SS Black Point - Last U-boat Victim http://www.usmm.org/blackpoint.html On May 4th, 1945, U-boat Headquarters sent a signal to all U-boats ordering the end of attacks on Allied shipping effective 8 AM May 5th. At 5:40 PM on May 5, 1945, the lookout at the Coast Guard Station at Point Judith, Rhode Island noted the SS Black Point as she passed the lighthouse while carrying coal to Boston. He was about to enter his sighting in a logbook when he heard an explosion and saw the SS Black Point had stopped. A torpedo had blown off the last 50 feet of the 396 foot ship. Within one minute the water was waist deep in the engine room and Captain Charles Prior gave the order to "Abandon Ship." The Captain was the last one in the lifeboats at 6:05 PM. Within minutes the SS Black Point rolled over. At 11:43 PM the Atherton and Moberly made sonar contact at a depth of 100 feet. Depth charges brought up some air, oil, pieces of wood, and eventually life jackets. In spite of that, sonar operators saw the submarine moving at 5 knots across their path. More depth charges reduced her speed to 2 knots. In the morning two Navy blimps spotted an oil slick. The three ships dropped more depth charge and the blimps used rocket bombs in order to crack the pressure hull. At 10:45 AM the commander of the Ericsson declared the U-boat sunk. A diver was sent to check the wreck and identified her as U-853. She had holes in the bow and bodies were strewn about inside. U.S. authorities wondered why veteran Captain Helmut Fromsdorf risked an attack in shallow water, close to shore, and why he remained in the area for 90 minutes before arrival of the search boats. At no time did the German sub attempt to surface, abandon ship, or try to torpedo her attackers. It is not known whether Captain Fromsdorf received the message to cease fire. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945.
Kai, how many boats made it to Argentina? Seems I remember reading about a young (24y/o?) U-Boot commander that heard Donitz' message to surrender to allied forces but opted instead to take an extremely slow submerged course to the South American country.
Two u-boats surrendered in Argentina. U 530 (Oblt Otto Wermuth)surrendered on 10 July 1945 at Mar del Plata Argentina. U 977 (Oblt Heinz Schäffer) left Norway on 2 May 1945. After hearing of Germany's surrender, Schäffer decided to make a run for Argentina. From 10 May to 14 July, U 977 made a 66 day submerged schnorkel run (2nd longest of the war). After surfacing for a break at the Cape Verde Islands, U 977 continued on one diesel arriving on 17 August 1945 at Mar del Plata. U 977 was interned in Argentina and then eventually surrendered to the US in Boston on 13 Nov 1945. Schäffer wrote a book titled U-boat 977 chronicling this voyage to Argentina. Last Sinkings by WW2 U-boats There are actually 4 more official sinkings after the one mentioned by Kai. At 2145, 7 May 1945, U 1023 (KL Heinrich Schroeteler) sank the 335-ton Norwegian minesweeper NYMS 382 ESE of Torbay. At 2240, 7 May 1945, U 2336 (KL Emil Klusmeier) torpedoed and sank 1791-ton Norwegian steam freighter SS Sneland I and the 2878-ton British steam freighter SS Avondale Park off Dunbar. This was the last attack by a U-boat in WW2. On 18 July 1945, the 352-ton British trawler Kned was sunk presumably by a mine that was laid by U 218 (Oblt Richard Becker) exactlt a year before. But...the most recent sinking from WW2 German U-boat operations was the 70-ton fishing trawler Shinnecock I off Southhampton, Long Island, New York. After her crew had accidently hauled aboard a 1200-pound German torpedo stuck in her nets, the trawler was scuttled by US Navy ordnance specialists on 14 March 1991!!
Herr Kaleun wasn't there at least 4 sinkings along the English coast in May of 45 by XXIII boats ? maybe I am thinking in march/april ? ~E
Erich... There were only 5 losses that can be attributed to Type XXIIIs. Here are the attacks by Type XXIIIs: On 18 February 1945, U 2324 (KL Konstantin von Rappard) reported fired two torpedoes that had gyro failures at a convoy 15 miles east of Coquet Light. On 25 February 1945, U 2322 (OL Fridtjof Heckel) sank 1317-ton British freighter SS Egholm east of Berwick. On 6 April 1945, U 2321 (OL Hans-Heinrich Barschkis) sank 1405-ton British freighter Gasray off St. Abb's Head. On 15 April 1945, U 2329 (OL Heinrich Schlott) attacked a 5000-ton freighter claiming no success. (Freighter was presumably the Dutch freighter Aalsum . From this attack U 2324 (KL Konstantin von Rappard) was incorrectly given credit for sinking 1150-ton British freighter Monarch .) On 23 April 1945, U 2329 (OL Heinrich Schlott) torpedoed and damaged 7209-ton Norwegian freighter SS Sverre Helmerson off the east coast of England. Sverre Helmerson was never repaired and declare a total loss. (BdU credited U 2329 with this attack, but there is no entry in the KTB for this attack.) On 29 April 1945, U 2322 (OL Fridtjof Heckel) reported sinking a ship off Norfolk/Suffolk coast, but no confirmation. And from above, at 2240, 7 May 1945, U 2336 (KL Emil Klusmeier) torpedoed and sank 1791-ton Norwegian steam freighter SS Sneland I and the 2878-ton British steam freighter SS Avondale Park off Dunbar. This was the last attack by a U-boat in WW2.
Panzerknacker these were actually small boats if you want to call them that in comparison to the larger XXI. I should leave this up to our U-booten experten Herr Kaleun but I will give it a go until he replies....59 produced and 6 on patrols and those six were obviously successful. The were a samller form of the all elektro boats weighing in at about 230 tons. about the size of the much earlier IIA boots. The boat was slower on the surface to the XXI but almost twice as fast submerged with more than 5 times the water endurance. Only two torpedo tubes and the quarters were very cramped. When the XXIII was first in the water there were about 50 in the water before the XXI. 900 of the XXIII were under construciton before war's end but because of it's limited range and restricted armament it was not high on Dönitz's plans for increased U-boot production. ~E
Erich made a fine explanation of a Type XXIII. They were smaller elektro-boats, actually classed as coastal u-boats. As for u-boat production lines, there were actually 36 types on the drawing boards by war's end. Only the Types I, II, VII, IX, X, XIV, XXII, and XXIII saw production in the war.
