[AZTiger98]

It was Sept. 1, 1939. I had been in command of U-3 for only a short time, following the unexpected death of her previous captain, Captain Lieutenant Joachim Schepke. Still very green around the gills. But orders were orders, and U-3 was shipping out that night. I watched, silently, as the crew came and went from the base, enjoying their last few hours of revelry before boarding the ship that would be our home for the next several days. The youthful innocence of most of the crew struck me. Most of them didn't seem old enough to have enlisted, I thought. But here they were, ready to defend their homeland.

Our orders came through at 23:00 hours. We were to sail out of Wilhelmshaven and head northwest to the Scapa Flow region just off the northern coast of Britain. "Great," I thought. Our first cruise, still trying to get these guys to tell the front end of the torpedo from the back, and these dummkopfs were sending us to the coast of Britain? Near the Naval Air Station north of Scotland? "Someone in High Command doesn't like me very much," I muttered.

After a rousing speech to the crew, we fired up the engines, and off we went. It was 3 minutes until midnight, 9/1/39. Heading at a modest speed out of port, we sailed around the coast and entered the dark gray waters of the North Sea. It was beautiful weather - clear skies, the stars seemed to light up as if to say, "Follow us!". With anticipation rising, the crew began their regular shifts, eager to find our first targets.

9/3/39 - Two days at sea, and already getting an itchy trigger finger. Suddenly, a message starts printing out from the transmitter box. We are now at war with Britain. High Command has told us that we are free to engage and sink any British ships we encounter. Gladly. These Tommies will never know what hit them after we finish with them!

9/5/39 - After another two days, we finally enter region AN16. Slowing our speed, we begin a nice little search patter around the area. With our being so close to Scapa Flow, I don't want to attract too much attention. All of a sudden, the deck watchman calls down to tell me that he's spotted the HMS Johnston - a J Class destroyer - about 45 degrees off our port bow, heading due north. A bit panicked, I order the crew to crash dive - forgetting to take a sounding of the water, first. We hit the bottom pretty hard, damaging several systems and the hull a bit. After waiting a while, our sonarman reports that the Johnston has proceeded to the north and is no longer a threat to us (unless she turns around).

Surfacing the boat, I put the damage control team to work on repairing the damage caused by our hasty crash dive. They don't take long to get it completely fixed up, and we resume our patrol. This was NOT the way I wanted to have my day start after breakfast!

Around 1350 hours, all has been quiet, but then the deck watch reports a British merchant about 3700 yards away. We dive to periscope depth and begin to plot a solution. Looking through the periscope, I can see we've found the Sherwood. She has no clue we're here, either.

The torpedoman tells me he's got a firing solution. I look through the scope and order 2 torpedoes to be fired, from about 800 yards away. The time is 1506 on 9/5/39. The first torp strikes the Sherwood at just behind midships, but the second one misses. No matter, though. The Sherwood is listing to starboard pretty badly. At 1507, she begins to slip beneath the waves, and U-3 has claimed her first kill of the war!

For the next several hours, nothing much happens. The excitement is building with the crew, fresh with confidence at their early success. At 9pm, we spot a coastal merchant, the Dover. We try to sneak up on her, but she sees us and leads us on a bit of a chase through the area. Just before 0200 on 9/6/39, we finally catch her in our sights and get a good firing solution. At 0148, two fish leave the U-3's tubes, 870 yards away from the Dover. Soon two huge explosions rock the U-3 and shatter the silence of the night. The Dover is blown to pieces, with what's left of her burning hulk beginning to slip beneath the waves at 0149. Kill #2.

With only one fish left, not much else I can do. All of a sudden, sonar tells me he's picked up a warship in the area. Not really wanting to tangle with a Tommy warship when I only have 1 torpedo, I hurriedly bring the periscope down, order the boat to dive to periscope depth, and change course to the SE. Staying at 2mph for a while to avoid giving the Tommies any idea where we are, we increase to flank speed when we're somewhere off the eastern coast of Scotland.

Travelling underwater for a while to avoid any searching planes, we finally surface early on the morning of 9/7/39. At 0920, sonar tells me he's picked up a Norwegian merchant near us - but with only one fish left, I just want to get home. We continue on a ESE course back to Wilhelmshaven, arriving at the base around midnight on 9/9/39.

Upon speaking with my flotilla commander, I learn that Command was impressed with the way my crew handled themselves on their first run. Sinking 2 boats for a tonnage of 8491 isn't too shabby. Torpedoman Dieter Goldbeck even earned a U-Boat Front Clasp for his skillful work in bringing down the Sherwood and the Dover. The crew and I are looking forward to a few days of well-deserved rest, but we know the next patrol is not far away.