The Battle in the Baltic Sea, 1944-1945.

*bumped for Erich*

 

Gottfried, I am still pursueing this if my hands will let me. Much info on my office floor. Info on the Z-booten and Schnellbotten as well as M and T-boots. Though it is often seen that the Capital ships and heavy Crusiers indeed participated in crucial shore bombardments, it was the small boats that helped with flak details and search/destroy of laid mines as well as depth-charging suspected areas of Soviet submarine activity.
Also towards the bitter end even the smallest boats including fishing boats were there to rescue the many trapped civilians.

more to come

 

3 books on their way from Germany covering the Z-boots, I.Schnellbootflottille and Z-38 in particular and it's role serving in the Batlic.

comments to come

~E

 

Yes, the German Navy had radar on their surface ships. Both the Leipzig and Prinz Eugen carried Seetakt and Hohenwhel (sp) sets on board. The reason they were not using their sets was that the Kriegsmarine's doctrine on radar was not to rotate and radiate in a search mode like the Allies did. It was felt that doing so was more dangerous with regard to being detected to use radar continiously than to only use it for fire control once a ship was already spotted. Instead, KM ships were to rely on passive detection and visual spotting to locate enemy vessels and switch on their radars for gunnery purposes after that.

 

this maybe of help or confusion ?

http://www.warships1.com/WRGER_03.htm

 

going to try this again as the site did not accept all the link I posted.

www.warships1.com/Weapons/WRGER_03.htm

see ya !

~E

 

*bumped for Erich*

By the way, I swear to go on posting matériel.

 

Fried thanks ! am getting info soon on the Z-Friedrich Inn and the Schwerzer Kreuzer Lützow sopn during 1945..........

 

Check out the latest National Geographic. It has the Steuben on cover. Lost in Baltic 45. Short blip about Russian submariner who sunk it. He has a lone patrol record of 40.000 tons. 4500 people lost on Steuben. I think the article said. Divers took some good photos etc.

 

Chrome thanks I'll have to take a look if I can find a copy somewhere........

 

I know this thread is old but it is absolutely fascinating. The Ships of the Kriegsmarine played a vital role in helping ground forces during the early months of 1945. And the story about the Leipzig and the Prinz Eugen was very interesting, Friedirch and Erich. Well done!!!

 

Interesting thread.

I would particularly like to hear anyone with details on the shore bombardment / fire support mission carried out by PRINZ EUGEN 21 and 22 November 1944 off Swöbe. Timing-wise, it seems this fire support was to break up the Soviet attck and give the German forces on the beach time to disengage and move across the Irben Strasse / Irben Straits to the Latvian mainland / Kurland. Does anyone have details on the ship's operations and the Soviet air attacks?

Another detail I would like to see come to light are the movements / operations of the German Navy's supply ship / Trossschiff FRANKEN. From commissioning in late 1944 it was active in the Baltic, evidentally especially in the Gulf of Danzig, supporting various warships, until she was sunk by Soviet aircraft in April 1945. Can anyone supply further details?

USS GOLD STAR