I have good pictures of german subs , do you ? Let us see then .

[Jimbuna]

U-86

[={FH}=Paddy]

Wow, some great photos here lads -
Very interesting use of camouflage; “aka: submersible aircraft carrier!!!!” – that must have caused some terrible drag when submerged, not to mention a very big burn on fuel consumption due to both the above and the additional weight. It would be interesting to find out more about this concept and if it were simply a prototype or was actually brought in to active service use, was it successful and what form did the camouflage decking take? ie: was is painted sea blue or snot green? Also, I can’t imagine approaching a convoy with decks awash and not being seen with that hanging out of the kindergarten!! A little inconspicuous to say the least!

@ jim – nice pic of the crows nest, was this addition to boats used in the early years as I can imagine that if you got caught on the surface in the latter years of the war by a plane that you would have to add a good few seconds until you were completely submerged. I would imagine that one would not be waiting around to disassemble it, not to mention the poor fellow up there and the acrobatics required to get down off it and in to the boat before submerging; I wonder if a few were locked out during AAAALLLLLLLAAAARRRRMMMMMMM!

[Jimbuna]

AFAIK the tower was purely a temporary arrangement to allow a cameraman an advantageous viewpoint for propaganda filming purposes and was only used in the close proximity of a friendly/home port.

[nikbear]

={FH}=Paddy
I believe the camo arrangement was just for the U-boat while it was port,not sure if this was an early war or later idea Must have been a right mare to get it fixed to the Boat

[Captain Birdseye]

Oh...wait...

[={FH}=Paddy]

Thanks Nikbear & jim: Puts a whole new meaning to "up the pole"!



(I am still interested in this camo make over! I'll have a snoop around and see what i can come up with)

In the mean time, keep these great pics coming guys – truly fascinating stuff.

[Jimbuna]

U-861 and U-995

[Stiebler]

Jimbuna's picture of U 219 in camouflage is certainly unusual. (Post #271, pg 14, this thread.)

The picture clearly shows a Type XB U-minelayer with main deck gun removed. These deck guns were removed from the XB boats in 1944, so it is a late picture, and the wooden camouflage would not have been needed in France, Norway or Germany, where there were bomb-proof shelters or fighter defences.

Therefore the background port must be in the Far East. Only one U-minelayer found its way to the Far East, and that was indeed U 219, so the caption is correct. She arrived at Batavia in December 1944, carrying all manner of stores for the Japanese, and was intended to bring rubber and other strategic materials back to Germany. Unfortunately for BdU, the long voyage had ruined the batteries, and a nearby explosion in an ammunition ship while at Batavia damaged U 219 further. So she remained for repairs at Batavia (or at Sourabaya), both in Java, for the remainder of the war.

The wooden casing around U 219 might have been intended as a protection against the tropical sun while in port (German surface warships sometimes employed similar protection in pre-war cruises), but it is much more probable that it was intended to carry palm leaves or similar local vegetation as camouflage. Air raids against the poorly defended Japanese-occupied Java ports were becoming a real threat, and Penang had already had to be abandoned as a base owing to its proximity to Liberator bombers now based in Burma. Naturally the vegetation would have had to be removed while the U-minelayer was sailing around port, or it would all have blown off anyway - perhaps fouling the propellers!

A truly fascinating picture, new to me. Where did you find it, Jimbuna?

Stiebler.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Stiebler

A truly fascinating picture, new to me. Where did you find it, Jimbuna?

Stiebler.

From the U-boat gallery here:

http://www.german-uboats.com/

There are some pretty good shots amongst them

[Stiebler]

@Jimbuna:

Thanks very much for this prompt reply to my query.
I'll check out the website immediately.

Stiebler.

[Jimbuna]

Your welcome sir

[Blue-Casket]

Seehund

[Dronston]

Hey everybody, long time no post.
Last week I was in Northern Germany near Kiel where I visited the U-995.
I thought I'd share some pics with you.

First time for me on a real U-boot and it was cool, pity you can't get to the bridge or deck...

http://www.warmuseums.nl/gal/061gal.htm

[BulSoldier]

Were the pistons (if thats the name) in the engine room painted in their original color or this is to make the diffrent components stand out ?

[Dronston]

Originally Posted by BulSoldier

Were the pistons (if thats the name) in the engine room painted in their original color or this is to make the diffrent components stand out ?

I think those are valve rockers but I am by no means a specialist. I have no idea if these colors were used, I always thought there were read or otherwise the same color as the engine block.