Dispassionate statistics show that during the Second World War, the best submariners were German submariners. They sank 2,603 ​​Allied warships and transport ships with a total displacement of 13.5 million tons. As a result, 70 thousand military sailors and 30 thousand sailors of the merchant fleet died. The ratio of losses and victories, thus, was 1:4 in favor of the German submarines. Soviet submariners, of course, could not boast of such successes, but they nevertheless delivered major troubles to the enemy. List of German submarine war aces who sank ships with a total displacement of more than 100 thousand tons: 1. Otto Kretschmer- sank 44 ships, including 1 destroyer - 266629 tons. 2. Wolfgang Luth- 43 ships, including 1 submarine - 225,712 tons (according to other sources, 47 ships - 228,981 tons). 3. Erich Topp- 34 ships, including 1 American destroyer - 193684 tons. 4. Herbert Schulze- 28 ships - 183432 tons (on his account the first of all ships officially sunk by German submarines - the transport "Bosnia" - was sunk on September 5, 1939). 5. Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock- 25 ships - 183253 tons. 6. Karl-Friedrich Merten- 29 ships - 180869 tons. 7. Heinrich Liebe- 31 ships - 167886 tons. 8. Günther Prien- 30 ships, including the English battleship "Royal Oak", sunk by him on October 14, 1939 in the roadstead in the main naval base of the British fleet Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands - 164953 tons. Günter Prien became the first German officer to receive oak leaves for the Knight's Cross. An outstanding submariner of the Third Reich died very early - on March 8, 1941 (during the attack of a convoy en route from Liverpool to Halifax). 9. Joachim Schepke- 39 ships - 159130 tons. 10. Georg Lassen- 26 ships - 156082 tons. 11. Werner Henke- 24 ships - 155714 tons. 12. Johan Mor- 27 ships, including a corvette and an air defense cruiser - 129292 tons. 13. Engelbert Endras- 22 ships, including 2 cruisers - 128879 tons. 14. Reinhardt Hardegen- 23 ships - 119405 tons. 15. Werner Hartmann- 24 ships - 115616 tons.

Also worthy of mention Albrecht Brandi who sank a minelayer and a destroyer; Reinhardt Suhren(95,092 tons), which sank a corvette; Fritz Julius Lemp(68607 tons), which damaged the English battleship "Barham" and actually sank the first ship of all destroyed by the German submarine fleet, the passenger liner "Athenia" (this happened on September 3, 1939 and was not then recognized by the German side); Otto Shewhart(80688 tons), which sank the English aircraft carrier Courageous on September 17, 1939; Hans Dietrich von Tiesenhausen, which sank the English battleship Barham on November 25, 1941.

Only five of Germany's best submariners sank 174 combat and transport ships allies with a total displacement of 1 million 52 thousand 710 tons.

For comparison: Soviet submarine fleet By June 22, 1941, he had 212 submarines in combat strength (to this must be added 54 submarines built already during the war). These forces (267 submarines) were sunk 157 enemy warships and transports- 462,300 tons (meaning only confirmed data).

The losses of the Soviet submarine fleet amounted to 98 boats (of course, excluding 4 submarines lost Pacific Fleet). In 1941 - 34, in 1942 - 35, in 1943 - 19, in 1944 - 9, in 1945 - 1. The ratio of losses and victories is 1: 1.6 in favor of submarines.

The best submariner of the Soviet Navy Alexander Ivanovich Marinesko sank 4 passenger and commercial vehicles with a total displacement of 42,507 tons:

January 30, 1945 - passenger liner "Wilhelm Gustlov" - 25484 tons (on the submarine S-13); February 10, 1945 - large transport ship "General von Steuben" - 14660 tons (on S-13); August 14, 1942 - Helene transport ship - 1800 tons (on M-96); October 9, 1944 - a small transport "Siegfried" - 563 tons (on S-13).

For the destruction of the Wilhelm Gustlov liner, Alexander Marinesko was "honored" to be included in the list of personal enemies of the Fuhrer and Germany.

On the sunken liner, 3,700 non-commissioned officers - graduates of the diving school, 100 submarine commanders who completed a special advanced training course in managing boats with a single engine of the Walther system, 22 high-ranking party officials from East Prussia, several generals and senior officers of the RSHA, a battalion of auxiliary service were killed Danzig port from the SS troops numbering 300 people, and only about 8,000 people (!!!).

As after the surrender of the 6th Army, Field Marshal Paulus in Stalingrad, mourning was declared in Germany, and the implementation of Hitler's plans to continue the all-out submarine war was seriously hampered.

For two outstanding victories in January-February 1945, all Marinesko crew members were awarded state awards, and submarine S-13- Order of the Red Banner.

The legendary submariner himself, who fell into disgrace, was awarded his main award posthumously only in May 1990. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union 45 years after the end of the war.

Without a doubt, Alexander Marinesko deserved to have monuments erected not only in Russia, but also in Great Britain and the United States of America. His feat saved the lives of many thousands of English and American sailors and brought closer the hour Great Victory.

Captain 3rd rank Alexander Marinesko tops the list of Soviet submariner aces not in terms of the number of enemy ships destroyed, but in terms of the amount of their displacement and the amount of damage inflicted on Germany's military potential. Following him are the following most successful submariners:

2. Valentin Starikov(lieutenant captain, commander of the submarine M-171, K-1, Northern Fleet) - 14 ships; 3. Ivan Travkin(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the submarine Shch-303, K-52, Baltic Fleet) - 13 ships; 4. Nikolai Lunin(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the submarine Shch-421, K-21, Northern Fleet) - 13 ships; 5. Magomed Gadzhiev(captain of the 2nd rank, submarine division commander, Northern Fleet) - 10 ships; 6. Grigory Shchedrin(captain of the 2nd rank, commander of the S-56 submarine, Northern Fleet) - 9 ships; 7. Samuil Bogorad(captain of the 3rd rank, commander of the Shch-310 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 7 ships; 8. Mikhail Kalinin(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-307 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 6 ships; 9. Nikolai Mokhov(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-317 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 5 ships; 10. Evgeny Osipov(lieutenant commander, commander of the Shch-407 submarine, Baltic Fleet) - 5 ships.

IN United States Navy The greatest success was achieved by the crews of the Totog submarine - it sank 26 enemy warships and transports. In terms of displacement, the best result belongs to the crew of the Flasher submarine - 100231 tons. But the most famous US submariner during the Second World War was Joseph Inright.

NewsInfo based on materials from the website "Russian Submarine Fleet"

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The German submarine ace, a participant in the Battle of the Atlantic - Reinhard Hardegen went down in history not only thanks to naval victories. Once, at a gala dinner, he criticized not just anyone, but the Fuhrer personally ...

Underwater ace Hardegen

In the spring of 1942, the commander of the submarine U 123 Reinhard Hardegen (and underwater ace Erich Topp) was called to the Fuhrer's headquarters for decoration. The commander of the submarine fleet, Karl Dönitz, presented the submariner, holder of the Knight's Cross (the highest order of the Third Reich), to the Oak Leaves.

After the ceremony ended, Hitler invited the officers to dinner. During the meal, the Fuhrer began his monologue about affairs at the front and politics.

Suddenly Hardegen interrupted him. The underwater ace began to teach the leader of the strategy of naval warfare. Moreover, he criticized his views on submarines and naval aviation, which greatly spoiled Hitler's mood.

How did it happen that Dönitz, invited by him, dared to criticize the entire leader of the Reich, and how did Hardegen rise to such a high award?

(photo: Petra Stubbe)

By the way, the desperate submariner is still alive. On March 18, 2018, he turns 105 years old. At the moment, Hardegen remains the only living underwater aces of the Third Reich and is the oldest submarine commander on the planet.

Sailor from Bremen

Reinhard Hardegen was born in Bremen. Since childhood, he dreamed of connecting his life with the fleet. Thanks to a family friend - a retired sea captain - the young man strengthened his desire even more. The old sailor explained to Hardegen that the fleet needed educated officers, and the guy sat down for textbooks.

On April 1, 1933, Reinhard applied for the Navy, wishing to become a cadet. He was enrolled in the 33rd naval crew. The training lasted three and a half years. During this time, the cadets circumnavigated the world on the cruiser Karlsruhe, studied at the Mürvik Naval School and chose a military specialty. Hardegen decided to link his fate with aviation and became a naval pilot.

From pilots to submariners

After the flight school, Hardegen was supposed to be sent to serve in one of the Kriegsmarine squadrons, but chance intervened.

On September 19, 1936, a plane crash occurred at the Kiel airfield, the future underwater ace was seriously injured. With a severe fracture of the leg (which has now become shorter than the other) and injuries to internal organs, he spent six months in the hospital. From that moment on, the future ace began to have systematic health problems.

The pilot received the rank of lieutenant zur see while in a hospital bed.

After leaving the hospital, Hardegen continued to serve in naval aviation in one of the PLO (anti-submarine defense) squadrons. However, in November 1939, when the Kriegsmarine aviation was transferred to the Luftwaffe, it was transferred to submarines.

Hardegen (right) aboard U 124

A diving school, various training courses - and in August 1940, yesterday's naval pilot became a watch officer on the U 124 submarine. On it, he made two trips to the Atlantic, and in December of the same year he took command of the U 149 submarine (a small boat of type IID ).

On this ship, the future ace opened an account by sinking his first ship - the Norwegian steamer Augvald.

"Einz, zwei, dry"

But what about health? While Hardegen studied at various courses and went on campaigns, none of his superiors suspected that he was not fit for service on submarines. Documents from the hospital with his medical examination were sent to the place of service late.

They got to Dönitz's deputy, the captain of the zur see ( rank similar to captain 1st rank of the Navy of the USSR / Russian Federation - approx. Warhead) von Friedeburg, when he wanted to transfer the submariner from U 149 to U 123 - a large boat of the IXB type. Hardegen re-passed the medical examination, which made a disappointing conclusion: he was fit for service only on surface ships. However, this did not stop Reinhard. He persuaded von Friedeburg, who nevertheless approved his appointment to U 123.

On May 19, 1941, Hardegen arrived at the base in the French port of Lorian. U 123, nicknamed "Einz, zwei, dry", was waiting for him there. On this submarine, the submariner fought until the end of front-line service.

"Kick the Timpani"

After the United States declared war, the headquarters of the German submarine forces developed Operation Timpani Strike. Its goal is to destroy shipping in American waters. For the "strike" Karl Dönitz sent a group of submarines, including U 123.

Submarines "hit the timpani" on January 12, 1942. For weeks they sank ships from New York to Florida with impunity. Hardegen showed the best result.

He reported sinking ten ships at 65,635 tons. For these merits, the officer was awarded the Knight's Cross.

Dönitz was now sending his boats to the US coast in greater numbers. Hardegen had to go there again, although the commander of the submarine forces again wanted to remove him from the boat for health reasons.

The operations of the Reich submarine forces off the coast of the United States is one of the most dramatic periods of the Battle of the Atlantic. But, fortunately, the Kriegsmarine could neither achieve a reduction in the transport tonnage that the Allies had, nor seriously interfere with the movement of convoys. American factories and shipyards worked more and more intensively, and an increasingly powerful flow of cargo was flowing across the Atlantic, distributed between Britain and the USSR.

In March 1942 U 123 was nearly sunk. Hardegen distinguished himself again, but now the situation has become seriously complicated - the United States is gradually building up coastal defenses. At first, his submarine had to endure a battle with a trap ship, and miraculously emerged victorious. And at the end of the voyage, U 123 almost died under the depth charges of the US Navy destroyer Dahlgren. The ship bombed the boat when it lay at a depth of only 22 meters.

Hardegen was very lucky: U 123 escaped with damage and managed to hobble to the base. During the campaign, the submariner recorded nine more ships for 69405 tons on his combat account.

In total, according to Dönitz's calculations, the underwater ace sank ships for 170,000 tons (in reality, Hardegen sank 21 ships for 112,447 tons).

The commander of the submarine fleet introduced the officer to the Oak Leaves. Hitler approved the initiative and invited the ace to the headquarters. Where he burst into a critical speech.

Hardegen never went to sea again. For health reasons, Dönitz transferred him to a coastal post.

Definitely, with this decision, the commander of the German submarine and the future commander-in-chief of the Kriegsmarine saved Hardegen's life. The scope of the Allied anti-submarine operations, starting from the autumn of 1942, left almost no chance for even aces submariners to survive - sooner or later everyone received their bomb.

The underwater ace continued to serve in training flotillas, taught torpedo business in Mürvik. At the end of the war, he commanded a battalion in the 2nd Marine Division of the Kriegsmarine and was taken prisoner by the British in May 1945. He spent a year and a half in captivity and was released in November 1946 "without claims" - unlike many of his colleagues, Hardegen did not commit war crimes.

Returning to his family, the submariner tried to find himself in a peaceful life. He began to do business - and created a successful oil trading company. Then he became a member of the Parliament of Bremen, where he was elected for 32 years. And in the end, despite poor health, Hardegen outlived his fellow submariners.

Otto Kretschmer entered the history of World War II under the nickname "King of the tonnage". For his achievements, he is often called the best Dönitz submariner or underwater ace No. 1. But is this so? After all, some of his colleagues also committed deeds that no one could surpass. Will they push Kretschmer off the pedestal? Let's try to figure out who could be the best submariner of the Third Reich.

German submarine aces

The French word "ace" began to be actively used in military terminology during the First World War. It meant "a specialist of the highest class" or "the best of the best." Initially, this was the name of military pilots who were fluent in the art of piloting and air combat and shot down at least five enemy aircraft. Soon aces appeared among the submariners. Already in September 1914, German submarines declared themselves as a formidable weapon, when their torpedoes sent four British cruisers to the bottom. After that, the submarines engaged in the destruction of merchant ships and achieved impressive success.

A distinctive feature of the submarine ace of the Kaiser fleet was the awarding of the submarine commander with the highest military order of Prussia "Pour le Mérite" ("For Merit"). IN armed forces In Germany, because of the color of the cross, he was nicknamed "Blue Max". The first cavalier of the order among submariners was the famous Otto Weddigen. In total, 29 submarine commanders were awarded this award in World War I. Prominent figures among them were Lothar von Arnaud de la Perriere and Otto Herzing.

The Treaty of Versailles deprived Germany of submarines for 16 years. But with the coming to power of Hitler, Versailles was denounced, and submarines reappeared in the German fleet. By the beginning of World War II, it consisted of 57 boats. The Kriegsmarine made extensive preparations for submarine warfare: as of September 1, 1939, 80 new submarines were laid down.

Since submarines were once again at war with merchant shipping, their commanders needed to be encouraged to sink as many ships as possible. Therefore, according to the new rules, the Knight's Cross relied for 100,000 brt, and for 200,000 - Oak leaves to it. The destruction of an enemy battleship or aircraft carrier automatically made the submarine commander a holder of the Knight's Cross.

During World War II, 124 commanders received this award. However, only 34 of them managed to overcome the bar of 100,000 GRT, another 50 sank over 50,000 GRT. Seven commanders were made knights of the Knight's Cross for sinking or damaging large warships: Prien, Shewhart, Esten, Hugenberger, von Tizenhausen, Bigalk and Rosenbaum.

Let us pay attention to the particularly outstanding submariners of Dönitz.

Otto Kretschmer

Kretschmer began the war as the commander of a small "two" U 23. He had all the qualities to achieve success: a fearless, prudent, cold-blooded and aggressive submariner. His dislike for chatter became the talk of the town on the submarine. Colleagues gave him the nickname "Silent Otto".

Until March 1940, U 23 operated in the North Sea. During this time, she was credited with the sinking of a destroyer and 25,738 GRT of merchant tonnage. But in reality, the "two" sank less: five ships at 10,736 gross tons - and caused irreparable damage to two ships at 15,513 gross tons.

On April 2, 1940, Kretschmer was appointed commander of the U 99, a type VIIB boat, which was being completed. On April 18, she entered the Kriegsmarine. From that moment, the ascent of the "silent Otto" to the underwater Olympus began, since the Atlantic was much more promising than the North Sea.

Otto Kretschmer in Berlin after the ceremony of awarding the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross for the sinking of 200 thousand brt. Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-L16644 / CC-BY-SA 3.0.
de.wikipedia.org

In his first campaign, Hessler acted confidently and aggressively, sinking four ships in the Atlantic with a total tonnage of 18,482 gross tons. The second campaign of U 107 was a unique event in the history of the Kriegsmarine. The boat was sent south to the African port of Freetown. After spending 96 days at sea, she sank 14 ships at 86,699 GRT. This was the best result shown by a German submarine in one campaign, and it remained unsurpassed.

Since the sum of the tonnage sunk in two campaigns of U 107 exceeded 100,000 GRT, Hessler was entitled to the Knight's Cross. But Dönitz was silent. The commander felt inconvenience: the one presented for the highest award was his son-in-law. Even the intervention of high authorities did not spur Dönitz to action. As a result, Grand Admiral Erich Raeder himself signed the award documents, and his headquarters sent a personal congratulation to U 107.

The third campaign of U 107 was the last for Hessler in his career as a submariner. He again received the task of operating off the African coast, but he could not repeat his previous success. After the Freetown massacre in the spring and summer of 1941, the British limited the movement of single ships by introducing a system of convoys there.

Nevertheless, Hessler managed to distinguish himself. On September 24 of the same year, U 107 successfully attacked convoy SL-87, sinking three ships at 13,641 GRT. Upon the return of the boat to the base, Günter Hessler was transferred to the headquarters of the commander of the submarine forces, where he served until the end of the war.

Erwin Rostin came to the submarine from minesweepers. At the beginning of the war, he commanded the 7th minesweeping flotilla, and then alternately was the commander of the minesweepers M 98 and M 21. In March 1941, already being a lieutenant commander, Rostin switched to submarines and, after completing his training, became the commander of the brand new "nine" U 158 .

Rostin literally burst into the ranks of the Dönitz underwater guard like a meteor. In the first half of 1942, he made two trips to the US coast, during which he sank 17 ships at 101,321 GRT. In the first of them, Rostin sent five vessels to the bottom at 38,785 gross tons.

The second campaign began on May 20, 1942. U 158 successfully operated in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Rostin made a real massacre there, sinking 12 ships with a total tonnage of 62,536 gross tons. Upon learning of this success, on June 29, Karl Dönitz sent a message to U 158 congratulating the commander on his award of the Knight's Cross.

Erwin Rostin's star went down as fast as it came up. The very next day after the commander's congratulations, U 158 was attacked by an American aircraft and sunk west of Bermuda. The entire crew was killed.

Wolfgang Luth

Now let's turn our attention to the last candidate - the outstanding submariner Wolfgang Lüth. His personality, well known to lovers of maritime history, needs no introduction. So let's move on to the arguments in his favor.

Lut became the first and only commander of a Series II boat to be awarded the Knight's Cross for real, not imaginary success. During the command of the "twos" U 9 and U 138, he was credited with 12 merchant ships for 87,236 GRT. And although the real result was less - 13 ships (12 as a result of torpedo attacks and one more after laying mines) with a total tonnage of 56,640 gross tons - none of the commanders of the "twos" managed to get close to such figures.

Wolfgang Luth. By many standards, he was a unique submariner who stands out among the aces of Dönitz for his achievements.
4.bp.blogspot.com

Wolfgang Lüth holds the absolute endurance record among German submarine commanders. For four years he commanded combat submarines, having made 15 military campaigns with a total duration of 640 days. At the same time, Lut traveled more than 160,000 km, or, in other words, circled the equator four times, so that he can be recognized not only as a talented submariner, but also as an excellent navigator. Diesel submarines of that time were very far from comfortable conditions. It was necessary to be able to walk such a distance in that stink, dampness and other "charms" for which they were famous.

Separately, there is a question about its effectiveness. In the Kriegsmarine, Wolfgang Luth received the nickname "Great Hunter", which was quite right. In official German and post-war assessments of the success of German submarines, Otto Kretschmer took the first place in terms of tonnage sunk. But it is precisely the trading tonnage that is more on Luth's account.

The result of the "silent Otto" consisted of 40 ships for 208,954 gross tons and three auxiliary cruisers with a total tonnage of 46,440 gross tons. This gave a total of 255,394 brt. Luth's successes amounted to 46 ships sunk at 225,204 GRT. That is, the "Great Hunter" sank the "merchants" more than Kretschmer. Of course, this does not deprive Otto of leadership in overall results, but clearly indicates that Lut was more successful in the war with merchant ships.

Who is who

The analysis of the successes and achievements of the above German aces allows us to conclude that Otto Kretschmer is the most effective submariner in the Kriegsmarine. But given the controversy of his merit in the sinking of the Terje Viken mother ship, the result can be reduced by 20,000 GRT. Although even with such a deduction, Kretschmer overtakes Luth in the overall standings: 234,756 against 225,204 brt.

Nevertheless, Wolfgang Luth showed a better result in the number and tonnage of merchant ships sunk than Kretschmer. This means that Lut can be recognized as the best submariner in the Kriegsmarine in terms of the war with merchant tonnage and share the first place with Kretschmer.

At the same time, it is worth noting the role of the much lesser-known Hessler and Rostin. They received their Crosses honestly, without any exaggeration. Of course, the specifics of the actions of the boats of the IX series differed from the "sevens", but this does not negate the uniqueness of the phenomenon "100,000 brt in two trips", which no one could repeat. This allows Hessler and Rostin to also claim the title of the best submariner.

Thus, places on the pantheon of the underwater "Olympus" can be distributed as follows:

• Otto Kretschmer - the best result of the sunk tonnage in the overall standings;
• Wolfgang Luth - the best result in the number and tonnage of merchant ships;
• Günter Hessler and Erwin Rostin - the fastest achievement of the 100,000 GRT mark.

What about Prin? Günter Prien was and remains the No. 1 submarine ace. Thanks to the British Navy's raid on the holy of holies and success in the tonnage war, he retained this title in the history of the Kriegsmarine submarine.

Sources and literature:

1. NARA T1022 (captured documents of the German Navy).
2. Blair, S. Hitler's U-boat War. The Hunters, 1939–1942 / S. Blair. - Random House, 1996.
3. Blair, S. Hitler's U-boat War. The Hunted, 1942–1945 / S. Blair. - Random House, 1998.
4. Busch, R. German U-boat Commanders of World War II / R. Busch, H.-J. Roll. - Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1999.
5. Busch, R. Der U-boot-Krieg 1939-1945. Deutsche Uboot-Erfolge von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 / R. Busch, H.-J. Roll. - Band 3. - Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn, Hamburg-Berlin-Bonn.
6. Rohwer, J. Axis Submarine Successes of World War Two / J. Rohwer. - Annapolis, 1999.
7. U-Boat War in the Atlantic 1939–1945: German Naval History by Hessler, Günther (editor). - HMSO, London, 1992.
8. Wynn, K. U-Boat Operations of the Second World War / K. Wynn. - Vol. 1–2. - Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1998.
9. Churchill, W. World War II / W. Churchill. - In 6 vols. Vol. 1: The impending storm. - M.: TERRA; "Bookshop - RTR", 1997.
10. http://www.uboat.net
11. http://www.uboatarchive.net
12. http://historisches-marinearchiv.de

Every war is a terrible grief for any people that it affects in one way or another. Throughout its history, mankind has known many wars, two of which were world wars. The First World War almost completely destroyed Europe and led to the fall of some large empires, such as the Russian and Austro-Hungarian. But even more terrible in its scale was the Second World War, in which many countries from almost all over the world were involved. Millions of people died, and even more were left without a roof over their heads. This terrible event still affects in one way or another modern man. Its echoes can be found throughout our lives. This tragedy left behind a lot of mysteries, disputes over which have not subsided for decades. He took upon himself the heaviest burden in this battle not for life, but for death, then not yet completely strengthened from the revolution and civil wars and only building up his military and peaceful industry Soviet Union. Irreconcilable rage and a desire to fight the invaders who encroached on the territorial integrity and freedom of the proletarian state settled in the hearts of people. Many went to the front voluntarily. At the same time, the evacuated industrial capacities were reorganized for the production of products for the needs of the front. The struggle took on the scale of a truly popular one. That is why it is called the Great Patriotic War.

Who are the aces?

Both the German and Soviet armies were well trained and equipped with equipment, aircraft and other weapons. The personnel numbered in the millions. The collision of these two war machines gave birth to its heroes and its traitors. One of those who can rightfully be considered heroes are the aces of World War II. Who are they and why are they so famous? An ace can be considered a person who has achieved such heights in his field of activity that few people managed to conquer. And even in such a dangerous and terrible business as the military, there have always been professionals. Both the USSR and the allied forces, and Nazi Germany had people who showed the best results in terms of the number of destroyed enemy equipment or manpower. This article will tell about these heroes.

The list of aces of World War II is extensive and includes many individuals famous for their exploits. They were an example for a whole nation, they were adored, admired.

Aviation is without a doubt one of the most romantic, but at the same time dangerous branches of the military. Since any technique can fail at any moment, the pilot's work is considered very honorable. It requires iron restraint, discipline, the ability to control oneself in any situation. Therefore, aviation aces were treated with great respect. After all, to be able to show a good result in such conditions, when your life depends not only on technology, but also on yourself, - highest degree military art. So, who are they - the aces of the Second World War, and why are their exploits so famous?

One of the most productive Soviet aces pilots was Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub. Officially, during his service on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, he shot down 62 German aircraft, and he is also credited with 2 American fighters, which he destroyed at the end of the war. This record-breaking pilot served in the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment and flew a La-7 aircraft.

The second most successful during the war was Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin (who was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union three times). He fought in southern Ukraine, in the Black Sea region, liberated Europe from the Nazis. During his service he shot down 59 enemy aircraft. He did not stop flying even when he was appointed commander of the 9th Guards Aviation Division, and won some of his air victories while already in this position.

Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev is one of the most famous military pilots, who set a record - 4 sorties for one destroyed aircraft. In total, during his military service, he destroyed 57 enemy aircraft. Awarded twice the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

He also shot down 55 German aircraft. Kozhedub, who happened to serve for some time with Evstigneev in the same regiment, spoke very respectfully about this pilot.

But, despite the fact that the tank troops were among the most numerous in the Soviet army, for some reason the USSR did not have aces tankers of the Second World War. Why this is so is unknown. It is logical to assume that many personal scores were deliberately overestimated or underestimated, so it is not possible to name the exact number of victories of the aforementioned tank battle masters.

German tank aces

But the German tank aces of World War II have a much longer track record. This is largely due to the pedantry of the Germans, who strictly documented everything, and they had much more time to fight than their Soviet "colleagues". The German army began active operations in 1939.

German tankman number 1 is Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann. He fought on many tanks (Stug III, Tiger I) and destroyed 138 vehicles during the entire war, as well as 132 self-propelled artillery installations of various enemy countries. For his successes he was repeatedly awarded various orders and signs of the Third Reich. Killed in action in 1944 in France.

You can also single out such a tank ace as For those who are somehow interested in the history of development tank troops Third Reich, the book of his memoirs "Tigers in the Mud" will be very useful. During the war years, this man destroyed 150 Soviet and American self-propelled guns and tanks.

Kurt Knispel is another record holder tanker. He knocked out 168 tanks and self-propelled guns of the enemy for his military service. About 30 cars are unconfirmed, which does not allow him to catch up with Wittmann in terms of results. Knispel was killed in battle near the village of Vostits in Czechoslovakia, in 1945.

In addition, Karl Bromann had good results - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Ernst Barkmann - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Erich Mausberg - 53 tanks and self-propelled guns.

As can be seen from these results, both the Soviet and German tank aces of World War II knew how to fight. Of course, the quantity and quality of Soviet combat vehicles was an order of magnitude higher than that of the Germans, however, as practice has shown, both of them were used quite successfully and became the basis for some post-war tank models.

But the list of military branches in which their masters distinguished themselves does not end there. Let's talk a little about aces-submariners.

Submarine Warfare Masters

Just as in the case of aircraft and tanks, the most successful are the German sailors. During the years of its existence, the Kriegsmarine submariners sank 2603 ships of the allied countries, the total displacement of which reaches 13.5 million tons. This is a truly impressive number. And the German submarine aces of World War II could also boast of impressive personal scores.

The most productive German submariner is Otto Kretschmer, who has 44 ships, including 1 destroyer. The total displacement of the ships sunk by him is 266629 tons.

In second place is Wolfgang Luth, who sent 43 enemy ships to the bottom (and according to other sources - 47) with a total displacement of 225,712 tons.

He was also a famous sea ace who even managed to sink the British battleship Royal Oak. It was one of the first officers to receive oak leaves for Prien and destroyed 30 ships. Killed in 1941 during an attack on a British convoy. He was so popular that his death was hidden from the people for two months. And on the day of his funeral, mourning was declared throughout the country.

Such successes of the German sailors are also quite understandable. The fact is that Germany started a naval war back in 1940, with a blockade of Britain, thus hoping to undermine its maritime greatness and, taking advantage of this, to carry out a successful capture of the islands. However, very soon the plans of the Nazis were frustrated, as America entered the war with its large and powerful fleet.

The most famous Soviet sailor of the submarine fleet is Alexander Marinesko. He sank only 4 ships, but what! Heavy passenger liner "Wilhelm Gustloff", transport "General von Steuben", as well as 2 units of heavy floating batteries "Helene" and "Siegfried". For his exploits, Hitler put the sailor on the list of personal enemies. But the fate of Marinesko did not work out well. He fell into disgrace Soviet power and died, and his exploits ceased to speak. The great sailor received the Hero of the Soviet Union award only posthumously in 1990. Unfortunately, many aces of the USSR of the Second World War ended their lives in a similar way.

Also famous submariners of the Soviet Union are Ivan Travkin - sank 13 ships, Nikolai Lunin - also 13 ships, Valentin Starikov - 14 ships. But Marinesko topped the list of the best submariners of the Soviet Union, as he caused the greatest damage to the German navy.

Accuracy and Stealth

Well, how can one not remember such famous fighters as snipers? Here the Soviet Union takes the well-deserved palm from Germany. Soviet sniper aces of World War II had very high service records. In many respects, such results were achieved thanks to the mass state training of the civilian population in shooting from various weapons. About 9 million people were awarded the Voroshilovsky shooter badge. So, what are the most famous snipers?

The name of Vasily Zaitsev frightened the Germans and inspired courage in the Soviet soldiers. This ordinary guy, a hunter, killed 225 Wehrmacht soldiers from his Mosin rifle in just a month of fighting near Stalingrad. Among the outstanding sniper names are Fedor Okhlopkov, who (for the entire war) accounted for about a thousand Nazis; Semyon Nomokonov, who killed 368 enemy soldiers. There were also women among the snipers. An example of this is the famous Lyudmila Pavlichenko, who fought near Odessa and Sevastopol.

German snipers are less known, although in Germany since 1942 there were several sniper schools that dealt with vocational training frames. Among the most successful German shooters are Matthias Hetzenauer (345 killed), (257 destroyed), Bruno Sutkus (209 soldiers shot dead). Also a famous sniper from the countries of the Hitler bloc is Simo Hayha - this Finn killed 504 Red Army soldiers during the war years (according to unconfirmed reports).

Thus, the sniper training of the Soviet Union was immeasurably higher than that of the German troops, which allowed the Soviet soldiers to wear the proud title of aces of World War II.

How did they become aces?

So, the concept of "ace of the Second World War" is quite extensive. As already mentioned, these people achieved truly impressive results in their work. This was achieved not only due to good army training, but also due to outstanding personal qualities. After all, for a pilot, for example, coordination and quick reaction are very important, for a sniper - the ability to wait for the right moment to sometimes fire a single shot.

Accordingly, it is impossible to determine who had the best aces of the Second World War. Both sides committed unparalleled heroism, which made it possible to distinguish from the general mass individual people. But one could become a master only by training hard and improving one's combat skills, since war does not tolerate weakness. Of course, the dry lines of statistics will not be able to convey to a modern person all the hardships and hardships that war professionals experienced during their formation on an honorary pedestal.

We, the generation that lives without knowing such terrible things, should not forget about the exploits of our predecessors. They can become an inspiration, a reminder, a memory. And we must try to do everything to ensure that such terrible events, like past wars, did not happen again.

"Wolf Packs" in World War II. Legendary submarines of the Third Reich Gromov Alex

Appendix II Illustrious German Submarine Officers of World War II

Appendix II

Famous German submarine officers of World War II

Otto Kretschmer graduated from school in Exeter (England). On October 9, 1930, he entered the Navy as a cadet. October 1, 1934 received the rank of lieutenant. He served on the training ship Niobe and the light cruiser Emden. In January 1936 he was transferred to the submarine fleet. From November 1936 he served as a watch officer on U-35. In connection with the death of the commander in a car accident, on July 31, 1937, Kretschmer became the commander of U-35 and, in this capacity, sailed to the coast of Spain (to support Franco's troops). On August 15, 1937, a new commander was appointed, and Kretschmer continued to perform his duties as a watch officer for another month and a half, until September 30, 1937. On October 1, 1937, he was given command of the boat U-23, on which he made 8 campaigns.

January 12, 1940 torpedoed the tanker "Denmark" (10,517 tons), a month later sank the destroyer "Daring". On April 18, 1940, he was appointed commander of the submarine U-99. On the night of November 4, 1940, U-99 under the command of Kretschmer sank the British auxiliary cruisers Patroclus (11,314 tons), Laurentik (18,724 tons) and Forfar (16,402 tons). On March 17, 1941, U-99 was discovered by the British destroyer Walker and bombarded with depth charges. When the boat surfaced, the destroyers shot her, after which Kretschmer gave the order to flood the boat. The crew was taken prisoner. Kretschmer until the end of the war was in the Bowmanville POW camp. December 26, 1941 Otto Kretschmer was awarded the Knight's Cross iron cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. The commandant of the camp gave him the award.

In 1955, Otto Kretschmer joined the Bundesmarine. Since 1958, the commander of the amphibious troops of the Federal Republic of Germany. In 1970, Kretschmer retired with the rank of flotilla admiral. Otto Kretschmer died on August 5, 1998 in a Bavarian hospital, where he ended up after a car accident.

Wolfgang Luth was born on October 15, 1913 in Riga. In April 1933 he joined the Kriegsmarine. On December 30, 1939 he was appointed commander of the submarine U-9. January 27, 1940 - commander of the U-138 submarine, October 21, 1940 - commander of the U-43 submarine.

On October 24, 1940, Lieutenant zur See Lut received the Knight's Cross for sinking 49,000 tons in 27 days. On May 9, 1942, he was appointed commander of the submarine U-181. By November 1943, he sank 43 ships (225,712 tons) and 1 Allied submarine, becoming the second most successful underwater ace of World War II, second only to Otto Kretschmer. For his success, Wolfgang Lüth became the first of two submariners to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds (the second awarded was Albrecht Brandi). In January 1944 Luth was appointed commander of the training 22nd submarine flotilla of the Kriegsmarine. On August 1, 1944, he was promoted to the rank of captain-zur-see and appointed head of the naval school in Mürwik, near Flensburg, which later became the seat of the Dönitz government.

Wolfgang Lüth was shot by a German sentry on May 13, 1945, 5 days after the end of the war, but before the Dönitz government was arrested. The sentry was acquitted as Lute did not answer the triple question "Stop, who's coming".

He was buried in Flensburg with full military honors. It was the last solemn funeral in the history of the Third Reich.

Erich Topp Born July 2, 1914 in Hannover (Lower Saxony) in the family of engineer Johannes Topp. On April 8, 1934, he joined the Reichsmarine and on April 1, 1937, he was promoted to lieutenant-zur-see. From April 18 to October 4, 1937 he was adjutant aboard the light cruiser Karlsruhe, which in June 1937 during the Spanish civil war patrolled the Spanish coast.

Even before the outbreak of World War II, Karl Dönitz convinced the young officer to join the submarine forces of the Kriegsmarine. In June 1940, Topp was given command of the U-57 Type II-C submarine, with which he sank 6 ships in two cruises. When returning from a military campaign near Brunsbüttel, an accident occurred. The Norwegian bulk carrier Rona crashed into a submarine illuminated at night, and it sank within seconds. Six sailors died.

In December 1940, Topp was appointed commander of U-552, a Type VII-C submarine. On it, he made ten campaigns, in which he sank 28 merchant ships and damaged 4 more. On October 31, 1941, his boat sank the American destroyer Reuben James, which became the first American ship sunk in World War II. In October 1942, Topp became the head of the 27th submarine flotilla in Gotenhafen. Until the end of the war, he was the commander of U-2513, a class XXI "electric boat".

In total, Erich Topp sank 34 ships (about 200,000 GRT), 1 destroyer and 1 military support vessel. Thus, he became the third most successful submariner of World War II, behind Otto Kretschmer and Wolfgang Lüth.

From May 20 to August 17, 1945, Topp was a prisoner of war in Norway. On June 4, 1946, he began to study architecture at Technical University Hannover and graduated in 1950 with a diploma with honors.

On March 3, 1958, he rejoined the German Navy. From August 16, 1958, Topp served as a staff officer on the NATO military committee in Washington. On November 1, 1959, he was promoted to captain-zur-see, from January 1, 1962 he served as commander of the landing forces and at the same time, for one month, was and. about. submarine commander. On October 1, 1963, he was appointed chief of staff in the command of the fleet, from July 1, 1965 he served as head of a subdivision in the German Ministry of Defense. After receiving the rank of flotilla admiral on November 15, 1965, he became a deputy inspector of the Navy. December 21, 1966 was promoted to rear admiral. For his merits in the restoration of the naval forces and their integration into NATO structures, on September 19, 1969, he was awarded the Cross of Merit for Federal Republic Germany". December 31, 1969 retired. After leaving the Bundesmarine, Topp worked as a consultant for several years, including at the Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft shipyard. Erich Topp died on December 26, 2005 at the age of 91.

Victor Ern was born in the Caucasus in Gadabay in the family of a German colonist on October 21, 1907. In 1921, the Ern family fled to Germany.

On October 1, 1927, he entered the Navy as a cadet. October 1, 1929 promoted to lieutenant. He served on the light cruisers Königsberg and Karlsruhe. In July 1935, one of the first naval officers was transferred to the submarine fleet.

From January 18, 1936 to October 4, 1937 he commanded the submarine U-14, in July-September 1936 he participated in hostilities off the coast of Spain. In 1939 he graduated Naval Academy and in August 1939 he was enrolled in the headquarters of Karl Dönitz.

On May 6, 1940, he was appointed commander of the U-37 submarine, on which he made 4 campaigns (having spent a total of 81 days at sea).

On the very first trip to Norwegian waters, Ern sank 10 ships with a total displacement of 41,207 gross tons and damaged 1 ship. In the second campaign, Ern chalked up 7 ships (with a displacement of 28,439 GRT), in the third - 6 more ships (28,210 GRT). In total, in a fairly short period, Ern sank 24 ships with a total displacement of 104,842 gross tons and damaged 1 ship with a displacement of 9,494 gross tons.

On October 21, 1940, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and on October 26 he was again transferred as the 1st officer of the Admiral Staff to the headquarters of the commander of the submarine fleet.

In November 1941, he was sent to the Mediterranean Sea to coordinate the activities of submarines, and in February 1942 he was appointed 1st officer of the Admiral Staff at the headquarters of the commander of submarines in the Mediterranean.

In July 1942, during a business trip to North Africa, Ern was seriously wounded and taken prisoner by British troops. After recovery, he was placed in a prisoner of war camp in Egypt, and in October 1943 he was exchanged for British prisoners and returned to Germany through Port Said, Barcelona and Marseille.

Since 1943, 1st officer of the Admiral Staff in the Operations Department of the OKM. In May 1945 he was interned by British troops. After his release, he worked at Siemens, held high positions in Bonn. Died December 26, 1997

Hans Günther Lange was born on September 28, 1916 in Hannover. On September 1, 1937, he entered the Navy as a cadet. August 1, 1939 promoted to lieutenant. He served on the destroyer Jaguar.

September 1, 1941 transferred to the submarine fleet. As the 1st watch officer, he made a trip to the Mediterranean Sea on the submarine U-431.

In July 1942 he was transferred to the 24th submarine flotilla. On September 26, 1942, he was appointed commander of the U-711 submarine, on which he made 12 campaigns (having spent a total of 304 days at sea). U-711's main area of ​​operations was the waters of the Arctic, where Lange operated against allied convoys. In the autumn of 1943, he acted as part of the Viking submarine group, in March - April 1944 - the Blitz group, in April - May 1944 - the Kiel group.

Three times Lange attacked small Soviet radio stations located on the islands of the Barents Sea (Pravda, Prosperity, Sterligov). On August 23, 1944, Lange attacked the Soviet battleship Arkhangelsk (the former English Royal Sovereign, temporarily transferred to the USSR) and the Soviet destroyer Zorkiy, and 3 days later was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

On September 21, 1944, as part of the Grif group, he took part in the attack on the Soviet convoy VD-1 (4 transports, 5 minesweepers, 2 destroyers).

In March - April 1945, he participated in the attack on convoys JW-65 and JW-66.

On May 4, 1945, the Lange boat was sunk off the coast of Norway by British aircraft; 40 people died, 12 people, including Lange, were taken prisoner. Released in August 1945. In October 1957 he entered the German Navy. He took part in the development of new types of submarines, commanded the 1st submarine squadron.

From January 1964 - commander of the submarine fleet, and then held high staff positions. In 1972 he retired.

Werner Winter was born March 26, 1912 in Hamburg. On October 9, 1930, he entered the Navy as a cadet. October 1, 1934 promoted to lieutenant. Served on battleship Silesia and the light cruiser Emden. In July 1935 he was transferred to the submarine fleet.

From October 1, 1937 to October 3, 1939, he commanded the U-22 submarine, on which he made 2 campaigns (22 days) at the very beginning of the war.

In November 1939 he was transferred to the headquarters of the commander of the submarine forces.

On August 13, 1941, he was appointed commander of the submarine U-103, on which he made 3 campaigns (having spent a total of 188 days at sea).

In total, during the hostilities, Winter sank 15 ships with a total displacement of 79,302 gross tons. From July 1942 - commander of the 1st submarine flotilla in Brest (France). In August 1944, he surrendered to the troops of the Western Allies who captured Brest. Released in November 1947. For some time he served in the German Navy. In March 1970, he retired with the rank of captain-zur-see. Died September 9, 1972

Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock famous as the commander of U-96, depicted in the novel "Das Boot" and the film of the same name.

Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock was born in Bremen on December 11, 1911. In 1931, with the rank of naval cadet, he joined the Reichsmarine, where he served on the light cruiser Karlsruhe and the training sailboat Horst Wessel, until in April 1939 he was transferred to the submarine flotilla. After serving as a watch officer on a "canoe" U-8 type II-B, he was promoted to lieutenant commander and in December 1939 took over as commander of the same small U-5 type II-A.

The first campaign, which lasted 15 days and ended in vain, was made by Lehmann-Willenbrock during Operation Hartmut, the invasion of German troops into Norway. After returning from a campaign, he received under his command a newly built medium boat U-96 type VII-C. After three months of preparation and training of the crew, the boat U-96 under the command of Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock began to make military campaigns in the Atlantic. In the first three campaigns alone, ships with a total displacement of 125,580 gross tons were sunk. In March 1942, Lehmann-Willenbrock left U-96 and took command of the 9th Kriegsmarine Flotilla based at Brest. In March 1943 he received the rank of corvette captain. In September 1944, he took command of U-256 and transferred it to Bergen. On December 1, 1944, he received the rank of frigate captain, then, in December, he took command of the 11th Kriegsmarine submarine flotilla based in Bergen and stayed at this post until the end of the war. After a year spent in a prisoner-of-war camp, Lehmann-Willenbrock, from May 1946, was engaged in butchering ships sunk in the Rhine. In 1948, together with three comrades, he built the Magellan sailboat, after which the four of them crossed the Atlantic and reached Buenos Aires, where they took part in the regatta.

Lehmann-Willenbrock was a captain on merchant ships. In March 1959, as captain of the Inga Bastian, Lehmann-Willenbrock and his crew rescued 57 sailors from the burning Brazilian ship Commandante Lira. In 1969 he became captain of Germany's only nuclear ship, the research ship Otto Hahn, a position he held for more than ten years.

For outstanding post-war service, he was awarded the Federal Cross of Honor in 1974 on a ribbon. For many years, Lehmann-Willenbrock was the head of the Bremen Submarine Society, the society still bears his name.

In 1981, Willenbrock acted as an adviser on the filming of the film Das Boot about the campaign of his U-96. Subsequently, he returned to his native Bremen, where he died on April 18, 1986 at the age of 74.

Werner Hartenstein born February 24, 1908, in Plauen. April 1, 1928 joined the Reichsmarine. After training on various ships, including the Niobe and the light cruiser Emden, he served on the light cruiser Karlsruhe, from September 1939 to March 1941 he commanded the Jaguar torpedo boat. In April 1941 he joined the submarine forces and in September he was given command of U-156. From January 1942 to January 1943, he completed five combat campaigns and sank about 114,000 gross tonnage of the enemy.

On September 12, 1942, the British Laconia transport (19,695 brt) attacked off the coast of West Africa. There were more than 2741 people on the ship, among them 1809 Italian prisoners of war. After the sinking of the ship, a rescue operation began, in which U-507, which was nearby, also took part. Hartenstein's boat took several lifeboats in tow and took many victims on board. Despite clearly visible flags with the Red Cross, the boat was bombed by American aircraft and was badly damaged. Several of those who were rescued died.

This bomb attack led Karl Dönitz on September 17, 1942, to issue the so-called "Laconia Order", which forbade German warships from taking any action to rescue people from sunken ships.

In mid-January 1943, Hartenstein went on his last combat campaign. On March 8, 1943, east of Barbados, his boat with the entire crew was sunk by an American Catalina seaplane.

Horst von Schroeter born June 10, 1919 in Bieberstein (Saxony). On June 28, 1938, he entered the Navy as a cadet. May 1, 1940 promoted to lieutenant. He served on the Scharnhorst battleship, on which he participated in hostilities in the first months of the war.

In May 1940 he was transferred to the submarine fleet. As the 1st watch officer, he made 6 trips on the submarine U-123, commanded by Reinhard Hardegen. On August 1, 1942, he was appointed commander of the submarine U-123, on which he made 4 trips (having spent a total of 343 days at sea).

On June 1, 1944 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and on June 17 he handed over the submarine. On August 31, 1944, he was given command of the submarine U-2506 (stationed in Bergen, Norway), but he no longer took part in hostilities.

In total, during the hostilities, Schroeter sank 7 ships with a total displacement of 32,240 gross tons and damaged 1 ship with a displacement of 7,068 gross tons.

In 1956 he entered the German Navy, in 1976–1979. - Commander of the NATO Naval Forces in the Baltic. In 1979, he retired with the rank of vice admiral (this was the highest rank that a submariner in the German Navy could receive). Died July 25, 2006

Carl Fleige was born on September 5, 1905. In October 1924, he joined the Navy as a sailor. He served on destroyers, cruisers and training ship "Gorkh Fok".

In October 1937 he was transferred to the submarine fleet and in May 1938 he was assigned to U-20, commanded by Karl-Heinz Möhle. After Möhle received U-123 in June 1940, he took Fleige with him.

In August 1941, Fleige was transferred to the coastal units of the 5th flotilla in Kiel (the same Möhle became the commander of the flotilla). April 1, 1942 promoted to lieutenant.

On December 3, 1942, he was appointed commander of the U-18 submarine (type II-B) in the Black Sea, on which he made 7 campaigns (having spent a total of 206 days at sea).

Fleiga was particularly successful in military operations against Soviet convoys in the Black Sea.

July 18, 1944 awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. In August 1944, he surrendered command and in December was appointed instructor of the 24th flotilla and the 1st submarine training division.

In total, during the hostilities, Fleige sank 1 ship and damaged 2 ships with a displacement of 7801 gross tons.

Appendix II uses materials from the book by Mitcham S., Muller J. "Commanders of the Third Reich", sites: www.uboat.net, www.hrono.ru, www.u-35.com.

The first year of the Second World War Let the buds turn pink on the chestnuts And again every bush raves in the spring, We won't write a single line for the spring, The whole distant world is so tense and empty. Still calmly dozing, stopovers And the warm wind whispers about spring, And somewhere GERMAN SUBMARINES OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR (EXCEPT FOR SUBMARINES OF TYPE XXI AND XXIII) crawl out somewhere U-ALaid down February 10, 1937, Germaniawerft, Kiel. Launched September 20, 1939, first commander - Lieutenant Commander Hans Kohausch. 9 military campaigns. 7 ships sunk (GRT 40,706). one

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