Английская Википедия:German submarine U-238

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German submarine U-238 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service in the Second World War. She was laid down on 21 April 1942, by Germaniawerft of Kiel as yard number 668, launched on 7 January 1943 and commissioned on 20 February, with Oberleutnant zur See Horst Hepp in command. Hepp commanded her for her entire career, receiving promotion to Kapitänleutnant in the process.

Design

German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-238 had a displacement of Шаблон:Convert when at the surface and Шаблон:Convert while submerged.Шаблон:Sfn She had a total length of Шаблон:Convert, a pressure hull length of Шаблон:Convert, a beam of Шаблон:Convert, a height of Шаблон:Convert, and a draught of Шаблон:Convert. The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of Шаблон:Convert for use while surfaced, two AEG GU 460/8–27 double-acting electric motors producing a total of Шаблон:Convert for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two Шаблон:Convert propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of Шаблон:Convert and a maximum submerged speed of Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn When submerged, the boat could operate for Шаблон:Convert at Шаблон:Convert; when surfaced, she could travel Шаблон:Convert at Шаблон:Convert. U-238 was fitted with five Шаблон:Convert torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one [[8.8 cm SK C/35 naval gun|Шаблон:Convert SK C/35 naval gun]], 220 rounds, and two twin [[2 cm FlaK 30|Шаблон:Convert C/30]] anti-aircraft guns. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.Шаблон:Sfn

Service history

U-238 was a member of four wolfpacks; she was a successful, if short lived boat, sinking four freighters and damaging another during her operations against Allied convoys in the Battle of the Atlantic. She had the misfortune, however, of serving at the turning point of the war, when Allied countermeasures were taking a heavy toll on the U-boat force. She conducted three war patrols, beginning in September 1943, following her warm-up trials in the Baltic Sea.

War Patrols

U-238Шаблон:'s first patrol was conducted from Trondheim in Norway as part of the 1st U-boat Flotilla, and entailed the submarine exiting the North Sea via the Denmark Strait and operating against Allied shipping in the so-called "air cover gap" in the Central Atlantic, where Allied aircraft had insufficient range to effectively operate against German U-boats. This first patrol was by far the most successful, as on 20 September 1943, the boat attacked a large convoy, sinking one 7,176 GRT cargo ship and damaging another. This was followed by three more victims on 23 September, when two Norwegian ships and a British freighter were sunk from the same convoy.

U-238Шаблон:'s second patrol was less successful. Two weeks after leaving Brest, on the French Atlantic coast, she was attacked by a Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bomber from the escort carrier Шаблон:USS, whose rockets killed two crew members and wounded five more, prompting the submarine to return to Brest with severe damage, which put her out of service for a month. It was during this patrol that the submarine captured two British Royal Air Force personnel whose Vickers Wellington bomber had been shot down by Шаблон:GS.

U-238Шаблон:'s third and last patrol began in January 1944, and lasted a fruitless month, until on 9 February, she was caught by convoy escorts of SL-147 and MKS-38 Шаблон:Convert off Cape Clear. She counter-attacked, unsuccessfully, and was sunk by the sloops Шаблон:HMS, Шаблон:HMS and Шаблон:HMS. There were no survivors.Шаблон:Sfn

Wolfpacks

U-238 took part in four wolfpacks, namely:

  • Leuthen (15 – 24 September 1943)
  • Schill 2 (17 – 22 November 1943)
  • Weddigen (22 November – 1 December 1943)
  • Igel 2 (4 – 9 February 1944)

Summary of raiding history

Date Ship Name Nationality Tonnage
(GRT)
Fate[1]
20 September 1943 Frederick Douglass Шаблон:Flag 7,176 Damaged
20 September 1943 Theodore Dwight Weld Шаблон:Flag 7,176 Sunk
23 September 1943 Fort Jemseg Шаблон:Flag 7,134 Sunk
23 September 1943 Oregon Express Шаблон:Flag 3,642 Sunk
23 September 1943 Skjelbred Шаблон:Flag 5,096 Sunk

References

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Bibliography

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External links

Шаблон:German Type VII submarines Шаблон:February 1944 shipwrecks