SM U-86

For other ships with the same name, see German submarine U-86.

SM U-86
History
German Empire
NameU-86
Ordered23 June 1915
BuilderGermaniawerft, Kiel
Yard number256
Laid down5 November 1915
Launched7 November 1916
Commissioned30 November 1916
FateSurrendered 20 November 1918; scuttled in the English Channel 1921.
General characteristics [1]
Displacement
  • 808 t (795 long tons) surfaced
  • 946 t (931 long tons) submerged
Length
Beam
  • 6.30 m (20 ft 8 in) (oa)
  • 4.15 m (13 ft 7 in) (pressure hull)
Height8.00 m (26 ft 3 in)
Draught4.02 m (13 ft 2 in)
Installed power
  • 2 × 2,400 PS (1,765 kW; 2,367 shp) surfaced
  • 2 × 1,200 PS (883 kW; 1,184 shp) submerged
Propulsion
  • 2 shafts
  • 2 × 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) propellers
Speed
  • 16.8 knots (31.1 km/h; 19.3 mph) surfaced
  • 9.1 knots (16.9 km/h; 10.5 mph) submerged
Range
  • 11,220 nmi (20,780 km; 12,910 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) surfaced
  • 56 nmi (104 km; 64 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged
Test depth50 m (164 ft 1 in)
Complement4 officers, 31 enlisted
Armament
Service record
Part of:
  • IV Flotilla
  • 21 February 1917 – 11 November 1918
Commanders:
  • Kptlt. Friedrich Crüsemann[2]
  • 30 November 1916 – 22 June 1917
  • Kptlt. Alfred Götze[3]
  • 23 June 1917 – 25 January 1918
  • Oblt.z.S. Helmut Patzig[4]
  • 26 January – 11 November 1918[5]
Operations: 12 patrols
Victories:
  • 31 merchant ships sunk
    (89,821 GRT)
  • 2 auxiliary warships sunk
    (27,762 GRT)
  • 1 auxiliary warship damaged
    (163 GRT)

SM U-86 was a Type U 81 submarine manufactured in the Germaniawerft, Kiel shipyard for the German Empire during World War I.[5]

On 27 June 1918, under the command of Lieutenant Helmut Patzig, U-86 sank the Canadian hospital ship HMHS Llandovery Castle off the coast of Ireland, in violation of international law and standing orders of the Imperial German Navy. When the crew took to the lifeboats, U-86 surfaced, ran down all the lifeboats except one, and shot at the people in the water. Only the 24 people in the remaining lifeboat survived. They were rescued shortly afterwards and testified as to what had happened. The 234 others on board Llandovery Castle were lost, including fourteen nursing sisters.[6]

USS Covington,[7] the former Hamburg America ocean liner SS Cincinnati, was torpedoed by U-86 on 1 July 1918 and sank the next day.[8] Covington was the 17th largest ship sunk or damaged by U-boats during the war.[5]

A 1918 Canadian propaganda poster used U-86's sinking of Llandovery Castle as a focal point for selling Victory Bonds.

After the war, the captain of U-86 Helmut Patzig, and two of his lieutenants were arraigned for trial on war crimes, but Patzig fled to the Free City of Danzig, and his trial was stopped on 20 March 1931 by virtue of the Laws of Amnesty. Lieutenants Ludwig Dithmar and Johan Boldt were convicted and sentenced to four years in prison; they were released after four months.

  1. ^ Gröner 1991, pp. 12–14.
  2. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Friedrich Crüsemann". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  3. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Alfred Götze". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  4. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boat commanders: Helmut Patzig". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  5. ^ a b c Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: U 86". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  6. ^ Llandovery Castle at red-duster.co.uk Archived 30 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: USS Covington (ID-1409)". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  8. ^ "Covington". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 8 May 2008.