German submarine U-617

U-617 aground near Mellila, Morocco after British air attack on 12 September 1943.
History
Nazi Germany
Name	U-617
Ordered	15 August 1940
Builder	Blohm & Voss, Hamburg
Yard number	593
Laid down	31 May 1941
Launched	14 February 1942
Commissioned	9 April 1942
Fate	Ran aground on 12 September 1943 at position 35°38′N 03°27′W / 35.633°N 3.450°W / 35.633; -3.450 near Melilla then destroyed by combined RAF & FAA aircraft and Royal Navy & Royal Australian Navy surface ships.
General characteristics
Class and type	Type VIIC submarine
Displacement	769 tonnes (757 long tons) surfaced 871 t (857 long tons) submerged
Length	67.10 m (220 ft 2 in) o/a 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in) pressure hull
Beam	6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height	9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
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	17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged
Range	8,500 nmi (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth	230 m (750 ft) Crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)
Complement	4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Armament	5 × 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four bow, one stern) 14 × torpedoes or 26 TMA mines 1 × 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun (220 rounds) 1 x 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 AA gun
Service record[1]
Part of:	5th U-boat Flotilla 9 April – 31 August 1942 7th U-boat Flotilla 1 September – 30 November 1942 29th U-boat Flotilla 1 December 1942 – 12 September 1943
Identification codes:	M 46 554
Commanders:	Kptlt. Albrecht Brandi 9 April 1942 – 12 September 1943
Operations:	7 patrols: 1st patrol: 29 August – 7 October 1942 2nd patrol: 2 – 28 November 1942 3rd patrol: 21 December 1942 – 17 January 1943 4th patrol: 27 January – 13 February 1943 5th patrol: 25 March – 17 April 1943 6th patrol: a. 31 May – 1 June 1943 b. 19 June – 20 July 1943 7th patrol: 28 August – 12 September 1943
Victories:	8 merchant ships sunk (25,879 GRT) 2 warships sunk (3,700 tons) 1 auxiliary warship sunk (810 GRT)

German submarine U-617 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 31 May 1941 by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg as yard number 593, launched on 14 February 1942 and commissioned on 9 April under Kapitänleutnant Albrecht Brandi.

The boat's service began on 9 April 1942 with training as part of the 5th U-boat Flotilla. She was transferred to the 7th flotilla on 1 September 1942 and moved on to the 29th flotilla on 1 December 1942.