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German submarineU-53 (1939)

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Coordinates:60°32′00″N6°14′00″W / 60.533333°N 6.233333°W /60.533333; -6.233333

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

German World War II submarine

For other ships with the same name, seeGerman submarine U-53.

History

U-52, a typical Type VIIB boat




Nazi Germany
Name	U-53
Ordered	15 May 1937
Builder	Germaniawerft,Kiel
Cost	4,439,000Reichsmark
Yard number	588
Laid down	13 March 1937
Launched	6 May 1939
Commissioned	24 June 1939
Fate	Sunk, 23 / 24 February 1940


General characteristics
Class & type	Type VIIB U-boat
Displacement	753 t (741long tons) surfaced 857 t (843 long tons) submerged
Length	66.50 m (218 ft 2 in)o/a 48.80 m (160 ft 1 in)pressure hull
Beam	6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Draught	4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
Installed power	2,800–3,200 PS (2,100–2,400 kW; 2,800–3,200 bhp) (diesels) 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric)
Propulsion	2 shafts 2 ×diesel engines 2 ×electric motors
Speed	17.9 knots (33.2 km/h; 20.6 mph) surfaced 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) submerged
Range	8,700 nmi (16,112 km; 10,012 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)surfaced 90 nmi (170 km; 100 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph)
Test depth	230 m (750 ft) Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)
Complement	4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Sensors & processing systems	Gruppenhorchgerät
Armament	5 × 53.3 cm (21 in)torpedo tubes (four bow, one stern) 14 ×torpedoesor 26 TMAmines 1 ×8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun (220 rounds) 1 ×2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun


Service record
Part of	7th U-boat Flotilla 24 June 1939 – 23 / 24 February 1940
Identification codes	M 10 424
Commanders	Oblt.z.S. Dietrich Knorr 24 June – August 1939 Kptlt. Ernst-Günter Heinicke August 1939 – 14 January 1940 Oblt.z.S.Heinrich Schonder December 1939 – January 1940 K.Kapt. Harald Grosse 15 January – 23 / 24 February 1940
Operations	3 patrols: 1st patrol: 29 August – 30 September 1939 2nd patrol: 21 October – 30 November 1939 3rd patrol: 2 – 23 / 24 February 1940
Victories	7 merchant ships sunk (27,316 GRT) 1 merchant ship damaged (8,022 GRT)

German submarineU-53 was aType VIIB U-boat ofNazi Germany'sKriegsmarine during World War II. She waslaid down on 13 March 1937 atFriedrich Krupp Germaniawerft inKiel and went into service on 24 June 1939 under the command ofOberleutnant zur See (Oblt.z.S.) Dietrich Knorr.

Design

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German Type VIIB submarines were preceded by the shorterType VIIA submarines.U-53 had a displacement of 753 tonnes (741 long tons) when at the surface and 857 tonnes (843 long tons) while submerged.^[1] She had a total length of 66.50 m (218 ft 2 in), apressure hull length of 48.80 m (160 ft 1 in), abeam of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.50 m (31 ft 2 in), and adraught of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by twoMAN M 6 V 40/46 four-stroke, six-cylindersupercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, twoAEG GU 460/8-276double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft)propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).^[1]

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.9 knots (33.2 km/h; 20.6 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph).^[1] When submerged, the boat could operate for 90 nautical miles (170 km; 100 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,700 nautical miles (16,100 km; 10,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).U-53 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in)torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteentorpedoes, one8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and one2 cm (0.79 in)anti-aircraft gun The boat had acomplement of between forty-four and sixty.^[1]

Service history

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First patrol

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U-53 began her first patrol on 29 August 1939, just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, under the command of Ernst-Günter Heinicke. Also aboard was Ernst Sobe, the commander of the7th ("Wegener") Flotilla.^[2]U-53 sank two British ships on this patrol: the tanker SSCheyenne and the freighter SSKafiristan.^[3]

Second patrol

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A second patrol under Heinicke, beginning on 21 October produced no results.U-53, along withU-25 andU-26, was to penetrate theStrait of Gibraltar and raid Allied shipping in theMediterranean Sea. Daunted by the strong British forces at the straits, Heinicke did not attempt to force them and was transferred to the merchant raiderGerman auxiliary cruiser Widder on his return to Germany.^[4]^[5]

Third patrol

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Harald Grosse replaced Heinicke forU-53's third and final war patrol, which began on 2 February 1940. Grosse sank six ships for 21,230 gross register tons (GRT), including the Spanish neutralBanderas, whose sinking strained relations between Germany and Spain. On 23^[6] or 24^[7] February (sources vary),U-53 was engaged and sunk bydepth charges dropped by the British destroyerHMS Gurkha west of theOrkney Islands with the loss of all hands, (42 dead).

In popular culture

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In the 1953 filmThe Cruel SeaU53 was sunk by the fictitious frigate HMSSaltash Castle, her only kill.

In the filmEye of the Needle U-53 is the escape U-boat of the Needle (played byDonald Sutherland) waiting offshore. This is supposed to happen in 1944 in the timeline of the film.

In the 1958 filmI Was Monty's DoubleU-53 is the U-boat which drops off the German commandos attempting to kidnap who they think is General Montgomery (actually his double played by M.E. Clifton James).

In the 1959 British comedy filmDon't Panic Chaps U-53 is depicted as the submarine that surfaces to pick up the "stranded" German forces on an unnamed Adriatic Island.

Summary of raiding history

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Date^[8]	Ship	Nationality	Tonnage (GRT)	Fate^[8]
15 September 1939	Cheyenne	United Kingdom	8,825	Sunk
17 September 1939	Kafiristan	United Kingdom	5,193	Sunk
11 February 1940	Imperial Transport	United Kingdom	8,022	Damaged
11 February 1940	Snestad	Norway	4,114	Sunk
12 February 1940	Dalarö	Sweden	3,927	Sunk
13 February 1940	Norna	Sweden	1,022	Sunk
14 February 1940	Martin Goldschmidt	Denmark	2,095	Sunk
18 February 1940	Banderas	Spain	2,140	Sunk

References

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^^a ^b ^c ^dGröner, Jung & Maass 1991, pp. 43–44.
^Blair 1996, p. 56.
^Blair 1996, pp. 90, 94.
^Blair 1996, pp. 115–119.
^Helgason, Guðmundur."Korvettenkapitän Ernst-Günter Heinicke".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved21 November 2010.
^Blair 1996, pp. 140–141.
^Kemp 1997, p. 64.
^^a ^bHelgason, Guðmundur."Ships hit by U-53".WWII U-boat successes – uboat.net. Retrieved21 November 2010.

Bibliography

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Blair, Clay (1996).Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunters 1939–1942. New York:Random House.ISBN 0-394-58839-8.
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999).German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press.ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999).Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler.ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991).U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
Kemp, Paul (1997).U-Boats Destroyed – German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. Arms & Armour.ISBN 1-85409-515-3.

External links

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Helgason, Guðmundur."The Type VIIB boat U-53".German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved8 December 2014.
Hofmann, Markus."U 53".Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 – u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved1 February 2015.

v t e Type VII submarines
Type VIIA	U-27 U-28 U-29 U-30 U-31 U-32 U-33 U-34 U-35 U-36
Type VIIB	U-45 U-46 U-47 U-48 U-49 U-50 U-51 U-52 U-53 U-54 U-55 U-73 U-74 U-75 U-76 U-83 U-84 U-85 U-86 U-87 U-99 U-100 U-101 U-102
Type VIIC	U-69 U-70 U-71 U-72 U-77 U-78 U-79 U-80 U-81 U-82 U-88 U-89 U-90 U-91 U-92 U-93 U-94 U-95 U-96 U-97 U-98 U-132 U-133 U-134 U-135 U-136 U-201 U-202 U-203 U-204 U-205 U-206 U-207 U-208 U-209 U-210 U-211 U-212 U-221 U-222 U-223 U-224 U-225 U-226 U-227 U-228 U-229 U-230 U-231 U-232 U-235 U-236 U-237 U-238 U-239 U-240 U-241 U-242 U-243 U-244 U-245 U-246 U-247 U-248 U-249 U-250 U-251 U-252 U-253 U-254 U-255 U-256 U-257 U-258 U-259 U-260 U-261 U-262 U-263 U-264 U-265 U-266 U-267 U-268 U-269 U-270 U-271 U-272 U-273 U-274 U-275 U-276 U-277 U-278 U-279 U-280 U-281 U-282 U-283 U-284 U-285 U-286 U-287 U-288 U-289 U-290 U-291 U-301 U-302 U-303 U-304 U-305 U-306 U-307 U-308 U-309 U-310 U-311 U-312 U-313 U-314 U-315 U-316 U-331 U-332 U-333 U-334 U-335 U-336 U-337 U-338 U-339 U-340 U-341 U-342 U-343 U-344 U-345 U-346 U-347 U-348 U-349 U-350 U-351 U-352 U-353 U-354 U-355 U-356 U-357 U-358 U-359 U-360 U-361 U-362 U-363 U-364 U-365 U-366 U-367 U-368 U-369 U-370 U-371 U-372 U-373 U-374 U-375 U-376 U-377 U-378 U-379 U-380 U-381 U-382 U-383 U-384 U-385 U-386 U-387 U-388 U-389 U-390 U-391 U-392 U-393 U-394 U-396 U-397 U-398 U-399 U-400 U-401 U-402 U-403 U-404 U-405 U-406 U-407 U-408 U-409 U-410 U-411 U-412 U-413 U-414 U-415 U-416 U-417 U-418 U-419 U-420 U-421 U-422 U-423 U-424 U-425 U-426 U-427 U-428 U-429 U-430 U-431 U-432 U-433 U-434 U-435 U-436 U-437 U-438 U-439 U-440 U-441 U-442 U-443 U-444 U-445 U-446 U-447 U-448 U-449 U-450 U-451 U-452 U-453 U-454 U-455 U-456 U-457 U-458 U-465 U-466 U-467 U-468 U-469 U-470 U-471 U-472 U-473 U-475 U-476 U-477 U-478 U-479 U-480 U-481 U-482 U-483 U-484 U-485 U-486 U-551 U-552 U-553 U-554 U-555 U-556 U-557 U-558 U-559 U-560 U-561 U-562 U-563 U-564 U-565 U-566 U-567 U-568 U-569 U-570 U-571 U-572 U-573 U-574 U-575 U-576 U-577 U-578 U-579 U-580 U-581 U-582 U-583 U-584 U-585 U-586 U-587 U-588 U-589 U-590 U-591 U-592 U-593 U-594 U-595 U-596 U-597 U-598 U-599 U-600 U-601 U-602 U-603 U-604 U-605 U-606 U-607 U-608 U-609 U-610 U-611 U-612 U-613 U-614 U-615 U-616 U-617 U-618 U-619 U-620 U-621 U-622 U-623 U-624 U-625 U-626 U-627 U-628 U-629 U-630 U-631 U-632 U-633 U-634 U-635 U-636 U-637 U-638 U-639 U-640 U-641 U-642 U-643 U-644 U-645 U-646 U-647 U-648 U-649 U-650 U-651 U-652 U-653 U-654 U-655 U-656 U-657 U-658 U-659 U-660 U-661 U-662 U-663 U-664 U-665 U-666 U-667 U-668 U-669 U-670 U-671 U-672 U-673 U-674 U-675 U-676 U-677 U-678 U-679 U-680 U-681 U-682 U-683 U-701 U-702 U-703 U-704 U-705 U-706 U-707 U-708 U-709 U-710 U-711 U-712 U-713 U-714 U-715 U-716 U-717 U-718 U-719 U-720 U-721 U-722 U-731 U-732 U-733 U-734 U-735 U-736 U-737 U-738 U-739 U-740 U-741 U-742 U-743 U-744 U-745 U-746 U-747 U-748 U-749 U-750 U-751 U-752 U-753 U-754 U-755 U-756 U-757 U-758 U-759 U-760 U-761 U-762 U-763 U-764 U-765 U-766 U-767 U-768 U-771 U-772 U-773 U-774 U-775 U-776 U-777 U-778 U-779 U-821 U-822 U-825 U-826 U-901 U-903 U-904 U-905 U-907 U-921 U-922 U-923 U-924 U-925 U-926 U-927 U-928 U-951 U-952 U-953 U-954 U-955 U-956 U-957 U-958 U-959 U-960 U-961 U-962 U-963 U-964 U-965 U-966 U-967 U-968 U-969 U-970 U-971 U-972 U-973 U-974 U-975 U-976 U-977 U-978 U-979 U-980 U-981 U-982 U-983 U-984 U-985 U-986 U-987 U-988 U-989 U-990 U-991 U-992 U-993 U-994 U-1051 U-1052 U-1053 U-1054 U-1055 U-1056 U-1057 U-1058 U-1101 U-1102 U-1131 U-1132 U-1161 U-1162 U-1191 U-1192 U-1193 U-1194 U-1195 U-1196 U-1197 U-1198 U-1199 U-1200 U-1201 U-1202 U-1203 U-1204 U-1205 U-1206 U-1207 U-1208 U-1209 U-1210
Type VIIC/41	U-292 U-293 U-294 U-295 U-296 U-297 U-298 U-299 U-300 U-317 U-318 U-319 U-320 U-321 U-322 U-323 U-324 U-325 U-326 U-327 U-328 U-691 U-827 U-828 U-929 U-930 U-995 U-997 U-998 U-999 U-1000 U-1001 U-1002 U-1003 U-1004 U-1005 U-1006 U-1007 U-1008 U-1009 U-1010 U-1011 U-1013 U-1014 U-1015 U-1016 U-1017 U-1018 U-1019 U-1020 U-1021 U-1022 U-1023 U-1024 U-1025 U-1063 U-1064 U-1065 U-1103 U-1104 U-1105 U-1106 U-1107 U-1108 U-1109 U-1110 U-1163 U-1164 U-1165 U-1166 U-1167 U-1168 U-1169 U-1170 U-1171 U-1172 U-1271 U-1272 U-1273 U-1274 U-1275 U-1276 U-1277 U-1278 U-1279 U-1301 U-1302 U-1303 U-1304 U-1305 U-1306 U-1307 U-1308
Type VIID	U-213 U-214 U-215 U-216 U-217 U-218
Type VIIF	U-1059 U-1060 U-1061 U-1062
Preceded by:Type II Followed by:Type IX List of U-boats of Germany

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in February 1940
Shipwrecks	4 Feb:HMS Sphinx 5 Feb:U-41 11 Feb:Linda 12 Feb:U-33 15 Feb:USSWicomico 18 Feb:HMS Daring 19 Feb:Tiberton 22 Feb:Leberecht Maass,Max Schultz 23 Feb:U-53 26 Feb:Orizaba Unknown date:U-54
Other incidents	11 Feb:Imperial Transport 14 Feb:Archimède 16 Feb:Altmark (incident)
193919401941 January 1940March 1940

60°32′00″N6°14′00″W / 60.533333°N 6.233333°W /60.533333; -6.233333

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