German Midget U-boats - All Claimed Successes

Quoting Blocksdorf: Das Kommando des K-Verbandes der Kriegsmarine (Motorbuch Verlag 2003) the following is the list of all successes claimed or confirmed for all midget submarines (i.e. not manned torpedoes)operational in WWII (Hecht, Biber, Molch and Seehund).

HECHT: No sinkings claimed.

BIBER: 22 December 1944 sank freighter Alan-a-Dale, 4702 grt off Flushing. No other successes known.

MOLCH: No known or claimed sinkings.

SEEHUND: Crew names where known in brackets.
Year 1945
(1) 2 Jan. (Paulsen/Huth) sank trawler Hayburn Wyke 324 tons off Ostend.

(2) 12 Jan. (Kiep/Palaschewski) claimed sank collier 3000 grt off Kentish Shoal, confirmed by B-Dienst.

(3) 30 Jan. (Ross/Vennemann) claimed torpedoing collier off Margate, Not confirmed officially.

(4) 3 Feb. (Wolter/Minetzke) claimed sank ship 3000 grt off Great Yarmouth, no confirmation.

(5) 15 Feb. (Ziepult/Reck) damaged tanker Liseta 2628 grt off North Foreland.

(6) 22 Feb. (Gaffron/Köster) claimed torpedoing destroyer off Goodwin Sands. No confirmation of sinking.

(7) 23 Feb. (Sparbrodt/Jahnke) sank French destroyer La Combattante off East Dungeon Buoy.

(8) 22 Feb. Armed landing ship LST 364, 2750 grt, in convoy TAM 87, sunk off North Foreland.

(9) 24 Feb. Cablelayer Alert 941 grt sunk with all hands, North Foreland.

(10) 26 Feb. Freighter Rampant sunk, convoy TAC, off North Foreland.

(11) 26 Feb. Tanker Nashaba sunk, convoy TAC, off North Foreland.

(12) 11 Mar. (Huber/Eckloff) sank freighter Taber Park, 2878 grt from convoy FS 1753 off Southwold.

(13) 12 Mar. (Kugler/Schmidt) U-5064 claimed sank steamer 3000 grt, Thames Estuary.

(14) 13 Mar. (Fröhnert/Beltrami) claimed steamer sunk. Thames Estuary.

(15) (Hauschel/Hesel) U-5366 sank Liberty ship carrying munitions, off Lowestoft.

(16) (Küllmeyer/Raschke) sank steamer Newlands, 1556 grt, quadrant AN 7956.

(17) Probably: (Meyer/Schauerte - failed to return) sank British escort ML 466 off South Falls Bank.

(18) 26 Mar. Destroyer HMS Puffin declared total loss after being rammed by Seehund which exploded, Buoy 4 North Foreland. German crew picked up.

(19) 30 Mar. Coaster Jim, 833 grt sunk off Orfordness.

(20) 9 Apr. Tanker Y17 from convoy TAC 90 sunk off North Foreland, no survivors.

(21) 9 Apr. (Buttmann/Schmidt) sank freighter Samida, 7219 grt, damaged US freighter Solomon Juneau, 7116 grt, off Dungeness.

(22) 9 Apr. a Seehund sank cablelayer Monarch, 1150 grt, off Orfordness.

(23) 10 Apr. (Von Pander/Vogl) claimed sank tanker, 1000 grt.

(24) 11 Apr. Seehund damaged freighter Port Wyndham, 8580 grt from convoy UC 63B off Dungeness.

(25) 11 Apr. U5070 (Markworth/Spallek) claimed sank reefer ship, 3000-4000 grt off Dungeness, Buoy C6.

(26) 16 Apr. Tanker Goldshell from convoy TAM 40 off Ostend, sunk by Seehund or mine.

(27) 23 Apr. Last confirmed Seehund success, steamer Svere Helmersen sunk off South Falls.

(28) 29 Apr. Steamer Benjamin H Bristow sunk off Walcheren either by mine or Seehund.

Blocksdorf seems to be working only from contemporary K-Verband reports, probably much more information could be ascertained through research.

 

thank you for posting this very special listing ........... ~

E ♫

 

Does the Neger not fall into this category?

 

Wilconqr

At the head of the post I said "not manned torpedoes". If you want a similar listing of Neger and Marder successes please request.

 

Oops! Didn't see that, sorry.....

 

well since he is not requesting S.L. I will; please add to the listing

Erich ~

 

OK, will post tomorrow or Friday. Have completed translation, not often a translator says this but Blocksdorf is a really good read.

 

SUCCESSES - Neger and Marder Manned Torpedoes

Between April 1944 and April 1945, German manned torpedoes were used in twelve offensive operations. These were basically suicide missions. Of 264 individual voyages sailed, 162 torpedoes were sunk, 150 crewmen lost. The life expectancy of a pilot was therefore less than two voyages. All Neger and Marder successes were achieved in July and August 1944 before the element of surprise had been lost.

NEGER Successes
21 April 1944, Anzio. K-Flotilla 361

Oberfähnrich Voigt sank an escort vessel in the roadstead.

Oberfähnrich Potthast sank a steamer in the harbour.

Oberfernschreibmeister Berrer sank a troopship. (Subsequently he transferred to Linse flotilla 211 and sank another steamer. For these two sinkings he was awarded the Knights Cross.

Schreiberobergefreiter Walter Gerhold blew up a ready ammunition magazine below a gun battery on the molehead.

Matrose Herbert Berger, aged 17, torpedoed and destroyed a harbour installation as ordered. For this achievement he was awarded the EKII and promoted to Gefreiter.


6 July 1944 Normandy. K-Flotilla 361.
0304 hrs Schreiberobergefreiter Walter Gerhold sank the frigate HMS Trollope. For this achievement he was awarded the Knights Cross. He is one of the few surviving Kriegsmarine holders of the award.

0353 hrs A Neger sank the minesweeper HMS Magic.

c. 0430 hrs A Neger sank the minesweeper HMS Cato.

0545 hrs Gefreiter Horst Berger sank a steamer of 4,000 tons. For his two missions he was awarded the German Cross in Gold and the EKI and promoted to Oberbootsmannsmaat. He was consulted by Blocksdorf during the writing of his book in 2003.


7 July Normandy. K-Flotilla 361
0430 hrs Oberfähnrich Potthast sank the Polish destroyer Dragon.
0650 hrs A Neger sank the minesweeper HMS Pylades.
None of the 21 Negers returned to base. Four pilots, including Potthast, were made prisoner.


MARDER Successes
3 August 1944 Houlgate, Normandy. K-Flotilla 362.
Marders sank:
the naval trawler HMS Gairsay
the armed landing ship LCT 764
the Liberty ship Samtucky, 7219 tons gross
the cruiser HMS Durban (declared total loss after torpedo damage and sunk as Mulberry breakwater)
Marders damaged:
the troopship Fort Lac la Rouge
the troopship Samlong
Of 58 Marders committed in this operation, only 17 returned.


15 August 1944, Villers sur Mer, Normandy. K-Flotilla 363.
A Marder sank:
an 8000-ton ammunition ship


16 August 1944, Mulberry Harbours, Normandy. K-Flotilla 363
Marders sank:
the destroyer HMS Isis,
a landing ship, either LCF1, LCG 831 or LCG 1062, all 70 aboard lost,
the freighter Iddesleigh which had been run aground with bottom damage on 9 August (written off total loss).
A Marder damaged:
the barrage balloon ship HMS Fratton.
Of 42 Marders committed in this operation, only 17 returned.

K-Flotillas 363 and 364 (Marders) operated from the Italian Riviera in late 1944/1945 but achieved no successes for heavy losses.

END

 

Schwere Luft thank you again taking time from your busy schedule to post this very useful info from your translation of the German

Erich ~

 

Schwere Luft: Thank you for share this information with all us. Its very valuable to learn more and well about the Ubootwaffe.

 

One question about the midget submersibles that intrigated me for many years:

Can anyone of this forum explain his system of numeration?
I investigate a few means Google, and offers eixamples as U-5075, but the results are not convincent to me......




Jan.

 

Thank you Schwere Luft for extracting and publishing this list.

Sadly the source -- Blocksdorf: Das Kommando des K-Verbandes der Kriegsmarine (Motorbuch Verlag 2003) contains an error.
HMS Isis sank after it probably hit a mine at 6pm, July 20, 1944.
The wreck of the ship lies at 49° 27'N, 0° 37’W at a depth of approximately 29 metres.
It was unlikely to have been a Marder or Neger as the sinking took place:

• well outside the range of such manned torpedoes;
• during day light; and
• while the destroyer was underway on anti-submarine ASDIC patrol travelling at a speed probably of about 18 knots.

Further more on July 20, 1944, in Normandy there were no Marders in theatre.
With regards Negers there were only three or four available and the K-Verband Unit 361 was awaiting reinforcements. These did not arrive until the beginning August.