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Farflung Wanderer · 05-20-15, 05:10 PM

Continuing the adventures of Lt. Jr. Theodor Lawrenz and U-18, on course for home from a long patrol.

07 September 1939
1009h: We picked up some enemy vessel not too far away, and on a course that will put us on intercept. We have no torpedoes, no deck gun, and we certainly don't have the capability to board anything, so I'm going to put the U-18 under until we're in the clear.

1111h: Made visual contact on the vessel. It's a small merchant, such a tempting target, but it's too far away and we have no way of fighting it. Since I do not want to risk the RAF being called in, we shall remain underwater for perhaps another hour.

2000h: Reported back home to flotilla. Grid AN49 is our current position, and we're a good 46 hours away from Wilhelmshaven still. I hope that the next two days go quickly.

08 September 1939
0800h: Report sent in. We're at grid AN62, and still 35 hours out.

2000h: Another day, another report. Grid AN66, 23 hours out.

09 September 1939
0800h: Hopefully our last report for this patrol. Grid AN95, back in German controlled waters finally. The crew is relaxed and happy.

1812h: Wilhelmshaven is clearly in sight, and the lighthouses are here to guide us home. Will report time of docking in the sub pens here before getting finally out of this tin can that has been my home for this past week and back into my office for some time.

1847h: Docked at Wilhelmshaven.

10 September 1939
Well, time to put things in order.

First and foremost, it is as I suspected. Germany went to war with Poland, and both England and France joined the party immediately afterwards. We managed to score some of the earliest victories for the U-Boat fleet, and our tonnage of 12.893 puts us a good thousand above Wilhelm Rollmann, who has 11.357 tons. I'm going to tell the officers today about our position as top U-Boat ace, see how the crew reacts. There will be champagne tonight, more so than there was the last. My head is still spinning from our party.

Business as usual, though. I've updated my patrol log and submitted it, to the satisfaction of the higher-ups. In turn, I have been given some medals to hand out, as well as some duties to perform. Warrant Officer Wolf Degen has been given some enhanced training and is now a qualified Machinist. Warrant Officers Axel Thurmann, Wolf Degen, Karl Creutz, Adolf Conrad, Jorg Zander, Sub-Lieutenants Udo Hartenstein, Otto Totenhagen, Fritz Frederichs, and Adolf Carlewitz have all been awarded the U-Boat War Badge. I still have two remaining to pass out, but I shall award them after the following patrol.

I have ordered that U-18 be upgraded with a 2cm FK C/30 flak cannon for use in air defense. While our past patrol took us into deeper waters, the Typ-IIA is a coastal merchant raider, which means shallow waters will be our norm. Having something to engage air targets when a crash dive could be a tragic mistake will save our skins, especially given the sheer volume of air attacks we were subjected to in the last few days of our first patrol. I have also asked that an emblem be marked on the side of U-18 to commemorate her survival of her first patrol. This is our ship now, and I shall not abandon it. To mark our travels, and the hope of always coming home again, U-18 shall now and forever have a Kompaßstern affixed to her conning tower.

29 September 1939
Tomorrow night, at around midnight, U-18 is to head out on patrol again. Our orders take us this time to AN81, a point in-between England and the neutral Netherlands. I don't imagine too many hostile contacts in this area, but we will do our duty none-the-less.

The crew is set and ready to head out again, and we are confident that we can make our mark for Germany.

30 September 1939
0119h: U-18 embarks from Wilhelmshaven to head out on patrol. Waters are rolling, but not all-together rough. Will establish a new reporting procedure for this and future patrols. One report, daily, at 2000h, should be suffice.

The course we are setting will put us moving mainly off the coast of the Netherlands until AN82, in which case we'll push out to our grid and begin a search-pattern. This way, I hope to minimize air attacks from the RAF.

2000h: Reported back to Wilhelmshaven. We're currently in Grid AN69, and are only 19 hours away from AN81. I'm particularly happy about this, I despised the long trip there and away from AN16, and I prefer to have our hunting grounds close to home given the nature of how the Typ-IIA hunts and performs.

01 October 1939
1424h: We have arrived in Grid AN81 and are beginning our patrol. Let us see what the coming days throw at us...

05-20-15, 05:10 PM	#4883
Farflung Wanderer Watch Join Date: Feb 2015 Posts: 23 Downloads: 12 Uploads: 0	Continuing the adventures of Lt. Jr. Theodor Lawrenz and U-18, on course for home from a long patrol. 07 September 1939 1009h: We picked up some enemy vessel not too far away, and on a course that will put us on intercept. We have no torpedoes, no deck gun, and we certainly don't have the capability to board anything, so I'm going to put the U-18 under until we're in the clear. 1111h: Made visual contact on the vessel. It's a small merchant, such a tempting target, but it's too far away and we have no way of fighting it. Since I do not want to risk the RAF being called in, we shall remain underwater for perhaps another hour. 2000h: Reported back home to flotilla. Grid AN49 is our current position, and we're a good 46 hours away from Wilhelmshaven still. I hope that the next two days go quickly. 08 September 1939 0800h: Report sent in. We're at grid AN62, and still 35 hours out. 2000h: Another day, another report. Grid AN66, 23 hours out. 09 September 1939 0800h: Hopefully our last report for this patrol. Grid AN95, back in German controlled waters finally. The crew is relaxed and happy. 1812h: Wilhelmshaven is clearly in sight, and the lighthouses are here to guide us home. Will report time of docking in the sub pens here before getting finally out of this tin can that has been my home for this past week and back into my office for some time. 1847h: Docked at Wilhelmshaven. 10 September 1939 Well, time to put things in order. First and foremost, it is as I suspected. Germany went to war with Poland, and both England and France joined the party immediately afterwards. We managed to score some of the earliest victories for the U-Boat fleet, and our tonnage of 12.893 puts us a good thousand above Wilhelm Rollmann, who has 11.357 tons. I'm going to tell the officers today about our position as top U-Boat ace, see how the crew reacts. There will be champagne tonight, more so than there was the last. My head is still spinning from our party. Business as usual, though. I've updated my patrol log and submitted it, to the satisfaction of the higher-ups. In turn, I have been given some medals to hand out, as well as some duties to perform. Warrant Officer Wolf Degen has been given some enhanced training and is now a qualified Machinist. Warrant Officers Axel Thurmann, Wolf Degen, Karl Creutz, Adolf Conrad, Jorg Zander, Sub-Lieutenants Udo Hartenstein, Otto Totenhagen, Fritz Frederichs, and Adolf Carlewitz have all been awarded the U-Boat War Badge. I still have two remaining to pass out, but I shall award them after the following patrol. I have ordered that U-18 be upgraded with a 2cm FK C/30 flak cannon for use in air defense. While our past patrol took us into deeper waters, the Typ-IIA is a coastal merchant raider, which means shallow waters will be our norm. Having something to engage air targets when a crash dive could be a tragic mistake will save our skins, especially given the sheer volume of air attacks we were subjected to in the last few days of our first patrol. I have also asked that an emblem be marked on the side of U-18 to commemorate her survival of her first patrol. This is our ship now, and I shall not abandon it. To mark our travels, and the hope of always coming home again, U-18 shall now and forever have a Kompaßstern affixed to her conning tower. 29 September 1939 Tomorrow night, at around midnight, U-18 is to head out on patrol again. Our orders take us this time to AN81, a point in-between England and the neutral Netherlands. I don't imagine too many hostile contacts in this area, but we will do our duty none-the-less. The crew is set and ready to head out again, and we are confident that we can make our mark for Germany. 30 September 1939 0119h: U-18 embarks from Wilhelmshaven to head out on patrol. Waters are rolling, but not all-together rough. Will establish a new reporting procedure for this and future patrols. One report, daily, at 2000h, should be suffice. The course we are setting will put us moving mainly off the coast of the Netherlands until AN82, in which case we'll push out to our grid and begin a search-pattern. This way, I hope to minimize air attacks from the RAF. 2000h: Reported back to Wilhelmshaven. We're currently in Grid AN69, and are only 19 hours away from AN81. I'm particularly happy about this, I despised the long trip there and away from AN16, and I prefer to have our hunting grounds close to home given the nature of how the Typ-IIA hunts and performs. 01 October 1939 1424h: We have arrived in Grid AN81 and are beginning our patrol. Let us see what the coming days throw at us...