German submarine U-206

Coordinates: 47°05′N 2°40′W / 47.083°N 2.667°W / 47.083; -2.667
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

History
Nazi Germany
NameU-206
Ordered16 October 1939
Builder
Germaniawerft, Kiel
Yard number635
Laid down17 June 1940
Launched4 April 1941
Commissioned17 May 1941
FateMissing since 29 November 1941 in the Bay of Biscay. Possibly sunk around 30 November 1941 off St. Nazaire in British minefield Beech.
General characteristics
Class and type
Type VIIC submarine
Displacement
Length
  • 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in)
    o/a
  • 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in)
    pressure hull
Beam
  • 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a
  • 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
Installed power
  • 2,800–3,200 PS (2,100–2,400 kW; 2,800–3,200 bhp) (diesels)
  • 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced
  • 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged
Range
  • 8,500 nmi (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth
  • 230 m (750 ft)
  • Crush depth
    : 250–295 m (820–968 ft)
Complement4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Armament
Service record[1]
Part of:
Identification codes: M 41 306
Commanders:
  • Kptlt.
    Herbert Opitz
  • 17 May – 30 November 1941
Operations:
  • 3 patrols:
  • 1st patrol:
  • 5 August – 10 September 1941
  • 2nd patrol:
  • 30 September – 28 October 1941
  • 3rd patrol:
  • 29 – 30 November 1941
Victories:
  • 2 merchant ships sunk
    (3,283 GRT)
  • 1 warship sunk
    (925 tons)

German submarine U-206 was a

Type VIIC U-boat of the Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 17 June 1940 by the Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft yard at Kiel as yard number 635, launched on 4 April 1941 and commissioned on 17 May under the command of Oberleutnant zur See
Herbert Opitz.

She was possibly sunk in November 1941 by a British-laid minefield.

Design

supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two AEG GU 460/8–27 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[2]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph).

2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.[2]

The partner city (Patenstadt) that sponsored the construction of the submarine was Reichenberg, and she bore the city's coat of arms.[3][4]

Service history

Part of the 3rd U-boat Flotilla, U-206 carried out three patrols in the North Atlantic:[5]

First patrol

U-206's first patrol began when she left Trondheim in Norway on 5 August 1941; she travelled through the gap between Iceland and the Faroe Islands and headed south, towards the west of Ireland. She sank the Ocean Victor on 9 August south of Iceland.

On 26 August, U-206 rescued (against the regulations[6]) from two rubber dinghies six British No. 612 Squadron RAF crew of the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk. V, after its engine had failed during an anti-submarine patrol.[7] They were brought to St. Nazaire, and later to POW camps; soon after the rescue, the British were able to smuggle intelligence back to Britain, describing the submarine and the St. Nazaire port. She was the first submarine that brought British POWs to France.[6]

She arrived at

St. Nazaire
in occupied France on 10 September.

Second patrol

On her second foray, she sank HMS Fleur de Lys on 14 October 1941 55 nmi (102 km; 63 mi) west of Gibraltar and the Baron Kelvin, close to the Rock on the 19th.

Third patrol and loss

U-206 was posted missing from 29 November 1941. She is believed to have been the victim of a minefield laid by the

RAF, (code-named 'Beech'), west of St. Nazaire. Forty-six men died; there were no survivors. The men were pronounced dead in March 1942.[8]

Wolfpacks

U-206 took part in four wolfpacks, namely:

  • Grönland (10 – 23 August 1941)
  • Kurfürst (23 August – 2 September 1941)
  • Seewolf (2 – 7 September 1941)
  • Breslau (2 – 23 October 1941)

Summary of raiding history

Date Ship Name Nationality Tonnage[Note 1] Fate[9]
9 August 1941 Ocean Victor  United Kingdom 202 Sunk
14 October 1941 HMS Fleur de Lys  Royal Navy 925 Sunk
19 October 1941 Baron Kelvin  United Kingdom 3,081 Sunk

Location

Since 2018, research to locate the submarine has been ongoing;[10] some twenty possible wrecks have been identified, and dives are planned for 2020.[11]

References

Notes

  1. gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement
    .

Citations

  1. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-206". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
  3. , p. 74.
  4. ^ "U-206 Emblem". uboat.net. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  5. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols of German U-boat U-206". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  6. ^ a b Louda, Jiří (May 2018). "Jen objevit ponorku? Nikoliv! Pátráme po příbězích ve třech státech, říká Rous". Jablonecký Deník.
  7. ^ "Patrol of German U-boat U-206 from 5 Aug 1941 to 10 Sep 1941 - Kriegsmarine U-boat patrols - uboat.net".
  8. ^ "Čtvrtletník Severočeského muzea v Liberci - IV/2018". 31 December 2018.
  9. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-206". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  10. ^ "Are you related to Ocean Victor victims of U-boat?". 10 May 2018.
  11. ^ "Liberecká ponorka potopila Brity jediným torpédem - Novinky.cz".

Bibliography

External links

47°05′N 2°40′W / 47.083°N 2.667°W / 47.083; -2.667