U-46 Patrol 10
September 22, 1940
Assigned Grid: DH 57
10:47 Lorient under attack while we are docked and waiting to leave on patrol! We open up our engines trying to get out of there with a man on the flak gun. Two British planes sink a sub moored across the way; it goes down in a huge explosion. This place is way more dangerous than Wilhelmshaven!
Sept 23 Testing boat. Malfunctions! Engines cannot reach Flank Speed and boat keeps diving during crash dive. One of my planesmen filled his pants on that last practice dive. Hope my engineer can fix these problems or we may have to cut this patrol short. War is bad enough without this, too!
Sept 26 00:03 Malfunctions repaired. Four netural ships in convoy sighted CG 21. Course NE.
19:00 Second neutral convoy CG 27. Course SW. Appears to be some traffic in the area at least.
Sept 30 09:21 Reached patrol area. We think BdU sent us here to try and trap any single merchants that might route supplies through here. Weather is good. Love the sunshine!
October 3 15:06 Medium cargo, neutral. DH 35. Hm. Maybe BdU miscalculated. Doesn't appear the Tommies are using this area at all.
Oct 4 Fuel now critical: 25%. Present position DH 33. Set course for supply ship
Corrientes to refuel. This patrol has been one big nothing. What was BdU thinking? Boys on boat were dispirited so I let them swim over the side for twenty minutes in the bright blue water. Seems to have helped morale a bit.
Oct 5 Docked at
Corrientes for fuel. Lots of meat for my torpedoes here, but they are all neutral. What a shame. Still some grumbling on board, but at least the girls on dockside look pretty through the binoculars. Will refuel and get a new grid assignment from BdU.
Patrol Result: 0.0 GRT. That's gonna put a bite in my tonnage average.
