Worek Plan
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Operation Worek | |||||||
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Part of Invasion of Poland | |||||||
Polish submarines sectors as in the Worek Plan. Legend: | - battery charging site || - sector of operation | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Poland | Germany | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Adam Mohuczy | Conrad Albrecht | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
5 submarines |
2 4 escorts 10 submarines | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
3 submarines damaged 4 submarines interned (including damaged)[Note 1] |
24 killed 1 minesweeper sunk |
The Worek Plan (or Operation Worek, Polish: Plan Worek, literally Plan Sack) was an operation of the Polish Navy in the first days of World War II, in which its five submarines formed a screen in order to prevent German naval forces from carrying out landings on the Polish coast, and to attack enemy ships bombarding Polish coastal fortifications, in particular the base on the Hel Peninsula.
The operation came to naught, as the Germans did not have any plans for naval landings. It caused the submarines to operate in a confined area near the shore in shallow waters, making them vulnerable to strong enemy anti-submarine forces. As a result, despite making a number of attempts, the submarines were unable to directly sink any enemy ships during the operation, although a mine placed by the
Plan
The plan was created for the five Polish submarines Orzeł (Eagle), Wilk (Wolf), Sęp (Vulture), Żbik (Wild Cat) and Ryś (Lynx) to use in the event that superior enemy surface forces took control of the Baltic Sea (the Polish surface navy consisted only of four destroyers, some minelayers, minesweepers, and gunboats).
The submarines were to operate near the Polish coast, in the area of the
In the event that all Polish naval bases were overrun, the submarines were to operate in the Baltic before evacuating to Britain. If that wasn't possible, the plan called for them to seek internment in a neutral port.
Orzeł was to take the position furthest inside Danzig Bay, from Jastarnia to the estuary of the Vistula river. East of Orzeł, in the entry to the Bay, was the place for Wilk. The remaining three submarines were to operate north of the Bay: Sęp was further West near Rozewie, Ryś was further east, and Żbik in the middle. They had separate areas for recharging batteries during the night: Orzeł even deeper within Danzig Bay, and the other ships north of their positions.
At the beginning of September, Sęp, Ryś, and Żbik were at Hel, while Wilk and Orzel were in Oksywie.
Execution
The Worek Plan was put into action with the
On the morning of 2 September Wilk attempted an attack on the German destroyer Z15 Erich Steinbrinck, but was forced to withdraw after being attacked by supporting vessels. Later that day Sep launched a single torpedo at the German destroyer Z14 Friedrich Ihn from 400 yards out. The torpedo missed and the destroyer dropped depth charges, severely damaging the submarine.[1] The next day the German submarine U-14 (1935) launched a torpedo at Sep, but it exploded prematurely. On 4 September Orzel's captain, Lieutenant Commander Henryk Kłoczkowski, deemed it impossible to continue with the operation in his sector, and decided to withdraw into the Baltic Sea. The submarine was attacked by the German minesweepers M3 and M4. One depth charge exploded just above Orzel, knocking out all lights and sending it crashing into the sea bed. The submarine escaped that night under the cover of darkness. Faced with an oil leak, Kłoczkowski chose to seek refuge in Tallinn, Estonia. The next day Wilk attempted to lay mines off of Hel, but was forced to abort in the face of an attack by German vessels. After this, its captain, Lieutenant Commander Krawczyk decided to withdraw northward. On 7 September the German submarine U-22 made a failed torpedo attack on the Żbik.[3]
On 11 September Wilk prepared to attack the
Sęp didn't receive the order to abort the operation until 13 September. With the submarine heavily damaged, and Hel being too dangerous to return to, the crew headed for Sweden. Ryś, also damaged, interned itself in Sweden on 18 September. Żbik followed suit on 25 September.
On 1 October one of the mines Żbik had laid sank the German
Aftermath
Orzeł docked in
Sęp surfaced outside of Stockholm on 17 September and was from then on interned.
Ryś, damaged and unable to engage German units, eventually was interned in a Swedish port from 18 September.
Wilk successfully navigated the Danish straits and arrived in the United Kingdom on 20 September. The submarine survived the war.
Żbik was low on provisions and the crew interned the submarine in a Swedish port on 25 September.
Assessment
The Germans had no intention to carry out the landings which the Worek Plan was designed to oppose. However, an operational plan failed mainly due to its pure defensive nature, as an opposite to the aggressive nature of submarines, by their characteristics not intended and prepared to fulfill defensive roles.[6] According to contemporary research, Polish submarine campaign in September 1939 failed due to misunderstanding of the nature of modern submarine warfare in high command of Polish Navy, particularly by Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Naval Command vice admiral Józef Unrug, who refused to accept any of a few offensive operational plans prepared by the Chief of Submarine Squadron commander Aleksander Mohuczy. One of them, the best known today, was an offensive operational plan codenamed Burza (Thunderstorm), that assumed independent search of targets, with free maneuvering and attacking of enemy ships and transports between Świnoujście (German: Swinemünde) and East Prussia.[6] In consideration and planning was also a plan of actions on the sea routes between harbors of Germany and the Swedish port of Luleå[6]
As a result, Polish submarines deployed along Polish coast, in proximity to their own naval base, were deprived of chances to find targets – while they were exposed there to operations of German air and light naval antisubmarine units.[6] Therefore, although no Polish submarine was sunk in this stage of war, the operation had no discernible impact on the September campaign.[7]
See also
- Battle of the Danzig Bay
- Peking Plan
Notes
- later escapedEstonian internment.
References
55°38′N 18°54′E / 55.633°N 18.900°E
- ^ a b c d Haar, Geirr H. The Gathering Storm 40-55.
- ISBN 9780811708289.
- ISBN 9780850528169.
- ^ "Defence of the Baltic – 1-25 September 1939". Archived from the original on 8 August 2019. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ^ Haar, Geirr H. The Gathering Storm p. 53
- ^ a b c d Andrzej Makowski: Dywizjon okrętów podwodnych Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej w kampanii wrześniowej. Ocena operacyjno-taktycznego użycia. „Studia z Dziejów Polskiej Historiografii Wojskowej. 13, 2012. WIH UAM w Poznaniu. ISSN 1234-2041
- ISBN 9780674068162.