SM UB-81

	UB-148 at sea, a U-boat similar to UB-81.
History
German Empire
Name	UB-81
Ordered	23 September 1916
Builder	AG Weser, Bremen
Cost	3,341,000 German Papiermark
Yard number	281
Laid down	5 January 1917
Launched	18 August 1917
Commissioned	18 September 1917
Fate	Lost 2 December 1917 after striking a mine at 50°27′N 0°53′W / 50.450°N 0.883°W
General characteristics
Class and type	Type UB III submarine
Type	Coastal submarine
Displacement	516 t (508 long tons) surfaced; 647 t (637 long tons) submerged;
Length	55.85 m (183 ft 3 in) ( o/a)
Beam	5.80 m (19 ft)
Draught	3.72 m (12 ft 2 in)
Propulsion	2 shafts; 2 × Körting six-cylinder fourstroke diesel engines, 1,050 bhp (780 kW); 2 × kW (780 shp);
Speed	13.4 knots (24.8 km/h; 15.4 mph) surfaced; 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h; 8.6 mph) submerged;
Range	8,180 nmi (15,150 km; 9,410 mi) at 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) surfaced; 50 nmi (93 km; 58 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged;
Test depth	50 m (160 ft)
Complement	3 officers, 31 men
Armament	5 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes (4 bow, 1 stern); 10 torpedoes; 1 × 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun;
Service record
Part of:	Flandern I Flotilla; 11 November – 2 December 1917;
Commanders:	Oblt.z.S. Reinhold Saltzwedel; 18 September – 2 December 1917;
Operations:	2 patrols
Victories:	1 merchant ship sunk ; (3,218 GRT)

SM UB-81 was a German

commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 18 September 1917 as SM UB-81.^{[Note 1]}

UB-81 was sunk 2 December 1917 by a mine at 50°27′N 0°53′W / 50.450°N 0.883°W / 50.450; -0.883, 29 crew members died in the event.^[1]

Construction

UB-81 was ordered by the GIN on 23 September 1916 and her keel was laid down on 5 January 1917.^[3] She was built by AG Weser of Bremen and following just under a year of construction, launched at Bremen on 4 August 1917. UB-81 was commissioned later that same year under the command of Reinhold Saltzwedel. Like all Type UB III submarines, UB-81 carried 10 torpedoes and was armed with a 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun. UB-81 would carry a crew of up to 3 officer and 31 men and had a cruising range of 8,180 nautical miles (15,150 km; 9,410 mi). UB-81 had a displacement of 516 t (508 long tons) while surfaced and 647 t (637 long tons) when submerged. Her engines enabled her to travel at 13.4 knots (24.8 km/h; 15.4 mph) when surfaced and 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h; 8.6 mph) when submerged.

On the night of 30 November/1 December 1917 she torpedoed and sank the 3,218 ton British steamer Molesey 12 miles west-south-west of the Brighton Light Vessel.^[6]

Fate

UB-81 struck a mine on the night of 2 December 1917 in the

OSGB at a depth of 28 metres (92 feet).^[8]^[9] The wreck is designated as a controlled site under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986^[10]

and therefore all diving on her is strictly prohibited.

Summary of raiding history

Date	Name	Nationality	Tonnage^{[Note 2]}	Fate^[5]
30 November 1917	Molesey	United Kingdom	3,218	Sunk

References

Notes

^ "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English: His Majesty's) and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as His Majesty's Submarine.
gross register tons

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Gröner 1991, pp. 25–30.

^ Rössler 1979, p. 55.

^ ^a ^b Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: UB 81". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Reinhold Saltzwedel (Pour le Mérite)". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 9 March 2015.

^ ^a ^b Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by UB 81". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Molesey". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

^ "UB 81". Uboat.net. Retrieved 12 November 2012.

ISBN 0-946020-15-9

ISBN 978-1-90438-104-4
.

^ "The Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 (Designation of Vessels and Controlled Sites) Order 2008". Office of Public Sector Information. Retrieved 21 July 2008.

Bibliography

Bendert, Harald (2000). Die UB-Boote der Kaiserlichen Marine, 1914-1918. Einsätze, Erfolge, Schicksal (in German).
ISBN 3-8132-0713-7
.

Gröner, Erich; 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
.

Rössler, Eberhard (1979). Die deutschen U-Boote und ihre Werften: eine Bilddokumentation über den deutschen U-Bootbau; in zwei Bänden (in German). Vol. I.
ISBN 3-7637-5213-7
.

v
t
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Type UB III submarines

SM UB-48

SM UB-49

SM UB-50

SM UB-51

SM UB-52

SM UB-53

SM UB-54

SM UB-55

SM UB-56

SM UB-57

SM UB-58

SM UB-59

SM UB-60

SM UB-61

SM UB-62

SM UB-63

SM UB-64

SM UB-65

SM UB-66

SM UB-67

SM UB-68

SM UB-69

SM UB-70

SM UB-71

SM UB-72

SM UB-73

SM UB-74

SM UB-75

SM UB-76

SM UB-77

SM UB-78

SM UB-79

SM UB-80

SM UB-81

SM UB-82

SM UB-83

SM UB-84

SM UB-85

SM UB-86

SM UB-87

SM UB-88

SM UB-89

SM UB-90

SM UB-91

SM UB-92

SM UB-93

SM UB-94

SM UB-95

SM UB-96

SM UB-97

SM UB-98

SM UB-99

SM UB-100

SM UB-101

SM UB-102

SM UB-103

SM UB-104

SM UB-105

SM UB-106

SM UB-107

SM UB-108

SM UB-109

SM UB-110

SM UB-111

SM UB-112

SM UB-113

SM UB-114

SM UB-115

SM UB-116

SM UB-117

SM UB-118

SM UB-119

SM UB-120

SM UB-121

SM UB-122

SM UB-123

SM UB-124

SM UB-125

SM UB-126

SM UB-127

SM UB-128

SM UB-129

SM UB-130

SM UB-131

SM UB-132

SM UB-133

SM UB-136

SM UB-142

SM UB-143

SM UB-144

SM UB-145

SM UB-148

SM UB-149

SM UB-150

SM UB-154

SM UB-155

Preceded by:
Type UB II

Followed by:
Type VII
(World War II)

List of U-boats of Germany

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e
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in December 1917
Shipwrecks

1 Dec: Washington

2 Dec: SM UB-81

6 Dec: USS Jacob Jones, Mont-Blanc, SM UC-69

7 Dec: CGS Simcoe

8 Dec: USS Rush

9 Dec: SM UB-18

10 Dec: SM UB-75, SMS Wien

12 Dec: USS Elizabeth, HMS Partridge, HMS Wolverine, Florida

13 Dec: SM U-75, HMS Stephen Furness

14 Dec: Châteaurenault, SM UC-38

17 Dec: USS F-1

18 Dec: Mariposa

19 Dec: SM UB-56

24 Dec: HMS Penshurst

25 Dec: Ajax, Espagne, SM U-87

30 Dec: HMT Aragon, HMS Attack

31 Dec: USS Fli-Hawk, Vigrid, HMS Osmanieh

Other incidents

6 Dec: Halifax Explosion, Imo, Stella Maris, SM U-96

17 Dec: USS F-3

Unknown date: HMS Carysfort

1916 1917 1918
November 1917 January 1918

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Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SM_UB-81&oldid=1228671519"

[6] "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English: His Majesty's) and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as His Majesty's Submarine.

[tonnage-12] gross register tons

[FOOTNOTEGröner199125–30-1] Gröner 1991, pp. 25–30.

[FOOTNOTERössler197955-2] Rössler 1979, p. 55.

[UB-81-3] Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: UB 81". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

[4] Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Reinhold Saltzwedel (Pour le Mérite)". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 9 March 2015.

[HIT-5] Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by UB 81". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

[7] Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Molesey". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 29 September 2010.

[8] "UB 81". Uboat.net. Retrieved 12 November 2012.

[9] ISBN 0-946020-15-9

[10] ISBN 978-1-90438-104-4
.

[SI2008-11] "The Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 (Designation of Vessels and Controlled Sites) Order 2008". Office of Public Sector Information. Retrieved 21 July 2008.

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