by a Sunderland flying boat from RAF Coastal Command. After a sustained depth charge attack, the U-boat surfaced and carried out a running gun battle before her deck gun jammed. Heidel ordered the boat to be abandoned, then apparently went down with it. The remainder of the crew was rescued by the escorts. The British awarded official credit for sinking U-55 to the sloop HMS Fowey, the destroyer HMS Whitshed and the Sunderland.[2]
Raiding career[]
| Date[3] | Ship | Nationality | Tonnage | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 January 1940 | Foxen |  Sweden |
1,304 | Sunk |
| 19 January 1940 | Telnes |  Norway |
1,694 | Sunk |
| 22 January 1940 | Segovia | Norway |
1,387 | Sunk |
| 23 January 1940 | Andalusia | Sweden |
1,357 | Sunk |
| 30 January 1940 | Keramiai |  Greece |
5,085 | Sunk |
| 30 January 1940 | Vaclite/Vaclita[4] |  Great Britain |
5,026 | Sunk |
See also[]
Sources[]
- ↑ "U-55 Type VIIB". ubootwaffe.net. http://ubootwaffe.net/ops/boat.cgi?boat=55. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
- ↑ Blair (1996), 136–137.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-55". WWII U-boat successes. Uboat.net. http://www.uboat.net/boats/successes/u55.html. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
- ↑ Kemp, Paul: U-Boats Destroyed, German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. 1997. p. 63. Arms and Armour. ISBN 1-85409-515-3
- Blair, Clay (1996). Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunters 1939–1942. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-394-58839-8.
External links[]
Coordinates: 48°37′N 7°48′W / 48.617°N 7.8°W
The original article can be found at German submarine U-55 (1939) and the edit history here.