Spectacular patrol

GoldenRivet · 04-02-09, 04:35 PM

U-51 Departed Wilhelmshaven on 28 July 1940 bound for patrol off Freetown.

After several days at sea, taking the long north passage, on 8 August 1940, U-51 encountered a massive task force containing HMS Hood, HMS Illustrious, HMS Royal Oak and several support ships of the london class and smaller Destroyer Escorts.

U-51 launched an attack on Hood, Illustrious and Royal Oak from close range however, due to a calculation error, Illustrious was missed completely, Hood took one hit, and HMS Royal Oak suffered two hits.

Hood slowed and listed slightly, but had no trouble outpacing the Surfaced speed of a U-boat and keeping up with the protection of the rest of the task force.

Royal Oak however was not so lucky, after listing badly to starboard, the mighty ship had taken on thousands of tons of sea water and began the long plunge to the ocean floor.

Retaliation was intense and immediate. U-51 was forced to a depth of 230 meters where she swerved and maneuvered for over 4 hours in a relentless depth charge attack.

The boat heaved and shuddered with each blast of the ash cans, but shook off each attempt at her life.

The boat drifted silently toward the south and the escorts finally gave up their persecution.

Only 24 hours would pass until U-51s next victory at sea. The 5,081 ton Motor Vessel Michael L. Embricos (liverpool) would cross the bow of U-51 sealing her fate.

A small ration of water was dispersed amongst the stranded crew, optimistic that they would survive a mild summer in the expanse of the north atlantic.

Over the next 6 days, as U-51 swam through the shipping lanes just off the Western Irish Coastal waters she would claim 4 other ships, the 5,000 ton M/V Inventor, the 10,616 ton S.S. Advisor, the 2300 ton S.S. Parismina and the tramp steamer Rose Castle worth a mere 1900 tons.

After an approximate total of 56,000 tons of enemy shipping littered the bottom of the Atlantic, U-51 now low on torpedoes changed course for the supply ship Bessel in Vigo Harbor, Spain.

Having taken on fuel, and a hand full of torpedoes, the crew enjoyed a nights rest before continuing toward Freetown.

Just before dawn, 17 August 1940, U-51 slipped stealthily out to sea leaving Vigo and Bessel in her wake.

U-51 stumbled by complete accident into a shipping lane thick with activity in grid Square CG57, claiming an additional 6800 tons by sinking the S.S Black Warrior, S.S Aphacca and the S.S. Lenoir.

Opting to save torpedoes for the patrol off Freetown U-51 continued southward into mountainous waves and hurricane force winds. 2 weeks of patrolling an empty raging sea off Freetown yielded no contacts. Finally, on 4 September 1940, as the weather began to clear slightly, a convoy was sighted to the north of U-51's position. Closing in for the kill, KptLt. Bastheim lurked in broad day light south of the Convoy, tracking them until sunset... selecting the most suitable targets for the night's attack.

Thick dark clouds rolled in, and the decent weather began to turn sour.

Once darkness had filled the sky, U-51 rushed in for attack on the weakly escorted convoy, time was of the essence as thunder clapped and small beads of rain began to trickle down in a light mist. If the attack was not carried out now and carried out successfully, another opportunity may not have presented itself.

Sitting in ambush just a few miles ahead of the mass of approaching steel, U-51 readied her torpedoes.

The crew sat silent as a Corvette crossed just a few hundred meters off the port bow turning away from the u-boat, the enemy scanned the wrong horizon this night.

As the herd of darkened ships crossed the bow of U-51, their fates were sealed... having only a hand full of torpedoes to spare targets were selected carefully and shots plotted and re-plotted to perfection.

bobbing in the roaring sea, the exec peered through the UZO

"Target bearing 350! angle right 75, speed 7 knots!! - "Tube one ready!" he shouted down the voice tube, his voice carried away by the sound of the angry sea

"LOS!"

like an eager wolf released from its chains, the torpedo leapt from the tube!

quickly aiming the UZO for the next target the exec again shouted his commands into the voice tube.

and again, the eager torpedos belched out of their tubes with a mighty hiss as the convoy churned along, unaware of the doom which approached them.

within minutes, four firey fountains of water, and motlen steel reached for the sky. the night filled with the screams of sinking ships as their metal hulls twisted and thrashed about like giant drowning monsters. Fuel oil belched out into the sea like blood. The mixture ignited on the water's slimy surface casting an eery glow of day to the hellish scene.

Search lights and star shells filled the air as U-51 made a hasty exit from the chaotic battlefield.

In a single convoy attack, U-51 and her crew had claimed another 30,000 tons of enemy shipping. Having only one torpedo aboard, U-51 set course for the canary islands - a 4 day trip in ideal conditions - to refuel with supply ship corrientes for the long voyage home.

It was then that tragedy struck the boat. During the night, three crew members of the Corrientes struck off for the port city of las Palmas to acquire supplies for U-51. Fritz Wagner one U-51's machinists accompanied the trio ashore.

Shortly after acquiring a truck for the short supply mission, the truck crashed, causing severe injury to the crew man.

Fritz Wagner was left behind with the doctor aboard corrientes to recover from his wounds, to rejoin the flotilla at a later date.

en route to Wilhelmshaven, several lone merchants were sunk by U-51 in the heavy shipping lanes near the Canal entrance south of Ireland totalling an additional 24,000 tons. Most of these sinkings were the result of shelling by the deck gun as U-51 had few precious torpedoes to spare.

all total, U-51 had been at sea for a total of 68 days and had claimed a total of 122, 142 tons of allied shipping. (16 merchants and 2 warships)

A Very Super Market · 04-02-09, 06:04 PM

Ker-roikey!

Hope you get more patrols like this. A real one to remember!

UnterseeBoogeyMan · 04-02-09, 07:14 PM

2 weeks of heavy seas and no contacts. did you have it at 128 time compression. How periodically do you check on the hydrophones yourself? Just curious - getting some ideas for what people do. Still, that's stamina and patience and it looked like it paid off for you. Good job, Komrade.

Kapt Z · 04-02-09, 07:40 PM

Hey, leave some scraps for the rest of us!

kbak303 · 04-02-09, 08:46 PM

Excellent report to read....in RT how many days did you play to get THAT many days on patrol...

I'm envious...getting into a task force like that and sending the Oak to the bottom...ENVIOUS!

nikbear · 04-02-09, 08:51 PM

NOW Thats one a hell of a patrol

The drinks are you for sure!

GoldenRivet · 04-02-09, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UnterseeBoogeyMan

2 weeks of heavy seas and no contacts. did you have it at 128 time compression. How periodically do you check on the hydrophones yourself? Just curious - getting some ideas for what people do. Still, that's stamina and patience and it looked like it paid off for you. Good job, Komrade.

I would do a "trim dive" daily... sound checks perhaps twice or three times daily, sometimes staying submerged for several hours awaiting a break in the weather. I rarely man the hydrophones myself unless there is a momentary stutter in the time compression and the sonar man doesnt pick up anything - in which case i can usually faintly hear something distant. average time compression was about 256x

Quote:

Originally Posted by kbak303

Excellent report to read....in RT how many days did you play to get THAT many days on patrol...

I'm envious...getting into a task force like that and sending the Oak to the bottom...ENVIOUS!

in real time, i spent a good three and a half days on this patrol.

the unfortunate thing is that SH3 commander counts it as a new patrol every time you dock at a supply ship and then leave back out to sea.

kbak303 · 04-02-09, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

the unfortunate thing is that SH3 commander counts it as a new patrol every time you dock at a supply ship and then leave back out to sea.

I found that out as well....and that sucks!

good job though

do u do manual targeting?

GoldenRivet · 04-02-09, 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kbak303

do u do manual targeting?

Yes, sometimes on paper.

i guess if i had used my weapons officer i would have not missed the Illustrious.

oh well, perhaps i'll get another chance.

04-02-09, 04:35 PM	#1
GoldenRivet Subsim Aviator Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 8,726 Downloads: 146 Uploads: 0	Spectacular patrol U-51 Departed Wilhelmshaven on 28 July 1940 bound for patrol off Freetown. After several days at sea, taking the long north passage, on 8 August 1940, U-51 encountered a massive task force containing HMS Hood, HMS Illustrious, HMS Royal Oak and several support ships of the london class and smaller Destroyer Escorts. U-51 launched an attack on Hood, Illustrious and Royal Oak from close range however, due to a calculation error, Illustrious was missed completely, Hood took one hit, and HMS Royal Oak suffered two hits. Hood slowed and listed slightly, but had no trouble outpacing the Surfaced speed of a U-boat and keeping up with the protection of the rest of the task force. Royal Oak however was not so lucky, after listing badly to starboard, the mighty ship had taken on thousands of tons of sea water and began the long plunge to the ocean floor. Retaliation was intense and immediate. U-51 was forced to a depth of 230 meters where she swerved and maneuvered for over 4 hours in a relentless depth charge attack. The boat heaved and shuddered with each blast of the ash cans, but shook off each attempt at her life. The boat drifted silently toward the south and the escorts finally gave up their persecution. Only 24 hours would pass until U-51s next victory at sea. The 5,081 ton Motor Vessel Michael L. Embricos (liverpool) would cross the bow of U-51 sealing her fate. A small ration of water was dispersed amongst the stranded crew, optimistic that they would survive a mild summer in the expanse of the north atlantic. Over the next 6 days, as U-51 swam through the shipping lanes just off the Western Irish Coastal waters she would claim 4 other ships, the 5,000 ton M/V Inventor, the 10,616 ton S.S. Advisor, the 2300 ton S.S. Parismina and the tramp steamer Rose Castle worth a mere 1900 tons. After an approximate total of 56,000 tons of enemy shipping littered the bottom of the Atlantic, U-51 now low on torpedoes changed course for the supply ship Bessel in Vigo Harbor, Spain. Having taken on fuel, and a hand full of torpedoes, the crew enjoyed a nights rest before continuing toward Freetown. Just before dawn, 17 August 1940, U-51 slipped stealthily out to sea leaving Vigo and Bessel in her wake. U-51 stumbled by complete accident into a shipping lane thick with activity in grid Square CG57, claiming an additional 6800 tons by sinking the S.S Black Warrior, S.S Aphacca and the S.S. Lenoir. Opting to save torpedoes for the patrol off Freetown U-51 continued southward into mountainous waves and hurricane force winds. 2 weeks of patrolling an empty raging sea off Freetown yielded no contacts. Finally, on 4 September 1940, as the weather began to clear slightly, a convoy was sighted to the north of U-51's position. Closing in for the kill, KptLt. Bastheim lurked in broad day light south of the Convoy, tracking them until sunset... selecting the most suitable targets for the night's attack. Thick dark clouds rolled in, and the decent weather began to turn sour. Once darkness had filled the sky, U-51 rushed in for attack on the weakly escorted convoy, time was of the essence as thunder clapped and small beads of rain began to trickle down in a light mist. If the attack was not carried out now and carried out successfully, another opportunity may not have presented itself. Sitting in ambush just a few miles ahead of the mass of approaching steel, U-51 readied her torpedoes. The crew sat silent as a Corvette crossed just a few hundred meters off the port bow turning away from the u-boat, the enemy scanned the wrong horizon this night. As the herd of darkened ships crossed the bow of U-51, their fates were sealed... having only a hand full of torpedoes to spare targets were selected carefully and shots plotted and re-plotted to perfection. bobbing in the roaring sea, the exec peered through the UZO "Target bearing 350! angle right 75, speed 7 knots!! - "Tube one ready!" he shouted down the voice tube, his voice carried away by the sound of the angry sea "LOS!" like an eager wolf released from its chains, the torpedo leapt from the tube! quickly aiming the UZO for the next target the exec again shouted his commands into the voice tube. and again, the eager torpedos belched out of their tubes with a mighty hiss as the convoy churned along, unaware of the doom which approached them. within minutes, four firey fountains of water, and motlen steel reached for the sky. the night filled with the screams of sinking ships as their metal hulls twisted and thrashed about like giant drowning monsters. Fuel oil belched out into the sea like blood. The mixture ignited on the water's slimy surface casting an eery glow of day to the hellish scene. Search lights and star shells filled the air as U-51 made a hasty exit from the chaotic battlefield. In a single convoy attack, U-51 and her crew had claimed another 30,000 tons of enemy shipping. Having only one torpedo aboard, U-51 set course for the canary islands - a 4 day trip in ideal conditions - to refuel with supply ship corrientes for the long voyage home. It was then that tragedy struck the boat. During the night, three crew members of the Corrientes struck off for the port city of las Palmas to acquire supplies for U-51. Fritz Wagner one U-51's machinists accompanied the trio ashore. Shortly after acquiring a truck for the short supply mission, the truck crashed, causing severe injury to the crew man. Fritz Wagner was left behind with the doctor aboard corrientes to recover from his wounds, to rejoin the flotilla at a later date. en route to Wilhelmshaven, several lone merchants were sunk by U-51 in the heavy shipping lanes near the Canal entrance south of Ireland totalling an additional 24,000 tons. Most of these sinkings were the result of shelling by the deck gun as U-51 had few precious torpedoes to spare. all total, U-51 had been at sea for a total of 68 days and had claimed a total of 122, 142 tons of allied shipping. (16 merchants and 2 warships) __________________

04-02-09, 06:04 PM	#2
A Very Super Market The Old Man Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Deep in the Wild Canadian suburbs. Posts: 1,468 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Ker-roikey! Hope you get more patrols like this. A real one to remember! __________________ The entire German garrison of Vanviken, right here in your thread!

04-02-09, 08:51 PM	#6
nikbear Sea Lord Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Northampton,UK Posts: 1,859 Downloads: 86 Uploads: 0	NOW Thats one a hell of a patrolThe drinks are you for sure! __________________ 'It is not surely known when the grey wolf shall come upon the seat of the gods' Ericksmal.

04-02-09, 07:14 PM	#3
UnterseeBoogeyMan Ensign Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: The Land of Cholla Cactus and Red Chile Posts: 224 Downloads: 6 Uploads: 0	2 weeks of heavy seas and no contacts. did you have it at 128 time compression. How periodically do you check on the hydrophones yourself? Just curious - getting some ideas for what people do. Still, that's stamina and patience and it looked like it paid off for you. Good job, Komrade.

04-02-09, 07:40 PM	#4
Kapt Z Grey Wolf Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: ...somewhere in the swamps of Jersey. Posts: 909 Downloads: 157 Uploads: 0	Hey, leave some scraps for the rest of us!

04-02-09, 08:46 PM	#5
kbak303 Seaman Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 41 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Excellent report to read....in RT how many days did you play to get THAT many days on patrol... I'm envious...getting into a task force like that and sending the Oak to the bottom...ENVIOUS!