German submarine U-47 (1938)

For other ships with the same name, see German submarine U-47.

15 October 1939. U-47 returns to port after sinking HMS Royal Oak. The battleship Scharnhorst is in the background.
History
Nazi Germany
NameU-47
Ordered21 November 1936
BuilderGermaniawerft, Kiel
Yard number582
Laid down27 February 1937
Launched29 October 1938
Commissioned17 December 1938
FateMissing 7 March 1941, in the North Atlantic near the Rockall Bank and Trough.[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeType VIIB U-boat
Displacement
  • 753 t (741 long tons) surfaced
  • 857 t (843 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a
  • 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Draught4.74 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
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) submerged
Test depth
  • 230 m (750 ft)
  • Calculated crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)
Complement4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems		Gruppenhorchgerät
Armament
Service record
Part of:
Identification codes: M 18 837
Commanders:
Operations:
  • 10 patrols:[1]
  • 1st patrol:
  • 19 August – 15 September 1939
  • 2nd patrol:
  • a. 8 – 17 October 1939
  • b. 20 – 21 October 1939
  • 3rd patrol:
  • a. 16 November – 18 December 1939
  • b. 29 February – 5 March 1940
  • 4th patrol:
  • 11 – 29 March 1940
  • 5th patrol:
  • 3 – 26 April 1940
  • 6th patrol:
  • 3 June – 6 July 1940
  • 7th patrol:
  • 27 August – 25 September 1940
  • 8th patrol:
  • 14 – 23 October 1940
  • 9th patrol:
  • 3 November – 6 December 1940
  • 10th patrol:
  • 20 February – 7 March 1941
Victories:
  • 30 merchant ships sunk
    (162,769 GRT)
  • 1 warship sunk
    (29,150 tons)
  • 8 merchant ships damaged
    (62,751 GRT)
  • 1 warship damaged
    (10,035 tons)[3]

German submarine U-47 was a Type VIIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.[1] She was laid down on 25 February 1937 at Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft in Kiel as yard number 582 and went into service on 17 December 1938 under the command of Günther Prien.

During U-47's career, she sank a total of 31 enemy vessels, including the British battleship HMS Royal Oak, and damaged nine more.[3] U-47 ranks as one of the most successful German U-boats of World War II.[4]

U-47 disappeared in March 1941, and the 45 crewmembers are presumed to have died. In 2016, one of the faulty torpedoes shot at HMS Royal Oak was found and identified.[5]

  1. ^ a b c d e Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIB boat U-47". German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
  2. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by U-47". U-boat Patrols – uboat.net. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Hit was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Most Successful U-boats". German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  5. ^ "Divers just found a torpedo that was likely used during a daring U-boat raid". Washington Post. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2024.