Type XIV submarine
U-459 sinking after being attacked by Vickers Wellington aircraft.
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Class overview | |
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Builders |
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Operators | Kriegsmarine |
Preceded by | Type IX submarine |
Succeeded by | Type VIIF (torpedo replenishment submarine) |
Built | 1940–1943 |
In commission | 1941–1944 |
Planned | 24 |
Completed | 10 |
Cancelled | 14 |
Lost | 10 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Submarine tanker |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Height | 11.70 m (38 ft 5 in) |
Draught | 6.51 m (21 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 | 240 m (790 ft) |
Capacity |
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Complement | 6 officers and 47 enlisted |
Armament |
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The Type XIV U-boat was designed to resupply other U-boats, being the only submarine tenders built which were not surface ships. It was nicknamed the "Milchkuh/Milchkühe (pl.)" (milk cows) or U-Tanker.
Design
The Type XIV was based on the
The submarines had a maximum surface speed of 14.4–14.9 knots (26.7–27.6 km/h; 16.6–17.1 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 6.2 knots (11.5 km/h; 7.1 mph).[1] When submerged, the boats could operate for 120 nautical miles (220 km; 140 mi) at 2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph); when surfaced, they could travel 12,350 nautical miles (22,870 km; 14,210 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).
The boats were not fitted with
The boats had a complement of fifty-three.[1]
Operation
Due to its large size, the Type XIV could resupply other boats with 613 t (603 long tons) of fuel, 13 t (13 long tons) of motor oil, four torpedoes,[2] and fresh food that was preserved in refrigerator units. In addition, the boats were equipped with a small bakery in order to provide the luxury of fresh bread for crews being resupplied. The Type XIV also had a doctor and medical facility for injured sailors, and even had a two-man brig to imprison sailors awaiting discipline back at home. Type IXC boats otherwise only carried 12 weeks of food supplies, and Type VIIC U-boat carried about 114 tons of diesel fuel.[3][4]
Cargo was transported by means of a 6-metre (20 ft) inflatable boat and portable cranes. The flat main deck with cargo hatches and davits was designed in theory to facilitate the transfer of bulk supplies, however its low freeboard made this work extremely hazardous in typical North Atlantic swells that made the deck awash, so often supplies had to be hand-lifted through the smaller but drier conning tower hatches to avoid flooding the boat. Resupply and refueling operations often took hours, putting both the milk cow and the submarine it was servicing at risk.[3]
If the Germans came under Allied attack during a resupply operation, the milk cow would dive first while the attack submarine might fight it out on the surface for a while, as the Type XIV's bulk and flat deck made it slower to maneuver and submerge, although it could dive deeper than Type VIICs or IX.[3] The Type XIV had no torpedo tubes or deck guns, only defensive armament of anti-aircraft guns.[1]
The milk cows operated 300–400 miles (480–640 km) off the North American mainland in the so-called
The milk cows were priority targets for
List of Type XIV submarines
Ten boats of this type were commissioned:[1]
- U-459, commissioned on 15 November 1941, scuttled on 24 July 1943
- U-460, commissioned on 24 December 1941, sunk on 4 October 1943
- U-461, commissioned on 30 January 1942, sunk on 30 July 1943
- U-462, commissioned on 5 March 1942, sunk on 30 July 1943
- U-463, commissioned on 2 April 1942, sunk on 16 May 1943
- U-464, commissioned on 30 April 1942, scuttled on 20 August 1942
- U-487, commissioned on 21 December 1942, sunk on 13 July 1943
- U-488, commissioned on 1 February 1943, sunk on 26 April 1944
- U-489, commissioned on 8 March 1943, sunk on 4 August 1943
- U-490, commissioned on 27 March 1943, sunk on 12 June 1944[1]
Fourteen planned Type XIVs were cancelled. Three of them (U-491, U-492, U-493) were about 75% complete when work was stopped in 1944. The other eleven boats had not been laid down when they were cancelled on 27 May 1944. On that same day
Citations
Bibliography
- Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and mine warfare vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
- Neistlé, Axel (2014). German U-Boat Losses during World War II: Details of Destruction (2 ed.). Havertown: Frontline Books (published 30 June 2014).
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Milkcows". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "Type XIV Milch Cows (supply boats)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 20 April 2015.