German submarine U-801
History | |
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Nazi Germany | |
Name | U-801 |
Ordered | 7 December 1940 |
Builder | DeSchiMAG Seebeckwerft, Bremerhaven |
Yard number | 359 |
Laid down | 30 September 1941 |
Launched | 31 October 1942 |
Commissioned | 24 March 1943 |
Fate | Scuttled off Cape Verde on 17 March 1944 at 16°42′N 30°28′W / 16.700°N 30.467°W |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type IXC/40 submarine |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Height | 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in) |
Draught | 4.67 m (15 ft 4 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Range |
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Test depth | 230 m (750 ft) |
Complement | 4 officers, 44 enlisted |
Armament |
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Service record | |
Part of: |
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Identification codes: | M 51 307 |
Commanders: |
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Operations: |
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Victories: | None |
German submarine U-801 was a
.U-801 was ordered on 7 December 1940 from
Design
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 18.3 knots (33.9 km/h; 21.1 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.3 knots (13.5 km/h; 8.4 mph).
Service history
After a collision in the
Her second patrol would have led her into the Indian Ocean as part of Monsun group, however U-801 was detected by a submarine hunter group three weeks into her journey. The submarine surfaced on the evening of March 16th only to be attacked by aircraft from the aircraft carrier USS Block Island. The U-boat dived and managed to evade the hunters until the early hours of the March 17th, when the U-801 skipper erred and sent a radio message. USS Corry ran down the bearing of the transmission, and she and USS Bronstein methodically boxed in the U-801, forcing her to surface. On the surface, she was immediately attacked by Corry. Nine crew members lost their lives in the attack. The crew abandoned and scuttled their boat. The remaining crew were picked up by Corry and later transferred to Block Island.[2] The 47 survivors were brought to Norfolk, Virginia and spent the rest of the war in captivity.[3]
Wolfpacks
U-801 took part in four wolfpacks, namely:
- Coronel (4 – 8 December 1943)
- Coronel 2 (8 – 14 December 1943)
- Coronel 3 (14 – 17 December 1943)
- Borkum (18 December 1943 – 3 January 1944)
References
- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, p. 68.
- ^ McKernon, Francis. ""The Sinking of U-801"". USS Corry (DD-463) Home Page. Kevin McKernon. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
- ^ Busch & Röll 1999, pp. 207–8.
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). 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 (1999). 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 IXC/40 boat U-801". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.