SUBSIM Radio Room Forums - View Single Post - The Magnificent Mishaps of U-1337

Weiss Pinguin · 01-26-09, 08:35 PM

November 2nd, 1939
Wilhelmshaven, Germany

I stood on the pier and proudly surveyed our gleaming Type XXI. I also watched as Oberfähnrich zur See Rolf Friedrich directed a group of sailors in painting our U-boot's insignia. Someone somewhere on our roster had decided that a Snail would be an excellent choice, because of the slow manner in which we crawled around the North Sea. I personally thought that 6 knots was a decent speed for a submerged boat.

Friedrich was a newcomer to U-1337, and had arrived the day before. I was rather disappointed that the empty bunk I used when stowing away in the crew quarters would be taken. Rolf came from a rather well off family, and had traveled to England on many occasions as a child. As such his English was somewhat better than the rest of ours, as he now demonstrated rather painfully.

"Snailboot, you see? Snailboot, Schnellboot... Nobody?" His humor was apparently lost on the lowly matrosen, who stared at each other while Rofl explained the joke.

I sighed and went back to watching the torpedomen wrestle our torpedo stores on board. Several of our acoustic torpedoes had been equipped with adjusted hydrophones, and were also slightly faster than the older model. To compensate for their fantastic new capabilities, we had had a grand total of five assigned to our boat.

After several minutes watching the crewmen nearly drown one of the precious eels, I made my way onto the conning tower and then headed below to see what trouble I could stir up. After two and a half weeks in port boredom, and with it carelessness, was beginning to set in. Just the previous day a good portion of the crew were nearly eaten alive after an accident involving a cigar and the ship's logbook.* Needless to say the captain was not pleased.

On the bright side, we were scheduled to leave the next day, if all went well. After a week of maintenance on her massive batteries and modifications to various equipment, even our U-boat seemed anxious to get underway. I stood in the middle of the control room for several more minutes, oblivious to the activity around me as I contemplated the meaning of life.

Suddenly the cook slapped me on the face. "Um Gottes willen! Don't just stand there, help me with these bloody provisions!"

Judging from the large stack of boxes he carried and the cherry-red complexion he had suddenly acquired, I decided that assisting him would probably be the healthier choice. Ach so... Back to work then.

* Said incident actually involved the 'Delete' button and a quirky mouse, but that's not important.

01-26-09, 08:35 PM	#15
Weiss Pinguin Ocean Warrior Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Auburn, Alabama Posts: 3,333 Downloads: 101 Uploads: 0	November 2nd, 1939 Wilhelmshaven, Germany I stood on the pier and proudly surveyed our gleaming Type XXI. I also watched as Oberfähnrich zur See Rolf Friedrich directed a group of sailors in painting our U-boot's insignia. Someone somewhere on our roster had decided that a Snail would be an excellent choice, because of the slow manner in which we crawled around the North Sea. I personally thought that 6 knots was a decent speed for a submerged boat. Friedrich was a newcomer to U-1337, and had arrived the day before. I was rather disappointed that the empty bunk I used when stowing away in the crew quarters would be taken. Rolf came from a rather well off family, and had traveled to England on many occasions as a child. As such his English was somewhat better than the rest of ours, as he now demonstrated rather painfully. "Snailboot, you see? Snailboot, Schnellboot... Nobody?" His humor was apparently lost on the lowly matrosen, who stared at each other while Rofl explained the joke. I sighed and went back to watching the torpedomen wrestle our torpedo stores on board. Several of our acoustic torpedoes had been equipped with adjusted hydrophones, and were also slightly faster than the older model. To compensate for their fantastic new capabilities, we had had a grand total of five assigned to our boat. After several minutes watching the crewmen nearly drown one of the precious eels, I made my way onto the conning tower and then headed below to see what trouble I could stir up. After two and a half weeks in port boredom, and with it carelessness, was beginning to set in. Just the previous day a good portion of the crew were nearly eaten alive after an accident involving a cigar and the ship's logbook.* Needless to say the captain was not pleased. On the bright side, we were scheduled to leave the next day, if all went well. After a week of maintenance on her massive batteries and modifications to various equipment, even our U-boat seemed anxious to get underway. I stood in the middle of the control room for several more minutes, oblivious to the activity around me as I contemplated the meaning of life. Suddenly the cook slapped me on the face. "Um Gottes willen! Don't just stand there, help me with these bloody provisions!" Judging from the large stack of boxes he carried and the cherry-red complexion he had suddenly acquired, I decided that assisting him would probably be the healthier choice. Ach so... Back to work then. * Said incident actually involved the 'Delete' button and a quirky mouse, but that's not important. __________________ Last edited by Weiss Pinguin; 01-27-09 at 05:21 PM.