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German submarine U-76 (1940)

German submarine U-76 was a Type VIIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. She played a minor role in the Battle of the Atlantic, but was destroyed south of Iceland.

Design

German Type VIIB submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIA submarines. U-76 had a displacement of 753 tonnes (741 long tons) when at the surface and 857 tonnes (843 long tons) while submerged.[3] She had a total length of 66.50 m (218 ft 2 in), a pressure hull length of 48.80 m (160 ft 1 in), a beam of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.50 m (31 ft 2 in), and a draught of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by two MAN M 6 V 40/46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two BBC GG UB 720/8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[3]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.9 knots (33.2 km/h; 20.6 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph).[3] When submerged, the boat could operate for 90 nautical miles (170 km; 100 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,700 nautical miles (16,100 km; 10,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-76 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and one 2 cm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft gun The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.[3]

Service history

She was laid down at Bremer Vulkan in Bremen on 28 December 1939 as yard number 4. She was launched on 3 October 1940 and commissioned on 9 December.

U-76 was available for service from March 1941 following the completion of her working-up period and sea trials. Her commander, Oberleutnant zur See (Oblt.z.S.) Friedrich von Hippel, had previously served in U-144 during her trials until November the previous year.

War patrol

Six days into her first and only patrol on 2 April, U-76 sank the Finnish steam merchant ship SS Daphne which was on her way to Lillehammer, Norway. All twenty-two crew members were killed in the attack.[4][5]

The next day, U-76 followed the mostly British convoy SC 26 travelling from Sydney, Nova Scotia to Liverpool. The U-boat fired a torpedo at the British merchantman SS Athenic, disabling the vessel. The 40 people aboard were rescued by HMS Arbutus.[5]

The attack attracted the attention of the armed escort vessels, who pinpointed her position. Deploying depth charges from HMS Wolverine and Scarborough, U-76 was sunk. Forty-two of her forty-three-man crew survived and were captured.

Summary of raiding history

References

Notes

  1. ^ Tonnages are in gross register tons.

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIB boat U-76". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 15 February 2010.
  2. ^ a b c Kemp 1997, pp. 69–70
  3. ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–44.
  4. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "SS Daphne". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 15 February 2010.
  5. ^ a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols of U-76". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 15 February 2010.
  6. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-76". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 February 2015.

Bibliography

External links

58°35′N 20°20′W / 58.583°N 20.333°W / 58.583; -20.333