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Hai (English : "Shark") was awolfpack ofGermanU-boats that operated from 3 to 21 July 1942 in theBattle of the Atlantic during World War II. They attacked theLiverpool toFreetown,Sierra Leone convoy OS-33, sinking eight ships for a total of 61,125 gross register tons (GRT).[1]
At 00:36 on 6 July, after chasing her for five hours,U-201 hit the unescorted 14,443-ton BritishBlue Star Line passenger shipAvila Star with twoG7e torpedoes 90 miles east ofSão Miguel, Azores. Another torpedo was fired at 00:54 and failed to explode, but another, four minutes later, delivered thecoup de grâce. The ship capsized and sank an hour later. The master, 66 crew and 17 passengers were lost, and the remaining 112 (93 crewmen, 6 gunners and 13 passengers) were later rescued.[2]
At 00:22 on 12 July, the 7,093-ton British merchant shipCortona, dispersed from Convoy OS-33, was struck by a torpedo fromU-116, and three minutes later by another fromU-201. Another torpedo fromU-201 struck amidships at 00:41 and caused the ship to sink after about an hour. Of the crew, 29 men and 2 gunners were lost, while the master, 18 crew and 4 gunners were picked up in their lifeboat ten days later by the destroyerHMS Pathfinder.[3]
At 01:47 on 12 July the 8,826-ton British merchant shipPort Hunter of Convoy OS-33 was struck by a torpedo fromU-582. The ship, whose cargo included ammunition and depth charges, suffered several heavy detonations, and sank within two minutes. The master, 68 crew, 14 gunners, and 5 passengers were lost, the only survivors being three crewmen who had been sleeping on deck, who were blown into the water and survived by clinging to wreckage until rescued byHMS Rother after seven hours in the sea.[4]
At 09:45 on 12 July, the 4,284-ton British merchant shipShaftesbury dispersed from Convoy OS-33 was hit by two torpedoes fromU-116 and sank in 15 minutes. There were no losses among the crew, although the master, Uriel Eynon, was taken prisoner by the U-boat, returned to Germany, and held at theMilag NordPOW camp.[5]
At 04:13 on 12 July, the 5,242-ton British merchant shipSiris, dispersed from convoy OS-33, was hit by a torpedo fromU-201. Damaged and alone, she finally sank at 06:26 after the U-boat surfaced and fired 100 rounds from herdeck gun at the ship. In the attack a crewman and two gunners were killed, while the master, 46 crew and five gunners abandoned ship, and were picked up ten days later byHMS Jonquil.[6]
At 02:21 on 13 July, the 6,723-ton British merchant shipSithonia, dispersed from convoy OS-33, was torpedoed and sunk byU-201, killing 7 of the crew. The master and 20 men made landfall at Timiris,Senegal, after 18 days at sea, and wereinterned by theVichy French, while the chief officer and 24 men were picked up by a Spanish fishing vessel after 14 days.[7]
U-201 struck again at 01:46 on 15 July, sinking the unescorted 6,990-ton BritishtankerBritish Yeoman with a single torpedo after chasing her for about 14 hours. The tanker, loaded with 9,700 tons of Admiraltyfuel oil, immediately caught fire. The next morning the U-boat returned to the scene of the attack and found the stern of the ship still floating, and sank it with 61 rounds from herdeck gun. Only 10 of the crew of 53 survived.[8]
At 03:30 on 15 JulyU-582 torpedoed and sank the 7,524-ton British merchant shipEmpire Attendant south of theCanary Islands. There were no survivors from her crew of 59.[9]