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Kilhmar · 01-27-08, 11:57 AM

A cute anectodal:

"After a fruitless search pursuing two fading sonar contacts in the mid-South Atlantic narrows, Tripoli and her group returned to Recife on 11 September for provisioning and fuelling. Underway again two days later, TG 47.7 headed out to conduct another search—this time along the estimated track of two U-boats slated to rendezvous for refuelling. One of the target U-boats was U-1062, a "Milch Cow" bound from Penang, Malaya, with a cargo of valuable petroleum products for the German war effort. Ordered to fuel U-219, outward-bound for the Far East, U-1062 prepared to rendezvous with her smaller sister boat in the South Atlantic narrows—directly in the path of the Tripoli escort group.

Passing to the westward of the Cape Verdes, TG 47.7 made rendezvous with the Mission Bay (CVE-59) escort group to conduct a joint hunter-killer operation against the two enemy boats. Round-the-clock searches by prowling, radar-equipped Avengers continued with unrelaxed vigilance until 40 minutes after sunset on 28 September, when a TBF piloted by Lt. William R. Gillespie, USNR, reported a definite contact with the surfaced U-219 only 11 miles from the enemy's estimated track.

Gillespie went in to conduct a low-level rocket attack, but heavy flak slapped the intrepid airman's plane and crew into the sea. Another Avenger, drawn to the battle, braved the maelstrom of flak to conduct another rocket run and also dropped depth bombs, while a Wildcat strafed the twisting and turning U-boat which struggled desperately to dodge the harassing attacks by the American planes.

Indeed, U-219 emerged from the fracas unscathed; but U-1062 did not enjoy similar good fortune. Fessenden (DE-242), one of Mission Bay's screen, homed in on sonobuoy indications on 30 September and killed the "Milch Cow" with a four-charge pattern. In the meantime, U-219 was not yet out of the proverbial woods— one of Tripoli's Avengers dropped depth bombs on the fleeing boat on 2 October. Keen-eared American sonar-men felt that they had definitely "killed" the submersible, but postwar accounting showed that U-219 had escaped to Batavia, Java."

01-27-08, 11:57 AM	#3065
Kilhmar Watch Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Festung Norwegen Posts: 26 Downloads: 55 Uploads: 0	A cute anectodal: "After a fruitless search pursuing two fading sonar contacts in the mid-South Atlantic narrows, Tripoli and her group returned to Recife on 11 September for provisioning and fuelling. Underway again two days later, TG 47.7 headed out to conduct another search—this time along the estimated track of two U-boats slated to rendezvous for refuelling. One of the target U-boats was U-1062, a "Milch Cow" bound from Penang, Malaya, with a cargo of valuable petroleum products for the German war effort. Ordered to fuel U-219, outward-bound for the Far East, U-1062 prepared to rendezvous with her smaller sister boat in the South Atlantic narrows—directly in the path of the Tripoli escort group. Passing to the westward of the Cape Verdes, TG 47.7 made rendezvous with the Mission Bay (CVE-59) escort group to conduct a joint hunter-killer operation against the two enemy boats. Round-the-clock searches by prowling, radar-equipped Avengers continued with unrelaxed vigilance until 40 minutes after sunset on 28 September, when a TBF piloted by Lt. William R. Gillespie, USNR, reported a definite contact with the surfaced U-219 only 11 miles from the enemy's estimated track. Gillespie went in to conduct a low-level rocket attack, but heavy flak slapped the intrepid airman's plane and crew into the sea. Another Avenger, drawn to the battle, braved the maelstrom of flak to conduct another rocket run and also dropped depth bombs, while a Wildcat strafed the twisting and turning U-boat which struggled desperately to dodge the harassing attacks by the American planes. Indeed, U-219 emerged from the fracas unscathed; but U-1062 did not enjoy similar good fortune. Fessenden (DE-242), one of Mission Bay's screen, homed in on sonobuoy indications on 30 September and killed the "Milch Cow" with a four-charge pattern. In the meantime, U-219 was not yet out of the proverbial woods— one of Tripoli's Avengers dropped depth bombs on the fleeing boat on 2 October. Keen-eared American sonar-men felt that they had definitely "killed" the submersible, but postwar accounting showed that U-219 had escaped to Batavia, Java." __________________ Und Gott sprach als erster zu den Steinen:"Wollt ihr U-Boot Fahrer werden?" Und die Steine antworteten darauf:"Nein Herr, wir sind nicht hart genug!!"