German Submarine U-57 (1938)

German submarine ''U-57'' was a Type IIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' that served in the Second World War. She was built by Deutsche Werke in Kiel as yard number 256. Ordered on 17 June 1937, she was laid down on 14 September, launched on 3 September 1938 and commissioned on 29 December under the command of ''Oberleutnant zur See'' Claus Korth.

''U-56'' was initially part of the 5th U-boat Flotilla during her training period, until 31 December 1939, when she was reassigned to the 1st U-boat Flotilla for operations. She carried out eleven war patrols, sinking eleven ships for a total and one auxiliary warship of ; she also damaged two vessels totalling ; one ship was declared a total loss ().

Design

German Type IIC submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. ''U-57'' had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was , however. The U-boat 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 MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 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-57'' was fitted with three torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of 25.

Service history

First, second and third patrols

The boat's first patrol was brief and passed without incident. For her second sortie, she departed Kiel on 5 September 1939, but went no further than the Kattegat. Her third effort was as far as the waters separating Orkney and Shetland, but success continued to elude her.

Fourth and fifth patrols

It was more of the same for her fourth and fifth patrols, although her activity was centred more in the southern North Sea.

Sixth and seventh patrols

The submarine's luck changed for the better on her sixth foray, when she sank the ''Miranda'' about northwest of Peterhead in Scotland on 20 January 1940.

Sally number seven began with the boat's departure from Wilhelmshaven on 8 February 1940. On the 14th, she attacked the ''Gretafield'' southeast of Noss Head. The burnt-out ship, which had been abandoned, drifted ashore at Dunbeath in Caithness. She broke in two and was declared a total loss.

''U-57'' was one of six U-boats that took part in Operation Nordmark; carrying out reconnaissance in the area of the Orkney and Shetland Islands for a subsequently unsuccessful sortie by the German capital ships ''Scharnhorst'', ''Gneisenau'' and ''Admiral Hipper'' between 18 and 20 February 1940.

Eighth and ninth patrols

On her eighth patrol, also executed in the vicinity of Orkney, she sank the ''Daghestan'' east of Copinsay, Orkney, on 25 March 1940.

Patrol number nine saw the boat sweeping the area of the North Sea off the English/Scottish borders, Orkney and Shetland and all points east, with no result.

Tenth patrol

''U-57'' had moved to Bergen in Norway; , a British submarine, fired three torpedoes at the U-boat in the entrance to Kors fjord on 15 July 1940: they missed. On the 17th, she sank the ''O.A. Brodin'' northwest of Noup Head in the Orkney Islands. She also successfully attacked the ''Manipur'' northwest of Cape Wrath, (on the northern Scottish mainland). Her next victim was the ''Atos'' which went to the bottom in three minutes about north of Malin Head (in Ireland) on 3 August.

She then docked at the recently captured port of Lorient on the French Atlantic coast on 7 August.

11th patrol

Although her base had changed, the boat's area of operations had not. She damaged the ''Havildar'' northeast of Malin Head on 24 August 1940 and sank the ''Cumberland'' but was unsuccessfully attacked by British warships the next day. As sort of a farewell gift, she sank the ''Pecten'' in the evening of the 25th; the ship went down in 90 seconds.

Training duties

Returning to Germany, she was relegated to duties as a training boat and sank after a collision with the Norwegian ship ''Rona'' at Brunsbüttel (northwest of Hamburg) on 3 September 1940 with the loss of six of her 25 crew members.''The Times Atlas of the World'', p. 13 She was raised, repaired and returned to service in January 1941.

With the end of the war in sight, she was scuttled on 3 May 1945 at Kiel.

Summary of raiding history

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:U0056
1938 ships
German Type II submarines
U-boats commissioned in 1938
World War II submarines of Germany
Ships built in Kiel
U-boats sunk in 1940
U-boats sunk in collisions
Operation Regenbogen (U-boat)
Maritime incidents in September 1940
Maritime incidents in May 1945