German Submarine U-454

German submarine ''U-454'' was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' during World War II.

She carried out ten patrols. She sank two ships and damaged one more.

She was sunk in the Bay of Biscay by an Australian aircraft on 1 August 1943.

Design

German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. ''U-454'' had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. She had a total length of , a pressure hull length of , a beam of , a height of , and a draught of . The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of for use while surfaced, two Siemens-Schuckert GU 343/38–8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to .

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . ''U-454'' was fitted with five torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.

Service history

The submarine was laid down on 4 July 1940 in the Deutsche Werke, Kiel as yard number 285, launched on 30 April 1941 and commissioned on 24 July under the command of ''Kapitänleutnant'' Burkhard Hackländer.

She served with the 5th U-boat Flotilla from 24 July 1941 for training and the 7th flotilla from 1 November for operations.

First patrol

''U-454''s first patrol was preceded by the short journey from Kiel in Germany to Kirkenes in Norway not far from the border with Russia. The patrol itself commenced with her departure from Kirkenes on 25 December 1941.

She sank the Soviet trawler ''RT-68 Enise'' on 17 January 1942 north of Kanin Nos. That same day, she damaged the British registered ''Harmatis'' and sank the British destroyer . The warship was hit in the stern by a torpedo, which caused her magazines to explode; the vessel sank in two minutes. The loss of life was made worse by the detonation of her depth charges and men freezing to death in the icy water.

Second and third patrols

Her second sortie terminated in Trondheim on 3 February 1942 and had covered the Barents Sea.

The submarine's third patrol was marred by the loss overboard of ''Matrosengefreiter'' Josef Kauerlos on 26 February 1942.

Fourth and fifth patrols

The boat's fourth patrol was also carried out in the Barents Sea.

Her fifth foray was toward Bear Island between 8 and 20 April 1942.

Sixth patrol

Two more short trips were carried out from Kirkenes and Bergen and finished in Kiel, from where she proceeded via the gap separating Iceland from the Faroe Islands into the Atlantic Ocean. She went as far west as Newfoundland before arriving at St. Nazaire in occupied France on 17 August 1942.

Seventh and eighth patrols

Patrol number seven started and finished in St. Nazaire and at 73 days, was the boat's longest.

Her eighth sortie was relatively uneventful; the area negotiated was west of Ireland and north of the Azores.

Ninth patrol

''U-454'' left St. Nazaire on 17 April 1943. On 10 May, she encountered a Fairey Swordfish from the escort carrier . No damage was incurred, but the U-boat was forced to dive. She returned to France, but this time to La Pallice, on 23 May.

Tenth patrol and loss

''U-454'' was sunk in the Bay of Biscay by depth charges dropped by an Australian Sunderland flying boat of No. 10 Squadron RAAF on 1 August 1943. The aircraft crashed, the U-boat was on her way to the Mediterranean when she met her fate.Paterson, Lawrence – ''U-Boats in the Mediterranean 1941-1944'', 2007, Chatham Publishing, , p. 146

Thirty-two men died; there were 14 survivors.

Wolfpacks

''U-454'' took part in 19 wolfpacks, namely:
* Ulan (25 December 1941 – 18 January 1942)
* Aufnahme (7 – 10 March 1942)
* Umhang (10 – 15 March 1942)
* Eiswolf (28 – 31 March 1942)
* Robbenschlag (8 – 14 April 1942)
* Blutrausch (15 – 19 April 1942)
* Wolf (13 – 30 July 1942)
* Pirat (30 July – 3 August 1942)
* Steinbrinck (3 – 11 August 1942)
* Panther (6 – 20 October 1942)
* Veilchen (20 October – 7 November 1942)
* Kreuzotter (9 – 18 November 1942)
* Landsknecht (20 – 28 January 1943)
* Pfeil (1 – 9 February 1943)
* Ritter (16 – 23 February 1943)
* Amsel (26 April – 3 May 1943)
* Amsel 4 (3 – 6 May 1943)
* Rhein (7 – 10 May 1943)
* Elbe 2 (10 – 14 May 1943)

Summary of raiding history

References

Notes

Citations

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{{DEFAULTSORT:U0454
German Type VIIC submarines
U-boats commissioned in 1941
U-boats sunk in 1943
U-boats sunk by Australian aircraft
U-boats sunk by depth charges
1941 ships
Ships built in Kiel
World War II submarines of Germany
Maritime incidents in August 1943