spork542
10-21-06, 03:59 PM
Wall of text ahead. Be warned! :up:
Most of these writings were reportedly written during the patrols of U-1149, not after them. As a result, the writing style may appear hurried, and it probably was.
*Log recovered
Reinhold Sommer, 1944-45
1 January 1944. Shakedown results of U-1149 satisfying. I have been chosen to take command of this boat, a one-of-a-kind VIIC/42. All the VIIC/42s were cancelled, but work upon this one was apparently too close to completion to cancel. I'm glad about this. The boat has an incredibly thick pressure hull. I'm sure it can go very deep. I might as well not worry about that right now, though. Time is short and I must help in the war effort in any way I can. I have requested Alberich rubber coating to be put onto the boat out of fear of allied ASDIC. I have also requested for the single 20mm guns to be replaced with Flakzwilings, or dual-gun mountings. I have requested for the quadruple 20mm Flakvierling to be replaced by a dual 37mm fully-automatic cannon.
4 January 1944. Success. Alberich coating has been allowed, as have my flak gun replacements. Setting out from Bergen with snorkel up.
14 January 1944. Attack by Allied destroyer. Diving to 170m. Will keep periscope up when snorkel is up in the future. A low chance of seeing your enemy is better than no chance. I am only alive to write this because of my soundman, Stabsbootsman Floren. Had this had been a plane, I would not be alive right now. Luck was on my side. I will request Stabsbootsman Floren to be awarded the Iron Cross post-mission.
15 January 1944. Morning sun is up. Escaped from allied destroyer. Proceeding to patrol grid.
20? January 1944. Grid square reached. Scanning the seas and skies from the periscope. Nothing in sight.
21? January 1944. Nothing found. Patrolled 24 hours. Turning back. Fear more destroyers.
23 January 1944. In Bergen again. Hoping for better patrols. Leave for crew has begun. I travel to my home in Thürk.
24 February 1944. Leave has ended. Crew returns restless; wondering why. Ordered to patrol Arctic waters again. Outside of convoy and merchant traffic. Poor patrol grid; continuing preparations nonetheless. Setting out.
26 February 1944. Verdammt. Periscope not clear. Proceeding to patrol grid; turning back after 24 hours.
29 February 1944. No medals received. As expected. Shall perform better in the future. Another leave. Hope crew will be well-rested this time.
30 March 1944. Setting out. Crew morale mediocre. They expect more success from this boat. Traveling to patrol grid.
2 April 1944. A bomber forces our boat to submerge. Proceeding to grid nonetheless. If my comrades go to the bottom, so shall I.
4 April 1944. Patrolling grid. Poor weather. Trawler observed; choosing not to attack. It is a waste of a torpedo and too difficult to hit, especially in this gale.
11 April 1944. Returned to base. More is somehow expected of me; I do what is ordered. I go to the patrol grid. I am never given special orders, so why should I stay at sea for long?
10 June 1944. Extended leave has finished. Crew returns well-rested. Setting out. Anticipating good patrol.
18 June 1944. Spotted Norwegian small coastal vessel. Crew is anxious for a kill. Sighing, I order a torpedo fired. Torpedo explodes underneath keel; the Norwegian never had a chance.
20 June 1944. Returning with one kill under our belts. A minor kill, yes, but a kill it is indeed.
23 July 1944. Received command advice. Reportedly it’s much safer to use electric engines than to have the snorkel up all the time. Two close calls is enough; I heed the advice.
31 August 1944. Returned to base; no success, but I am still alive. Going to leave. Hoping for a birthday celebration.
31 October 1944. Brilliant celebration for my birthday. Crew morale is high on this “Halloween.” Leaving port, expecting an excellent patrol. Will patrol BE64, excellent since it is not near the Arctic Sea.
1 November 1944. Outside Bergenfjord. Spotted Norwegian tug. Submerged and hit with two torpedoes. Tug sinks. 1000 tons. Continuing submerged.
~8 December 1944? Attempted attack on convoy. Prepared to fire two TIII FaT II torpedoes at a troop transport. Firing solution interrupted by British destroyer. Forced to 190 meters. Wiggled around for a bit, depth charge attacks for 30 minutes. Escaped undamaged.
13 December 1944, ~12 AM. Soundman reports two merchants approaching. Praise the Lord! This is a day for celebration. Going to periscope depth, taking periscope up. Verdammt… Heavy fog. I will have to find the contacts based on hydrophone reports.
12:18 AM. Liberty cargo in sight 500 meters to the starboard bow. Angle on bow almost 90°. Silhouette of smaller partner in sight aft of the Liberty. Firing two TIII torpedoes at Liberty cargo.
12:19 AM. Two hits, Liberty has been set aflame. Partner identified as tramp steamer. Searchlights. Submergence to 20 meters to avoid searchlights. Stalking steamer via hydrophones.
12:20 AM. Soundman reports the sound of a ship breaking up. It must be the Liberty.
12:25 AM. Favorable firing position reached. Firing one TIII torpedo at steamer. Hit, steamer appears to be sinking. Undetected as of yet. Waiting for ship to sink.
1:07 AM. Brought up periscope to check. Ship still afloat to the port bow. Maneuvering into ~90° angle on bow
1:09 AM. One TI coup-de-grâce. Missed. Torpedo passes ahead of steamer. Firing a second, TIII FaT II coup-de-grâce, as there are no other torpedoes available that are suitable for firing.
1:10 AM. Steamer sinks. Leaving area.
14 December 1944. No other major issues during patrol. Forced to submerge by one destroyer; no damage nor apparent detection.
5 January 1945. Returned to Bergen. Received the Iron Cross 1st Class. Excellent.
8 February 1945. Transferring to 33rd Flotilla, based in Flensburg. Our boat is being given to a new commander for transit. Hoping he can get U-1149 to Flensburg safely. The boat is due for an overhaul as well; it will receive sonar, new radar, and a U-Flak conning tower. I can’t wait…
2 March 1945. Departing Flensburg. Morale is high due to the quick overhaul.
11:28 AM. Verdammt. Squadron of bombers approaching base. Diving. Result: no damage to U-Boat.
9 April 1945. Found hunter-killer group. Fired acoustic torpedo at an escort. Dud. Continuing undetected.
12 April 1945. Hit a “Hunt” with acoustic torpedo. Fired a coup-de-grâce at vessel. Capsizes.
13 April 1945. Hit a “River” with acoustic torpedo. Fired coup-de-grâce. Brilliant explosion; ship’s back is broken.
8 May 1945. The war is over. Surfacing with black flag. Hoping we will not be attacked.
12 May 1945. Entered Lerwick. Surrender denied; heading to Scapa.
14 May 1945. Surrendered inside Scapa. Entered through the west; spotlights were on us the entire time. The Tommies were probably suspicious of us entering Scapa, even after the war had ended. Understandable, with Prien’s exploits. Surrender accepted. News is brought that HMS Meynell and HMCS Teme went missing, presumed lost with all hands last month. I mentioned that I thought I had sunken two destroyers last month; it appears both the missing destroyers were hit by us. I apologize; I had expected there to have been survivors. News is also brought that I was due to receive the Ritterkreuz posthumously. High Command thought we had been most definitely sunk. We were forced radio silence for the entire month of May because of British escort activity. On a better note, I reviewed my claimed hits with the British: I sank two unknown Norwegian vessels, the Liberty cargo ship Augustus P. Loring, the steamer Chandeleur, HMS Meynell, and HMCS Teme. I’ve received information about this surrender. 93% of our boats were sunk. It’s incredible…
http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/9199/30zh0.jpg
PERSONNEL FILE
Name:REINHOLD SOMMER
Date of Birth: 18SEP15
Place of Birth: THÜRK
Date of Intake: 01APR38 (CREW 38)
Promotions
07JAN39 SEEKADETT
01JAN40 FÄHNRICH Z. S.
01NOV41 OBERFÄHNRICH Z. S.
01APR42 LEUTNANT Z. S.
Medals
20JUN44 DEUTSCHES KREUZ
31AUG44 EISERNES KREUZ ZWEITER KLASSE
05JAN45 EISERNES KREUZ ERSTER KLASSE
14MAY45 RITTERKREUZ
Badges
29FEB44 U-BOOT-FRONTSPANGE
05JAN45 U-BOOTABZEICHEN
U-Bootwaffe Postings
01MAY43 1st Flotilla (Commander training)
04JAN44 11th Flotilla (6 patrols)
02MAR45 33rd Flotilla (1 patrols)
14MAY45 5th Flotilla (Training)
U-Boat Commands
04JAN44 U-1149, Type VIIC/42 (7 patrols)
14MAY45 NIL
Patrol Dates Ships Sunk
(Merchant/Warship) Tonnage
(Merchant/Warship) Comments
1 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_0.html) 04JAN44 - 23JAN44 (20 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
2 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_1.html) 24FEB44 - 29FEB44 (6 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
3 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_2.html) 30MAR44 - 09APR44 (11 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
4 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_3.html) 10JUN44 - 20JUN44 (11 days) 1 (1/0) 112 (112/0)
5 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_4.html) 23JUL44 - 31AUG44 (40 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
6 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_5.html) 31OCT44 - 05JAN45 (67 days) 3 (3/0) 11834 (11834/0)
7 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_6.html) 02MAR45 - 14MAY45 (74 days) 2 (0/2) 2350 (0/2350)
TOTALS: 7 patrols (229 days) 6 (4/2) 14296 (11946/2350) (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Aces.html)
0 enemy planes downed
0 crew lost
Summary
In 1955 Reinhold Sommer joined the Bundesmarine (postwar German navy), becoming commander of the 1. Geleitgeschwader (1st Escort Squadron) in 1957. In November 1958 he became commander of the Amphibische Streitkräfte (Amphibian Forces). Starting in 1962 he served in several staff positions before becoming Chief of Staff of the NATO Command COMNAVBALTAP in May 1965, a position he held for four years. He retired in September 1970 with a rank of Flotillenadmiral. During a vacation in the summer of 1998 he died in hospital in Bavaria after an accident.
Most of these writings were reportedly written during the patrols of U-1149, not after them. As a result, the writing style may appear hurried, and it probably was.
*Log recovered
Reinhold Sommer, 1944-45
1 January 1944. Shakedown results of U-1149 satisfying. I have been chosen to take command of this boat, a one-of-a-kind VIIC/42. All the VIIC/42s were cancelled, but work upon this one was apparently too close to completion to cancel. I'm glad about this. The boat has an incredibly thick pressure hull. I'm sure it can go very deep. I might as well not worry about that right now, though. Time is short and I must help in the war effort in any way I can. I have requested Alberich rubber coating to be put onto the boat out of fear of allied ASDIC. I have also requested for the single 20mm guns to be replaced with Flakzwilings, or dual-gun mountings. I have requested for the quadruple 20mm Flakvierling to be replaced by a dual 37mm fully-automatic cannon.
4 January 1944. Success. Alberich coating has been allowed, as have my flak gun replacements. Setting out from Bergen with snorkel up.
14 January 1944. Attack by Allied destroyer. Diving to 170m. Will keep periscope up when snorkel is up in the future. A low chance of seeing your enemy is better than no chance. I am only alive to write this because of my soundman, Stabsbootsman Floren. Had this had been a plane, I would not be alive right now. Luck was on my side. I will request Stabsbootsman Floren to be awarded the Iron Cross post-mission.
15 January 1944. Morning sun is up. Escaped from allied destroyer. Proceeding to patrol grid.
20? January 1944. Grid square reached. Scanning the seas and skies from the periscope. Nothing in sight.
21? January 1944. Nothing found. Patrolled 24 hours. Turning back. Fear more destroyers.
23 January 1944. In Bergen again. Hoping for better patrols. Leave for crew has begun. I travel to my home in Thürk.
24 February 1944. Leave has ended. Crew returns restless; wondering why. Ordered to patrol Arctic waters again. Outside of convoy and merchant traffic. Poor patrol grid; continuing preparations nonetheless. Setting out.
26 February 1944. Verdammt. Periscope not clear. Proceeding to patrol grid; turning back after 24 hours.
29 February 1944. No medals received. As expected. Shall perform better in the future. Another leave. Hope crew will be well-rested this time.
30 March 1944. Setting out. Crew morale mediocre. They expect more success from this boat. Traveling to patrol grid.
2 April 1944. A bomber forces our boat to submerge. Proceeding to grid nonetheless. If my comrades go to the bottom, so shall I.
4 April 1944. Patrolling grid. Poor weather. Trawler observed; choosing not to attack. It is a waste of a torpedo and too difficult to hit, especially in this gale.
11 April 1944. Returned to base. More is somehow expected of me; I do what is ordered. I go to the patrol grid. I am never given special orders, so why should I stay at sea for long?
10 June 1944. Extended leave has finished. Crew returns well-rested. Setting out. Anticipating good patrol.
18 June 1944. Spotted Norwegian small coastal vessel. Crew is anxious for a kill. Sighing, I order a torpedo fired. Torpedo explodes underneath keel; the Norwegian never had a chance.
20 June 1944. Returning with one kill under our belts. A minor kill, yes, but a kill it is indeed.
23 July 1944. Received command advice. Reportedly it’s much safer to use electric engines than to have the snorkel up all the time. Two close calls is enough; I heed the advice.
31 August 1944. Returned to base; no success, but I am still alive. Going to leave. Hoping for a birthday celebration.
31 October 1944. Brilliant celebration for my birthday. Crew morale is high on this “Halloween.” Leaving port, expecting an excellent patrol. Will patrol BE64, excellent since it is not near the Arctic Sea.
1 November 1944. Outside Bergenfjord. Spotted Norwegian tug. Submerged and hit with two torpedoes. Tug sinks. 1000 tons. Continuing submerged.
~8 December 1944? Attempted attack on convoy. Prepared to fire two TIII FaT II torpedoes at a troop transport. Firing solution interrupted by British destroyer. Forced to 190 meters. Wiggled around for a bit, depth charge attacks for 30 minutes. Escaped undamaged.
13 December 1944, ~12 AM. Soundman reports two merchants approaching. Praise the Lord! This is a day for celebration. Going to periscope depth, taking periscope up. Verdammt… Heavy fog. I will have to find the contacts based on hydrophone reports.
12:18 AM. Liberty cargo in sight 500 meters to the starboard bow. Angle on bow almost 90°. Silhouette of smaller partner in sight aft of the Liberty. Firing two TIII torpedoes at Liberty cargo.
12:19 AM. Two hits, Liberty has been set aflame. Partner identified as tramp steamer. Searchlights. Submergence to 20 meters to avoid searchlights. Stalking steamer via hydrophones.
12:20 AM. Soundman reports the sound of a ship breaking up. It must be the Liberty.
12:25 AM. Favorable firing position reached. Firing one TIII torpedo at steamer. Hit, steamer appears to be sinking. Undetected as of yet. Waiting for ship to sink.
1:07 AM. Brought up periscope to check. Ship still afloat to the port bow. Maneuvering into ~90° angle on bow
1:09 AM. One TI coup-de-grâce. Missed. Torpedo passes ahead of steamer. Firing a second, TIII FaT II coup-de-grâce, as there are no other torpedoes available that are suitable for firing.
1:10 AM. Steamer sinks. Leaving area.
14 December 1944. No other major issues during patrol. Forced to submerge by one destroyer; no damage nor apparent detection.
5 January 1945. Returned to Bergen. Received the Iron Cross 1st Class. Excellent.
8 February 1945. Transferring to 33rd Flotilla, based in Flensburg. Our boat is being given to a new commander for transit. Hoping he can get U-1149 to Flensburg safely. The boat is due for an overhaul as well; it will receive sonar, new radar, and a U-Flak conning tower. I can’t wait…
2 March 1945. Departing Flensburg. Morale is high due to the quick overhaul.
11:28 AM. Verdammt. Squadron of bombers approaching base. Diving. Result: no damage to U-Boat.
9 April 1945. Found hunter-killer group. Fired acoustic torpedo at an escort. Dud. Continuing undetected.
12 April 1945. Hit a “Hunt” with acoustic torpedo. Fired a coup-de-grâce at vessel. Capsizes.
13 April 1945. Hit a “River” with acoustic torpedo. Fired coup-de-grâce. Brilliant explosion; ship’s back is broken.
8 May 1945. The war is over. Surfacing with black flag. Hoping we will not be attacked.
12 May 1945. Entered Lerwick. Surrender denied; heading to Scapa.
14 May 1945. Surrendered inside Scapa. Entered through the west; spotlights were on us the entire time. The Tommies were probably suspicious of us entering Scapa, even after the war had ended. Understandable, with Prien’s exploits. Surrender accepted. News is brought that HMS Meynell and HMCS Teme went missing, presumed lost with all hands last month. I mentioned that I thought I had sunken two destroyers last month; it appears both the missing destroyers were hit by us. I apologize; I had expected there to have been survivors. News is also brought that I was due to receive the Ritterkreuz posthumously. High Command thought we had been most definitely sunk. We were forced radio silence for the entire month of May because of British escort activity. On a better note, I reviewed my claimed hits with the British: I sank two unknown Norwegian vessels, the Liberty cargo ship Augustus P. Loring, the steamer Chandeleur, HMS Meynell, and HMCS Teme. I’ve received information about this surrender. 93% of our boats were sunk. It’s incredible…
http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/9199/30zh0.jpg
PERSONNEL FILE
Name:REINHOLD SOMMER
Date of Birth: 18SEP15
Place of Birth: THÜRK
Date of Intake: 01APR38 (CREW 38)
Promotions
07JAN39 SEEKADETT
01JAN40 FÄHNRICH Z. S.
01NOV41 OBERFÄHNRICH Z. S.
01APR42 LEUTNANT Z. S.
Medals
20JUN44 DEUTSCHES KREUZ
31AUG44 EISERNES KREUZ ZWEITER KLASSE
05JAN45 EISERNES KREUZ ERSTER KLASSE
14MAY45 RITTERKREUZ
Badges
29FEB44 U-BOOT-FRONTSPANGE
05JAN45 U-BOOTABZEICHEN
U-Bootwaffe Postings
01MAY43 1st Flotilla (Commander training)
04JAN44 11th Flotilla (6 patrols)
02MAR45 33rd Flotilla (1 patrols)
14MAY45 5th Flotilla (Training)
U-Boat Commands
04JAN44 U-1149, Type VIIC/42 (7 patrols)
14MAY45 NIL
Patrol Dates Ships Sunk
(Merchant/Warship) Tonnage
(Merchant/Warship) Comments
1 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_0.html) 04JAN44 - 23JAN44 (20 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
2 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_1.html) 24FEB44 - 29FEB44 (6 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
3 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_2.html) 30MAR44 - 09APR44 (11 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
4 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_3.html) 10JUN44 - 20JUN44 (11 days) 1 (1/0) 112 (112/0)
5 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_4.html) 23JUL44 - 31AUG44 (40 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
6 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_5.html) 31OCT44 - 05JAN45 (67 days) 3 (3/0) 11834 (11834/0)
7 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Log_6.html) 02MAR45 - 14MAY45 (74 days) 2 (0/2) 2350 (0/2350)
TOTALS: 7 patrols (229 days) 6 (4/2) 14296 (11946/2350) (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/Personnel%20Files/Reinhold%20Sommer/Aces.html)
0 enemy planes downed
0 crew lost
Summary
In 1955 Reinhold Sommer joined the Bundesmarine (postwar German navy), becoming commander of the 1. Geleitgeschwader (1st Escort Squadron) in 1957. In November 1958 he became commander of the Amphibische Streitkräfte (Amphibian Forces). Starting in 1962 he served in several staff positions before becoming Chief of Staff of the NATO Command COMNAVBALTAP in May 1965, a position he held for four years. He retired in September 1970 with a rank of Flotillenadmiral. During a vacation in the summer of 1998 he died in hospital in Bavaria after an accident.