German submarine U-43 (1939)

For other ships with the same name, see German submarine U-43.

U-37, (an identical U-boat to U-43) at Lorient in 1940
History
Nazi Germany
NameU-43
Ordered21 November 1936[1]
BuilderAG Weser, Bremen[1]
Yard number948[1]
Laid down15 August 1938[1]
Launched23 May 1939[1]
Commissioned26 August 1939[1]
FateSunk south-west of the Azores by an American aircraft, 30 July 1943. 55 dead[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeType IXA submarine
Displacement
  • 1,032 t (1,016 long tons) surfaced
  • 1,153 t (1,135 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 6.51 m (21 ft 4 in) o/a
  • 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught4.70 m (15 ft 5 in)
Installed power
  • 4,400 PS (3,200 kW; 4,300 bhp) (diesels)
  • 1,000 PS (740 kW; 990 shp) (electric)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 18.2 knots (33.7 km/h; 20.9 mph) surfaced
  • 7.7 knots (14.3 km/h; 8.9 mph) submerged
Range
  • 10,500 nmi (19,400 km; 12,100 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 65–78 nmi (120–144 km; 75–90 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth230 m (750 ft)
Complement4 officers, 44 enlisted
Armament
Service record[1][2]
Part of:
Identification codes: M 24 266
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Wilhelm Ambrosius
  • 26 August 1939 – 20 October 1940
  • Kptlt. Wolfgang Lüth
  • 21 October 1940 – 11 April 1942
  • Oblt.z.S. Hans-Joachim Schwantke
  • 19 March 1942 – 30 July 1943
Operations:
  • 14 patrols:
  • 1st patrol:
  • 6 November – 14 December 1939
  • 2nd patrol:
  • 13 March – 6 April 1940
  • 3rd patrol:
  • 12 – 23 April 1940
  • 4th patrol:
  • a. 13 May – 22 July 1940
  • b. 9 – 12 September 1940
  • 5th patrol:
  • 15 September – 18 October 1940
  • 6th patrol:
  • 10 November – 17 December 1940
  • 7th patrol:
  • 11 May – 1 July 1941
  • 8th patrol:
  • 2 August – 23 September 1941
  • 9th patrol:
  • 10 November – 16 December 1941
  • 10th patrol:
  • 30 December 1941 – 22 January 1942
  • 11th patrol:
  • 4 July – 15 August 1942
  • 12th patrol:
  • 23 September – 9 December 1942
  • 13th patrol:
  • 9 January – 31 March 1943
  • 14th patrol:
  • 13 – 30 July 1943
Victories:
  • 21 merchant ships sunk
    (117,036 GRT)
  • 1 merchant ship total loss
    (9,131 GRT)
  • 1 merchant ship damaged
    (10,350 GRT)

German submarine U-43 was a Type IXA[3] U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The keel for U-43 was laid down in August 1938 at Bremen; she was launched in May 1939 and commissioned in August.[1]

Between November 1939 and July 1943, the U-boat conducted 14 combat patrols, sinking 21 merchant ships for a total of 117,036 gross register tons (GRT), damaging one ship of 10,350 GRT and another of 9,131 GRT — enough for it to be declared a total loss.

U-43 was sunk on 30 July 1943 southwest of the Azores by a torpedo dropped by a United States Navy aircraft; all 55 hands were lost.[4]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXA boat U-43". German U-boats of World War II - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  2. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-43". German U-boats of World War II - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  3. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "U-Boat War in World War II: Type IXA". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  4. ^ Kemp 1999, p. 136.