DeePsix U-48
10-05-05, 10:24 PM
It's August 1944. The Allies have begun to push through France. The realization that my crew and I are fighting a losing war is begining to creep up on us. We are on our 35th patrol. When I started the patrol, I got a strange message saying, "Sonar Destroyed" which was weird. We left base and headed out to our patrol area. Might as well take advantage of the new SH3 Companion log. Here are my captains logs thus far in the patrol.
Captains Log - U-48
Patrol 35
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Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 15:45:0
Leaving Brest. BdU issued new type of torpedo. We will be testing a G7es acoustic torpedo. Loaded it into stern tube.
Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 16:00:0
Set course for BE33, short patrol this time. Sonar Operator reports sonar malfunctioning. Will continue with patrol anyway.
Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 22:35:0
Radar Picks up contact heading NNE. Alter course to 012 degrees. Preparing for intercept.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 02:32:0
C2 Cargo spotted, 001 degrees off bow, heading NNE. Parallel course plotted, speed increased to 20 knots. Perfect weather, preparing to fire with deck gun. Second small merchant ship appears from behind C2 as we grow closer. Both merchants running parallel. Course altered to run parallel with them. May have to dive.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 02:45:0
Fired one torpedo at C2. Huge explosion caused it to sink instantly. It may have been carrying ammo, WO estimates it at 4000 tons. Deck gun sinks small merchant. Good practice for deck gun team. Small merchant estimated at 1500 tons. Set new heading of 297, sailing for BE33.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 04:05:0
WO spots aircraft bearing 045! Scramble Anti-Aircraft team to guns. Identified: Short Sunderland Search Plane. Crew fires and hits the planes left engine, plane begins to tilt and stutter. Flys overhead and crashes into water abot 300 meters off our stern. I let crew celebrate and pack up the guns. Allied aircover is really stretching over our waters now. I haven't seen one of our planes in the sky in months. Course altered to 280 incase plane radioed our position.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 05:23:0
Ordered crew to do AA drills. Running from bow quarters to conning tower flak guns over and over. The new 3.7cm M42 twin flak gun is extremely effective on aircraft. While drilling second search plane comes over. Guns open up on plane. Plane drops three bombs but fall far off our bow. M42 twin flak hits plane repeatedly, plane begins to loose altitude. As it turns around for another pass, its inner starboard engine ignites and plane cartwheels into water. Two planes in one patrol. Don't think we'll take our chances with a third.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 07:12:0
Warship Spotted! WO makes out a C Class Destroyer in the dawn light bearing 030, heading away due north. Order a depth of 100 meters and rig for silent running. Without sonar, we cannot range warship, but we make up for it with our new hydrophone set.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 08:30:0
Rise to periscope depth. All stop, sound check. Ship way aways, growing very faint. Periscope up to scan horizon. Nothing in sight. Surface boat and continue to BE33.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 10:12:0
Aircraft Spotted! Not taking any chances this time. Crash dive to 50 meters, hard to starboard. Explosions heard above and to our stern. Plane thinks we're on another course and is guessing. We fooled them. Continue under water for another hour before going to periscope depth and checking for contacts. Will surface shortly after.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 10:46:0
Message from BdU. Brest has been captured by the allies. My new orders are to report to Bergen in Norway. At current speed, we will not be able to make the base. I order immediate course correction to 090. We will have to travel through the english channel. I sit down and calculate speeds at which to travel to Bergen. At current speed (18 knots) we will fall short of Bergen by a couple hundered kilometers. If I reduce speed to 15 knots we will just make it to the base. I order a reduction of speed to 12 knots to give us fuel to manuever if we need too. Navigator sets course to 090. I send a reply message to the BdU
To: BdU
From: U-48
Current status: 15 Torpedoes. Two ships sunk amounting in approx. 5500 tons. New orders recived and understood. Reducing speed to conserve fuel. We sail for Bergen.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:35:0
V&W Destroyer spotted! Crash dive! We dive to 15 meters off the bottom and rig for silent running. Almost scrape hull on bottom as English Channel gets shallower and shallower. Sonar pings heard way in the distance. Did they see or hear us? I order engines to stop. Hydrophones pick up destroyer closing bearing 013. I turn the boat to face directy to the destroyer giving off as little shilouette as possible. We sit and wait.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:45:0
Contact overhead. Where are the depth charges?
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:50:0
Contact passing to our SSE. We begin to creep away slowly hoping the noise of the destroyers engines will cover our escape.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:12:0
We begin our climb to periscope depth and secure from silent running.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:18:0
Periscope up. V&W Destroyer spotted bearing 176 moving perpendicular to us! Machine guns begin pelting the water around the periscope. I order the stern tube to ready to fire the new torpedo. I bark off information for the targeting computer. Weapons officer draws up attack on the map. I give the order to fire and dive deep and quick. Assume silent running once we pass 50 meters.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:20:0
Torpedo Impact! Boat rocks in the wake of the huge explosion. Hydrophones report he hears bulkheads breaking and ammo exploding. We return to periscope depth. The burning fuel and crew are bobbing up and down in the ocean. I order a return to course and have the chief engineer raise the snorkel. We will remain underwater till nightfall.
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Will I make it to Bergen? Will U-48 make it to the end of the war? I'll finnish patrol 35 tomorrow.
~DeePsix
Commander U-48
Captains Log - U-48
Patrol 35
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Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 15:45:0
Leaving Brest. BdU issued new type of torpedo. We will be testing a G7es acoustic torpedo. Loaded it into stern tube.
Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 16:00:0
Set course for BE33, short patrol this time. Sonar Operator reports sonar malfunctioning. Will continue with patrol anyway.
Tuesday, August 22, 1944, 22:35:0
Radar Picks up contact heading NNE. Alter course to 012 degrees. Preparing for intercept.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 02:32:0
C2 Cargo spotted, 001 degrees off bow, heading NNE. Parallel course plotted, speed increased to 20 knots. Perfect weather, preparing to fire with deck gun. Second small merchant ship appears from behind C2 as we grow closer. Both merchants running parallel. Course altered to run parallel with them. May have to dive.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 02:45:0
Fired one torpedo at C2. Huge explosion caused it to sink instantly. It may have been carrying ammo, WO estimates it at 4000 tons. Deck gun sinks small merchant. Good practice for deck gun team. Small merchant estimated at 1500 tons. Set new heading of 297, sailing for BE33.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 04:05:0
WO spots aircraft bearing 045! Scramble Anti-Aircraft team to guns. Identified: Short Sunderland Search Plane. Crew fires and hits the planes left engine, plane begins to tilt and stutter. Flys overhead and crashes into water abot 300 meters off our stern. I let crew celebrate and pack up the guns. Allied aircover is really stretching over our waters now. I haven't seen one of our planes in the sky in months. Course altered to 280 incase plane radioed our position.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 05:23:0
Ordered crew to do AA drills. Running from bow quarters to conning tower flak guns over and over. The new 3.7cm M42 twin flak gun is extremely effective on aircraft. While drilling second search plane comes over. Guns open up on plane. Plane drops three bombs but fall far off our bow. M42 twin flak hits plane repeatedly, plane begins to loose altitude. As it turns around for another pass, its inner starboard engine ignites and plane cartwheels into water. Two planes in one patrol. Don't think we'll take our chances with a third.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 07:12:0
Warship Spotted! WO makes out a C Class Destroyer in the dawn light bearing 030, heading away due north. Order a depth of 100 meters and rig for silent running. Without sonar, we cannot range warship, but we make up for it with our new hydrophone set.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 08:30:0
Rise to periscope depth. All stop, sound check. Ship way aways, growing very faint. Periscope up to scan horizon. Nothing in sight. Surface boat and continue to BE33.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 10:12:0
Aircraft Spotted! Not taking any chances this time. Crash dive to 50 meters, hard to starboard. Explosions heard above and to our stern. Plane thinks we're on another course and is guessing. We fooled them. Continue under water for another hour before going to periscope depth and checking for contacts. Will surface shortly after.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 10:46:0
Message from BdU. Brest has been captured by the allies. My new orders are to report to Bergen in Norway. At current speed, we will not be able to make the base. I order immediate course correction to 090. We will have to travel through the english channel. I sit down and calculate speeds at which to travel to Bergen. At current speed (18 knots) we will fall short of Bergen by a couple hundered kilometers. If I reduce speed to 15 knots we will just make it to the base. I order a reduction of speed to 12 knots to give us fuel to manuever if we need too. Navigator sets course to 090. I send a reply message to the BdU
To: BdU
From: U-48
Current status: 15 Torpedoes. Two ships sunk amounting in approx. 5500 tons. New orders recived and understood. Reducing speed to conserve fuel. We sail for Bergen.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:35:0
V&W Destroyer spotted! Crash dive! We dive to 15 meters off the bottom and rig for silent running. Almost scrape hull on bottom as English Channel gets shallower and shallower. Sonar pings heard way in the distance. Did they see or hear us? I order engines to stop. Hydrophones pick up destroyer closing bearing 013. I turn the boat to face directy to the destroyer giving off as little shilouette as possible. We sit and wait.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:45:0
Contact overhead. Where are the depth charges?
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 14:50:0
Contact passing to our SSE. We begin to creep away slowly hoping the noise of the destroyers engines will cover our escape.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:12:0
We begin our climb to periscope depth and secure from silent running.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:18:0
Periscope up. V&W Destroyer spotted bearing 176 moving perpendicular to us! Machine guns begin pelting the water around the periscope. I order the stern tube to ready to fire the new torpedo. I bark off information for the targeting computer. Weapons officer draws up attack on the map. I give the order to fire and dive deep and quick. Assume silent running once we pass 50 meters.
Wednesday, August 23, 1944, 15:20:0
Torpedo Impact! Boat rocks in the wake of the huge explosion. Hydrophones report he hears bulkheads breaking and ammo exploding. We return to periscope depth. The burning fuel and crew are bobbing up and down in the ocean. I order a return to course and have the chief engineer raise the snorkel. We will remain underwater till nightfall.
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Will I make it to Bergen? Will U-48 make it to the end of the war? I'll finnish patrol 35 tomorrow.
~DeePsix
Commander U-48