German destroyer Z8 Bruno Heinemann
Encyclopedia
Z8 Bruno Heinemann was a built for the German Navy (Kriegsmarine) in the mid-1930s. After the start of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in September 1939, she blockaded the Polish coast and searched neutral shipping for contraband
Contraband
The word contraband, reported in English since 1529, from Medieval French contrebande "a smuggling," denotes any item which, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold....
. In late 1939 and early 1940 the ship made three successful minelaying sortie
Sortie
Sortie is a term for deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops from a strongpoint. The sortie, whether by one or more aircraft or vessels, usually has a specific mission....
s off the English coast that claimed 17 merchant ships. Bruno Heinemann participated in the early stages of the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
by transporting troops to the Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
area in early April 1940. The ship was transferred to France a year later to escort German ships that used the French ports on the Atlantic coast. She was returning to France in early 1942 when she struck two mines
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
and sank off the coast of Belgium.
Design and description
Bruno Heinemann had an overall length of 119 metre and was 114 metre long at the waterline. The ship had a beamBeam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 11.3 metre, and a maximum draft
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
of 4.23 metre. She displaced 2171 tonnes (2,136.7 LT) at standard and 3110 tonnes (3,060.9 LT) at deep load. The Wagner geared steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s were designed to produce 70000 shp which would propel the ship at 36 knots (19.6 m/s). Steam was provided to the turbines by six high-pressure Wagner boiler
Boiler (steam generator)
A boiler or steam generator is a device used to create steam by applying heat energy to water. Although the definitions are somewhat flexible, it can be said that older steam generators were commonly termed boilers and worked at low to medium pressure but, at pressures above this, it is more...
s with superheater
Superheater
A superheater is a device used to convert saturated steam or wet steam into dry steam used for power generation or processes. There are three types of superheaters namely: radiant, convection, and separately fired...
s. Bruno Heinemann carried a maximum of 752 tonnes (740 LT) of fuel oil
Fuel oil
Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
which was intended to give a range of 4400 nmi (8,148.8 km) at 19 knots (10.3 m/s), but the ship proved top-heavy in service and 30% of the fuel had to be retained as ballast
Sailing ballast
Ballast is used in sailboats to provide moment to resist the lateral forces on the sail. Insufficiently ballasted boats will tend to tip, or heel, excessively in high winds. Too much heel may result in the boat capsizing. If a sailing vessel should need to voyage without cargo then ballast of...
low in the ship. The effective range proved to be only 1530 nmi (2,833.6 km) at 19 knots (10.3 m/s).
Bruno Heinemann carried five 12.7 cm SK C/34 guns
12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun
The 12.7 cm SK C/34 was a German medium-caliber naval gun deployed on destroyers from 1934 through the Second World War. Some of these guns remained in service until 2003 in the coastal defense units of Norway.-Characteristics:...
in single mounts with gun shield
Gun shield
thumb|A [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine]] manning an [[M240 machine gun]] equipped with a gun shieldA gun shield is a flat piece or section of armor designed to be mounted on a crew-served weapon such as a machine gun or artillery piece, or, more rarely, to be used with an assault rifle...
s, two each superimposed
Superfire
The idea of superfire is to locate two turrets in a row, one behind the other, but with the second turret located above the one in front so that the second turret could fire over the first...
, fore and aft. The fifth gun was carried on top of the rear deckhouse. Her anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
armament consisted of four 3.7 cm SK C/30
3.7 cm SK C/30
The 3.7 cm SK C/30 was the German Kriegsmarine's primary anti-aircraft gun during the Second World War...
guns in two twin mounts abreast the rear funnel
Funnel (ship)
A funnel is the smokestack or chimney on a ship used to expel boiler steam and smoke or engine exhaust. They can also be known in as stacks.-Purpose:...
and six 2 cm C/30 guns in single mounts. The ship carried eight above-water 53.3 centimetres (21 in) torpedo tube
Torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...
s in two power-operated mounts. Four depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
throwers were mounted on the sides of the rear deckhouse and they were supplemented by six racks for individual depth charges on the sides of the stern. Enough depth charges were carried for either two or four patterns of 16 charges each. Mine rails could be fitted on the rear deck that had a maximum capacity of 60 mines. A system of passive hydrophone
Hydrophone
A hydrophone is a microphone designed to be used underwater for recording or listening to underwater sound. Most hydrophones are based on a piezoelectric transducer that generates electricity when subjected to a pressure change...
s designated as 'GHG' was fitted to detect submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s.
Career
The ship was ordered on 9 January 1935 and laid downKeel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
at DeSchiMAG
Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau AG
Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau Aktiengesellschaft was a cooperation of eight German shipyards in the period 1926 to 1945...
, Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
on 14 January 1936 as yard number W902. She was launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on 15 September 1936 and completed on 8 January 1937. Bruno Heinemann and her sister
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
Z5 Paul Jakobi
German destroyer Z5 Paul Jakobi
Z5 Paul Jakobi was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s.-Design and description:Paul Jacobi had an overall length of and was long at the waterline. The ship had a beam of , and a maximum draft of . She displaced at standard and at deep load. The Wagner geared steam turbines were...
sailed to Norway in April 1938 to test the new 15 centimetres (5.9 in) TbtsK C/36 gun
15 cm TbtsK C/36 naval gun
The 15 cm TbtsK C/36 was a German medium-caliber naval gun deployed on Type 1936A destroyers during the Second World War.- References :...
planned for later classes of destroyers. Bruno Heinemann had been fitted with four of the new weapons and they were removed after gunnery trials off Ålesund
Ålesund
is a town and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Sunnmøre, and the center of the Ålesund Region. It is a sea port, and is noted for its unique concentration of Art Nouveau architecture....
were completed. The ship participated in the August 1938 Fleet Review as part of the 6th Destroyer Division and the following fleet exercise. Early in 1939, she spent several months in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
to evaluate whether reduced steam pressure would solve some of the problems of her high-pressure steam plant.
When World War II began, Bruno Heinemann was initially deployed in the Baltic to operate against the Polish Navy
Polish Navy
The Marynarka Wojenna Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej - MW RP Polish Navy, is the branch of Republic of Poland Armed Forces responsible for naval operations...
and to enforce a blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
of Poland, but she was soon transferred to the German Bight
German Bight
German Bight is the southeastern bight of the North Sea bounded by the Netherlands and Germany to the south, and Denmark and Germany to the east . To the north and west it is limited by the Dogger Bank. The Bight contains the Frisian and Danish Islands. The Wadden Sea is approximately ten to...
where she joined her sisters
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
in laying defensive minefields. She also patrolled the Skagerrak
Skagerrak
The Skagerrak is a strait running between Norway and the southwest coast of Sweden and the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area, which leads to the Baltic Sea.-Name:...
to inspect neutral shipping for contraband goods and was also briefly refitted during this time. After completing her refit, Bruno Heinemann and Paul Jakobi were bound for the Baltic via the Kiel Canal
Kiel Canal
The Kiel Canal , known as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal until 1948, is a long canal in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.The canal links the North Sea at Brunsbüttel to the Baltic Sea at Kiel-Holtenau. An average of is saved by using the Kiel Canal instead of going around the Jutland Peninsula....
when they were attacked by 11 Handley Page Hampden
Handley Page Hampden
The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden was a British twin-engine medium bomber of the Royal Air Force serving in the Second World War. With the Whitley and Wellington, the Hampden bore the brunt of the early bombing war over Europe, taking part in the first night raid on Berlin and the first 1,000-plane...
bombers of No. 144 Squadron RAF
No. 144 Squadron RAF
No. 144 Squadron, RAF, was a British aviation and missle squadron during World War I, World War II, and the Cold War.-World War I:No. 144 Squadron, RFC, was formed at Port Said, Egypt, on 20th March 1918...
on 29 September. The British aircraft failed to damage the German ships and five were shot down by Messerschmitt Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
E fighters.
Although the other destroyers were busy escorting the German heavy ships and laying minefields off the British coast in October and November, Bruno Heinemann played no part of any of these operations until the night of 12/13 December. Under the command of Commodore Friedrich Bonte
Friedrich Bonte
Friedrich Bonte was the German naval officer commanding the destroyer flotilla that transported invasion troops to Narvik during the German invasion of Norway in April 1940.-Naval career:...
in his flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
Hermann Künne
German destroyer Z19 Hermann Künne
Z19 Hermann Künne was a built for the Kriegsmarine in the late 1930s.-External links:*...
, Bruno Heinemann, Richard Beitzen
German destroyer Z4 Richard Beitzen
The German destroyer Z4 Richard Beitzen was a Type 1934 destroyer in the German Kriegsmarine, named after Richard Beitzen who commanded the 14th Torpedo boat flotilla in World War I and was killed in action in March 1918....
, Friedrich Ihn
German destroyer Z14 Friedrich Ihn
Z14 Friedrich Ihn was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s. It was named after German naval officer Friedrich Ihn.-External links:*...
, and Erich Steinbrinck
German destroyer Z15 Erich Steinbrinck
Z15 Erich Steinbrinck was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s.-External links:*...
laid 240 mines off the mouth of the River Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
, where the navigation lights were still lit. The British were unaware of the minefield's existence and lost eleven ships totaling 18,979 Gross Register Tons (GRT). While withdrawing at high speed Bruno Heinemann suffered a serious fire in one of her turbine rooms and was ordered to heave-to while the fire was put out. The destroyers were later ordered to escort the crippled light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
s and which had been torpedoed by the submarine while covering the destroyers' withdrawal. Despite their escort, the submarine managed to sneak inside the anti-submarine screen and fired a salvo of six torpedoes at Leipzig in the Elbe estuary. Two of the torpedoes struck the destroyer escort
Destroyer escort
A destroyer escort is the classification for a smaller, lightly armed warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection...
F9
Flottenbegleiter
The F class escort ships were a class of fleet escorts used by the Kriegsmarine during the Second World War. Ten ships were built in total, of a type roughly comparable to British frigates or American destroyer escorts. They were the only such type of ship built by the Kriegsmarine...
which sank three minutes later with heavy loss of life, but the other torpedoes missed. On the night of 10/11 January 1940 the ship laid a minefield off Cromer
Cromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
with her sisters Wolfgang Zenker
German destroyer Z9 Wolfgang Zenker
Z9 Wolfgang Zenker was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s. Several days after the start of World War II, she unsuccessfully attacked, together with another destroyer, Polish ships anchored at the naval base on the Hel Peninsula. In early 1940 the ship made two successful minelaying...
and Erich Koellner
German destroyer Z13 Erich Koellner
Z13 Erich Koellner was a built for the German Navy in the late 1930s. At the beginning of World War II, the ship was still working up. In early 1940 she made two successful minelaying sorties off the English coast that claimed six merchant ships...
. Three ships totaling 11,155 GRT were sunk by this minefield. The same three ships made another sortie
Sortie
Sortie is a term for deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops from a strongpoint. The sortie, whether by one or more aircraft or vessels, usually has a specific mission....
on the night of 9/10 February into the same area and laid 157 mines that claimed three more ships totaling 11,855 GRT.
Bruno Heinemann was allocated to Group 2 for the Norwegian portion of Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
. The group's task was to transport the 138th Mountain Infantry Regiment (138. Gebirgsjäger Regiment) to seize Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
together with the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
. The ships began loading troops on 6 April and set sail the next day. Bruno Heinemann and her sisters Paul Jakobi
German destroyer Z5 Paul Jakobi
Z5 Paul Jakobi was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s.-Design and description:Paul Jacobi had an overall length of and was long at the waterline. The ship had a beam of , and a maximum draft of . She displaced at standard and at deep load. The Wagner geared steam turbines were...
and Theodor Riedel
German destroyer Z6 Theodor Riedel
Z6 Theodor Riedel was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s.-Design and description:Theodor Riedel had an overall length of and was long at the waterline. The ship had a beam of , and a maximum draft of . She displaced at standard and at deep load. The Wagner geared steam turbines were...
each carried a company of mountain troops tasked to seize the forts defending the entrance to the Trondheimsfjord
Trondheimsfjord
The Trondheimsfjord , an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, is Norway's third longest fjord at long. It is located in the west central part of the country, and it stretches from Ørland in west to Steinkjer in north, passing the city of Trondheim on its way...
. After passing the surprised forts the ships were able to land their troops and capture the forts with little difficulty. All of the destroyers had suffered storm damage en-route and were low on fuel because none of the oil tanker
Oil tanker
An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a merchant ship designed for the bulk transport of oil. There are two basic types of oil tankers: the crude tanker and the product tanker. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crude oil from its point of extraction to refineries...
s had arrived yet. Admiral Hipper was ordered home on 10 April. Fuel was transferred from Bruno Heinemann and Paul Jakobi to Friedrich Eckoldt
German destroyer Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt
Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt was a built for the German Navy in the mid-1930s. At the beginning of World War II, the ship was initially deployed to blockade the Polish coast, but she was quickly transferred to the German Bight to lay minefields in German waters...
sufficient to give the heavy cruiser some anti-submarine protection. However, even this proved to be insufficient fuel, so the Friedrich Eckoldt was ordered to return later that night. Two days later enough fuel had been found in Trondheim to allow Friedrich Eckoldt and Bruno Heinemann to sail on 14 April; they reached Germany the next day without incident. Sometime in 1939–41 the ship was fitted with a FuMO 21 or FuMO 24 radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
set above the bridge.
The ship escorted a force of minelayers on the nights of 29/30 April and 9/10 May 1940 in the vicinity of the Great Fisherman's Bank, but the second sortie turned back when British destroyers were spotted. Bruno Heinemann began a lengthy refit later that month and she was still not combat worthy in November. On 5 April 1941, Bruno Heinemann left Germany for Occupied France and she was attacked by two torpedo bomber
Torpedo bomber
A torpedo bomber is a bomber aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes which could also carry out conventional bombings. Torpedo bombers existed almost exclusively prior to and during World War II when they were an important element in many famous battles, notably the...
s en-route, but suffered no damage. The ship and the other destroyers present escorted commerce raiders, blockade runners and major warships as they used the French Atlantic coast ports until she was recalled on 6 September for another refit. Bruno Heinemann probably was fitted at this time with a four-barrel 2-centimeter AA gun on her aft deckhouse that replaced the pair of 2-centimeter guns originally mounted there.She escorted the battleship in mid-January 1942 as she sailed from the Baltic to Trondheim. Bruno Heinemann, together with the rest of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla, sailed from Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
on 24 January for France as part of the preparations for the Channel Dash. On the evening of 25 January, she struck two mines laid by off the Belgian coast. The first detonated beneath the ship and knocked out Nos. 2 and 3 boiler rooms and the second blew the ship's bow off shortly afterwards. 98 members of the ship's crew lost their lives: 93 were lost at sea, while another five, who had originally been among the 234 men rescued, died of their wounds.