Just to clarify things about the helm's position in a VIIC, i attach some pictures I found on uboat.net which clearly show the helmsman position inside the conning tower very close to the attack periscope (as per accompanying text, the photographer was pressing hard his back against the scope). I also have found some schematics of the VIIC type showing an emergency wheel for rudder control just before the aft torpedo compartment and after the battery status panel. I wonder if the big red wheel that partially shows after the panels in the photos is this emergency wheel. May some of the experts out there could further clarify these things. Here is the link to the photos:
http://uboat.net/gallery/index.html?gallery=U995C . Best Regards.
