| Built By: | Cammell Laird (Mersey) |
| Build Group: | S3 |
| Fate: | Scrapped Grays 4th July 1950 |
| 1944: | Lieutenant | Anthony Arthur Catlow | |
| 1945: | Lieutenant | Richard Thomas Sallis | DSC |
1944: Indian Ocean
1945: Indian Ocean
1945: Pacific
| 27-10-1942 | Laid Down |
| 20-07-1943 | Launched |
| 25-10-1943 | Completed |
| 09-07-1944 | HMS Spirit claims to have damaged a small Japanese oiler with gunfire to the north of Sumatra. |
| 14-09-1944 | HMS Spirit sinks three Siamese sailing vessels with gunfire off the west coast of Siam. |
| 19-09-1944 | HMS Spirit sinks a Siamese sailing vessel with gunfire north of Sumatra. |
| 22-01-1945 | HMS Spirit sinks the Japanese Ryushin Maru with gunfire in the Java Sea. She also sinks another enemy vessel. |
| 14-03-1945 | HMS Spirit sinks the Japanese coaster Ryuho Maru with gunfire off Massalambo Island in the Java Sea. |
| Length overall | 217 ft |
| Beam | 23 ft 6 inch |
| Depth | 11 ft |
| Diving Depth | 350 ft |
| Speed | Surface 15 knots (design) |
| Surface 14.75 knots (service) | |
| Submerged 10 knots (design) | |
| Submerged 9 knots (service) | |
| No. of shafts | 2 |
| Endurance | Surface: 6000 miles at 10 knots (design) |
| Armament (i) | 6 x 21 inch bow tubes |
| 1 21 inch stern tube | |
| (13 torpedoes carried) | |
| 1 x 3 inch gun | |
| 3 x 0.303 inch machine-guns | |
| 1 x 20mm Oerlikon cannon | |
| Complement | 5 Officers and 43 Ratings |
| Note | The armament of submarines of this class varied considerably. For example: 23 boats were fitted with the six bow tubes only; 18 vessels, intended to operate in the Far East, had their 3 inch guns replaced by 4 inch guns; whilst, in some boats, the Oerlikon cannon replaced, rather than supplemented, the three machine-guns. |
X 1 |
|
| Class: | 1921 - 1925: X1 Class |
| Built By: | |
| Build Group: | X1 |
|
Fate: Laid up and scrapped in 12/12/1936 |
|
Otto Kretschmer was only in combat from September 1939 until March 1941 but was Germany's highest-scoring U-boat commander sinking 47 ships totalling 274,333 tons. This definitive work details his personal story and the political backdrop from his earliest days.
Aged 17 he spent 8 months studying literature at Exeter University where he learned to speak English fluently. The following year, on 1 April 1930, he enlisted as an officer candidate in the Weimar Republic's small navy.
After completing his officer training and time on the training ship Niobe he served aboard the light cruiser Emden. In December 1934 he was transferred to the light cruiser K ln, then in January 1936 made the move to the fledgling U-boat service.
His first operational posting was to the 2nd U-Flotilla s Type VII U35 where he almost being drowned during training in the Baltic Sea! During the Spanish Civil War, he was involved in several patrols as part of the international non-intervention force. He was finally given command of U23, a post which he held until April 1940.
He had already sunk 8 ships including the destroyer HMS Daring east of Pentland Firth on 18 February 1940. He demonstrated a cool approach to combat: his mantra one torpedo for one ship proved that the best way for his boat to succeed against a convoy was to remain surfaced as much as possible, penetrating the convoy and using the boats high speed and small silhouette to avoid retaliation.
His nickname Silent Otto referred to his ability to remain undetected and his reluctance to provide the regular radio reports required by Donitz: he had guessed that the Allies had broken German codes. Alongside his military skill was a character that remained rooted in the traditions of the Prussian military. While other U-boat commanders and crew returned from patrol with beards and a relaxed demeanour, U99 always returned with all men clean-shaven and paraded on deck.
In the Bowmanville POW camp he organised a 2-way radio link to the German Naval High Command and planned a mass breakout with a U-boat rendezvous arranged. He was also instrumental in the Battle of Bowmanville that lasted for 3 days in October 1942. His antics behind the wire became the inspiration for the 1970 film The McKenzie Break.
Postwar he answered the call for volunteers upon the establishment of the Bundesmarine. He retired from the rank of Flotillenadmiral in 1970. He suffered a fall celebrating his 50th wedding anniversary aboard a boat and died two days later at the age of 86.
20 pages added or updated in the last 1 month
Please help to maintain this site by reporting any Errors, Broken Links, Information or Site Issues on this page using this button
If you find this site useful, please consider supporting my work with a small Donation.
Please Note: Donations made using this option go directly to the site owner and not to the Submariners Association.
Thankyou for your support.
| Length overall | 217 ft |
| Beam | 23 ft 6 inch |
| Depth | 11 ft |
| Diving Depth | 350 ft |
| Speed | Surface 15 knots (design) |
| Surface 14.75 knots (service) | |
| Submerged 10 knots (design) | |
| Submerged 9 knots (service) | |
| No. of shafts | 2 |
| Endurance | Surface: 6000 miles at 10 knots (design) |
| Armament (i) | 6 x 21 inch bow tubes |
| 1 21 inch stern tube | |
| (13 torpedoes carried) | |
| 1 x 3 inch gun | |
| 3 x 0.303 inch machine-guns | |
| 1 x 20mm Oerlikon cannon | |
| Complement | 5 Officers and 43 Ratings |
| Note | The armament of submarines of this class varied considerably. For example: 23 boats were fitted with the six bow tubes only; 18 vessels, intended to operate in the Far East, had their 3 inch guns replaced by 4 inch guns; whilst, in some boats, the Oerlikon cannon replaced, rather than supplemented, the three machine-guns. |
X 1 |
|
| Class: | 1921 - 1925: X1 Class |
| Built By: | |
| Build Group: | X1 |
|
Fate: Laid up and scrapped in 12/12/1936 |
|
Otto Kretschmer was only in combat from September 1939 until March 1941 but was Germany's highest-scoring U-boat commander sinking 47 ships totalling 274,333 tons. This definitive work details his personal story and the political backdrop from his earliest days.
Aged 17 he spent 8 months studying literature at Exeter University where he learned to speak English fluently. The following year, on 1 April 1930, he enlisted as an officer candidate in the Weimar Republic's small navy.
After completing his officer training and time on the training ship Niobe he served aboard the light cruiser Emden. In December 1934 he was transferred to the light cruiser K ln, then in January 1936 made the move to the fledgling U-boat service.
His first operational posting was to the 2nd U-Flotilla s Type VII U35 where he almost being drowned during training in the Baltic Sea! During the Spanish Civil War, he was involved in several patrols as part of the international non-intervention force. He was finally given command of U23, a post which he held until April 1940.
He had already sunk 8 ships including the destroyer HMS Daring east of Pentland Firth on 18 February 1940. He demonstrated a cool approach to combat: his mantra one torpedo for one ship proved that the best way for his boat to succeed against a convoy was to remain surfaced as much as possible, penetrating the convoy and using the boats high speed and small silhouette to avoid retaliation.
His nickname Silent Otto referred to his ability to remain undetected and his reluctance to provide the regular radio reports required by Donitz: he had guessed that the Allies had broken German codes. Alongside his military skill was a character that remained rooted in the traditions of the Prussian military. While other U-boat commanders and crew returned from patrol with beards and a relaxed demeanour, U99 always returned with all men clean-shaven and paraded on deck.
In the Bowmanville POW camp he organised a 2-way radio link to the German Naval High Command and planned a mass breakout with a U-boat rendezvous arranged. He was also instrumental in the Battle of Bowmanville that lasted for 3 days in October 1942. His antics behind the wire became the inspiration for the 1970 film The McKenzie Break.
Postwar he answered the call for volunteers upon the establishment of the Bundesmarine. He retired from the rank of Flotillenadmiral in 1970. He suffered a fall celebrating his 50th wedding anniversary aboard a boat and died two days later at the age of 86.
20 pages added or updated in the last 1 month
Please help to maintain this site by reporting any Errors, Broken Links, Information or Site Issues on this page using this button
If you find this site useful, please consider supporting my work with a small Donation.
Please Note: Donations made using this option go directly to the site owner and not to the Submariners Association.
Thankyou for your support.
This form is for you to comment on, or add additional information to this page. Any questions will be deleted. If you wish to ask a question contact the Branch or the Webmaster using the Contact Us page or ask your question on our Facebook Page