7th U-Boat Flotilla: Doenitz's Atlantic Wolves (Spearhead)
Angus Konstam
Language: English
Pages: 96
ISBN: 0711029571
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
This series looks at the cutting edge of war, and deals with units capable of operating independently in the forefront of battle. Each volume examines the chosen unit's origins and history, its organisation and order of battle, its battle history theatre by theatre, its insignia and its markings.
Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II's Most Audacious General
T-34/76 Medium Tank 1941-45 (New Vanguard, Volume 9)
raised extending rod aerial can be seen by the rope at bottom left of the photograph. At the extreme left the barrel of a machine gun, with its sight clipped in position, pokes skyward suggesting this photo was taken later on in the war when aircraft became a greater threat. 23 5 PEA RHE AD: 7TH U-BOAT FLOTILLA Right: U-99 under Kptlt Otto Kretschmer, the highest scoring U-boat commander of World War II. This was one of the last Type VIIB boats to be launched early in 1940 at a time when the
territories might be gained or quitted, but dominating all our power to carry on the war, or even keep ourselves alive, lay our mastery of the ocean routes and the free approach and entry to our ports.' For the next year, the losses of Allied shipping dwindled, while the columns depicting the numbers of U-boats lost climbed steadily. By the time the Allies were ready to invade German-occupied Europe, the Battle of the Atlantic had been won. By that stage of the war, the U-boats of the
in April 1943, the campaign had already been lost. Unable to stem the tide of Allied shipping, and faced with spiralling losses, Admiral D6nitz was forced to call off his wolfpacks. Changes of strategy failed to reverse the trend. Losses continued to mount as the Allies maintained their technological advantage over the Germans. Flotilla numbers dwindled steadily, a trend that was reflected throughout the U-boat service. Green commanders and crews were now pitched against veteran Allied escort
of one of the firstTypeVllA boats, V-34. The skill he demonstrated in the preparation of this vessel for active service encouraged Donitz to select him for a staff post. On 14 February 1938 he was posted to Donitz's headquarters, where he helped lay the groundwork for the creation of the new flotilla. This involved selecting flotilla staff, supervising the completion of its boats, and grooming the crews who would man the new boats, the best, most modern attack U-boats in the Kriegsmarine.
designed to test the boats in near-combat conditions. For these exercises the flotilla was augmented by three new arrivals: U-46 (Kptlt Herbert Sohler), U-47 (Kptlt Gunther Prien) and U-48 (Kptlt Hans Herbert Schultze). This brought Sobe's force up to five boats, all modern ocean-going Type VIIB boats. Support for the flotilla was provided by two flotilla tenders: the Begleitschiff (support ship) Hertha, and the U-bootsbegleitschiff Wilhelm Bauer. Flotilla staff were quartered on the depot ship
