Well if he turned 17 in 1944 he'd have been born in 1927, so that would make him 79 in 2006....not at all impossible.

Ducimus:
If the guy was really in the uboat service, or really a vet of WW2 in general, so long as his poltical tendencies aren't National Socialsm, id listen to what he's have to say.

I think you're missing the point - historians should record fact (which involves identifying it) without judging it. So what if he was NS - a great many people were party members as it was a popular thing, while being a member of the Communist party was required in USSR to get anywhere.

Ask about facts, about life on a u-boat etc... and you're not getting into territory where political beliefs are relevant. If they come up, side-step them. We have no right to judge a person who lived through those times, unless it can be demonstrated as a certainty that they committed crimes in a concentration camp.

If anyone talks with him and gets 'preachy' about NS, you can kiss any hope of insight goodbye.....