German submarine U-873

The U.S. Coast Guard patrol boat USCGC Argo (WPC-100) and a tug escort the surrendered German Type IXD2 submarine U-873 to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, New Hampshire (USA) on 16 May 1945.
History
Nazi Germany
NameU-873
Ordered25 August 1941[1]
BuilderAG Weser, Bremen[1]
Yard number1081
Laid down17 February 1943[1]
Launched11 November 1943[1]
Commissioned1 March 1944[1]
Fate
  • Surrendered on 16 May 1945[1]
  • Scrapped in March 1948[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeType IXD2 submarine
Displacement
  • 1,610 t (1,580 long tons) surfaced
  • 1,799 t (1,771 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 7.50 m (24 ft 7 in) o/a
  • 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height10.20 m (33 ft 6 in)
Draught5.35 m (17 ft 7 in)
Installed power
  • 9,000 PS (6,620 kW; 8,880 bhp) (diesels)
  • 1,000 PS (740 kW; 990 shp) (electric)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 20.8 knots (38.5 km/h; 23.9 mph) urfaced
  • 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) submerged
Range
  • 23,700 nmi (43,900 km; 27,300 mi)[2] at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 57 nmi (106 km; 66 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depthCalculated crush depth: 250 m (820 ft)
Boats & landing
craft carried		2 dinghies
Complement55 - 64
Armament
Service record
Part of:
Identification codes: M 50 271
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Friedrich Steinhoff
  • 1 March 1944 – 16 May 1945
Operations:
  • 1 patrol:
  • 30 March – 16 May 1945
Victories: None

German submarine U-873 was a German long-range Type IXD2 U-boat of World War II. Following the surrender of Germany, the United States Navy studied U-873 to improve United States submarine designs. U-873 is remembered for the controversial treatment of its crew as prisoners of war and the death of commanding officer Kapitänleutnant Friedrich Steinhoff in a Boston jail cell. Six months after Steinhoff's death, his brother was one of the Operation Paperclip rocket scientists from Peenemünde arriving in the United States to work at White Sands Missile Range.[3]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type IXD2 boat U-870". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  2. ^ Lenton, H.T. (1976). German Warships of the Second World War. New York: Arco Publishing Company. p. 190. ISBN 0-668-04037-8.
  3. ^ "Steinhoff, Ernst". Astronautix. Archived from the original on 19 April 2005. Retrieved 14 December 2010.