German submarine U-732
History | |
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Nazi Germany | |
Name | U-732 |
Ordered | 21 November 1940 |
Builder | Danzig |
Yard number | 1523 |
Laid down | 6 October 1941 |
Launched | 18 August 1942 |
Commissioned | 24 October 1942 |
Fate | Scuttled off Tangiers on 31 October 1943 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type VIIC submarine |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Height | 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in) |
Draught | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Range |
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Test depth |
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Complement | 4 officers, 40–56 enlisted |
Armament |
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Service record | |
Part of: |
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Identification codes: | M 49 880 |
Commanders: |
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Operations: |
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Victories: | None |
German submarine U-732 was a
Design
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).
Service history
Attached to
On the third and final war patrol, U-732 was spotted in the afternoon of 31 October 1943 by the British anti-submarine trawler HMS Imperialist off Tangiers. Imperialist made several attacks, throwing a total of 28 depth charges, but was unable to destroy the U-boat. U-732 managed to dive and lay in 180 meters on the sea bed until the oxygen level and became critically low and the batteries were almost discharged. The hopes to escape their pursuers on the surface, were shattered by the presence of HMS Douglas, a British destroyer in the proximity. In the face of the situation, Carlsen decided at 22:30h to order the crew to abandon ship and scuttle the U-boat. Although all crew members made it off U-732, the heavy swell in near total darkness took a heavy toll, only 19 crew members were picked up while 31 perished in the event.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Busch & Röll 1999b, p. 161-162.
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999a). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999b). Der U-Boot-Krieg, 1939-1945: Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
- Gröner, Eric; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). German Warships 1815-1945: U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-732". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
35°54′N 05°52′W / 35.900°N 5.867°W