Z31.
LtzS Heinrich Riedel
The rumors about being relocated to Brest turned out to be just that. The reality was the ship was relocated to Wilhemshaven for duties in the North Sea. I breathed a sigh of relief for not having to make a dash through the English Channel. Our first trip out we were tasked with laying mines near the British coast in the Eastern approaches to the Straits of Dover. We departed Wilhelmshaven and timed our transit to arrive in The Straits at nightfall. There was another boon to us in the form of overcast skies and reduced visibility due to fog. This would make our job easier as we could use the fog as cover to avoid detection... or so we thought.
About half way through or mine laying operation we were attacked by a British Destroyer. Must have used RADAR to spot us, and my crew received their baptism by fire. They performed splendidly and we managed to sink the enemy without sustaining any damage to ourselves. We decided it was best to relocate in case our opponent had called for reinforcements, which they most assuredly had. A few hours before dawn we chanced upon another British Destroyer in the fog. He didn't spot us until it was too late! My gunners performed spectacularly and sent the enemy below the waves. I think we caught them sleeping because they barely managed to return fire. I noted that dawn was fast approaching and it was in our best interest to head to a friendly port. I had my navigator set a course for Calais where we would re-fuel and re-arm, as well as go ashore for a well earned reward to celebrate the success of our first combat actions!
Forty-eight hours later I had received orders to return to Wilhelmshaven, but not before doing a patrol of the North Sea. Our patrol route took us parallel to the NE coast of Britain, then cut across to the W Coast of Norway, then back down to German waters. We were to avoid any direct contact with the enemy, with orders to radio the location any enemy units we found. I was a little uneasy as we left the dock because I knew we would be operating on our own so close to enemy territory. I didn't like the fact that we were to rely on the Luftwaffe for support should we find ourselves in a bad situation. I prayed they would put down their ersatz coffee quickly and come to our aid if we needed their assistance.
We left Calais under cover of darkness and moved into our patrol route at high speed to avoid detection. For most of our patrol things were quiet, and I began to wonder if the Tommies were asleep. My assumption was proven wrong when one of my lookouts spotted a squadron of four Destroyers heading straight towards us. Looked like we were going to have a fight on our hands! Knowing I was in a bad situation I ordered flank speed and a course change to the south east. We sent a message to headquarters to alert them to our situation, and I hoped we would get some support from our fly boys. A hope that was to turn out to be in vain, as the response was "all assets are otherwise engaged". My attention turned to escaping from destruction, with the possibility of inflicting any damage to the enemy that I could. Once again my gunners performed splendidly, and proved that the hours they had spent firing at dummy targets had not been for nothing. We managed to sink one enemy destroyer and damage another as they chased us. After several hours of zig-zagging and running the enemy gave up the chase. We did not come out of the exchange unhurt however. The enemy scored several hits, and now I sit while my ship undergoes repairs. I must commend the crew's damage control efforts as they saved us from an early ending! I have made several recommendations for the Iron Cross, 2nd Class. I hope my superiors find my men as worthy of decoration as I do.
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