[Kapitän]

Originally Posted by Kapitän

Started new career in August 2019 to commemorate the beginning of WWII, 80 years before ...

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Tuesday, 14 October 1941 - Rockall Bank -

0501 - Incoming F.T.: From B.d.U.:
For Commanders eyes only:
RST: About F.T.0501/11:
Own units currently in Qu.3698AL, on course NNE.

0600 - Morning Dawn.

0704 - Qu.1755AM - Sunrise.
Weather unchanged since 13 Oct., 0000h.

1001 - Incoming F.T.: From U 206:
Have sunk the British Corvette HMS Fleur de Lys (K 122), in front of the Straits of Gibraltar. - Opitz -

1200 - Qu.1719AM - Days Run: 132.3sm - ↗ 129.3 (22h 20') - ↘ 3.0sm (1h 40').
177.6cbm (1.7cbm/24h). 9300Ah. On course 297°. 9 internal torpedoes (6xEto, 3xAto). Weather unchanged since 13 Oct., 0000h.

1605 - Incoming F.T.: From U 83:
ASW hunt by destroyers and aircraft. - Kraus -

Cmdr.: Probably as a result of U 206 (Opitz) sinking the destroyer in CG 9593.

1608 - According to a radio intercept message, the convoy, on which we have been operating since the 2nd October, has entered Gibraltar. According to this reliable report, the convoy must have traveled about 2.5kn faster than calculated up to now. As all the operations on the convoy were not calculated for such an unusually high speed, the boats were, in fact, traveling behind the convoy.

The boats are now west of the Straits of Gibraltar and receive orders to move away, in order to operate on the convoy leaving Gibraltar on or after the 17th of October.

1600 & 1640 - Position reports from Group "Mordbrenner" (Arsonist) in Qu.3693AL, on course South, speed 5kn.

Group "Mordbrenner" consists of U 208 (Oblt. Alfred Schlieper); U 374 (Oblt. Unno von Fischel); U 573 (Kptlt. Heinrich Heinsohn) - all VIIC - and U 108 (IXB, Kptlt. Heinrich Bleichrodt).

1643 - Incoming F.T.: From B.d.U.:
U 553 (Kptlt. Karl Thurmann) and U 568 (Kptlt. Joachim Preuss) have been assigned to attacking areas AK 55 and AK 59, which is the area inside the patrol lines S.E. of Greenland.

1816 - Sundown. Weather unchanged since 13 Oct., 0000h.

Boat operating acc. Op.-Orders as per F.T.0501/11.

RST

Kptlt.&Cmdr.

Started new career in August 2019 to commemorate the beginning of WWII, 80 years before ...

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Wednesday, 15 October 1941 - Northwest of Rockall Bank -

0040 - Group "Mordbrenner" now in Qu.3666AL, course 8°, 5kn.

0400 - WNW5/4, overcast, light haze, medium visibility, ~1000mb.

0451 - Incoming F.T.: From U 553:
After making contact with convoy SC.48, immediately pressed home the attack and sunk the British Silvercedar, 4354ts, and the Norwegian Ila, 1583ts. About 50 ships and 4 escorts. On course 70°, speed 7kn. Keeping contact and sending radio beacon signal. - Thurmann -

0530 - Qu.3655AL -

0601 - Morning Dawn.
Incoming F.T.: From F.d.U.M.:
For Commanders eyes only: Further special orders for boats operating in the Mediterranean.

0708 - Sunrise.

0719 - Incoming F.T.0710/15: From B.d.U.:
B-Dienst reporting small enemy convoy in Qu.3681AL, course ESE, speed 6kn.

0729 - Boat operating on convoy 0710/15. New course 163°, 1/3-Ahead. Boat should make contact with convoy in about 2h in Qu.3682AL.

0907 - At plotted interception point - nothing found.
Diving for sound check. At first nothing heard, then faint screw noises bearing 25°. At S-Tiefe nothing seen.

0913 - T=18. Full Ahead.

0920 - S-Tiefe. Sound contact turbine bearing 26°, E=24000.

Cmdr.: Only now I discover the blunder: We were plotting a convoy course of ENE, when in fact it is ESE. A classic rookie mistake.

0922 - Surfaced after 15min. and 1.1sm. 2xH.F.-Ahead.

0950 - New course 136°.

The convoy comes into sight. E=10000.
5 steamers in keel-line and a Flower Corvette in the back:
1. Ore Freighter; 2. M12-Freighter; 3. OreII Freighter; 4. Medium Freighter; M39 Freighter.

The Corvette has the following ASW sensor fields:
Field-of-View 360° = 8000m
Radar 360° = 3000m
Sound contact 270° = 6500m
ASDIC 180° = 1500m

1125 - Moving ahead of the convoy along its port beam, all the while keeping a distance of 8000m. New course 210°. K.F.-Voraus.

As the wind and sea conditions have not improved since 0400h, the torpedo running depth has to be set at min. 3.5m.

1132 - At E=7000, diving for submerged attack. S-Tiefe. 65rpm.

1147 - "Battle Stations!". Flooding tube I.

1155 - Two Incoming F.T.: From B.d.U.:
U 568 (VIIC, Kptlt. Joachim Preuss), U 502 (IXC, Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel), U 432 (VVC, Oblt. Heinz-Otto Schultze) and U 558 (VIIC, Kptlt. Günther Krech), receive orders to operate on convoy "Thurmann".
U 126 (IXC, Kptlt. Ernst Bauer), which has recently come into the southern operational area, receives orders to operate west of Freetown, and to push on to the east along the African coast to Takoradi and Lagos.

1200 - Qu.3689AL - Days Run: 154.1sm - ↗ 152.3 (23h 17') - ↘ 1.8sm (43').
174.1cbm (3.5cbm/24h). S-Tiefe. On course 219°. 9 internal torpedoes (6xEto, 3xAto).

- to be continued -