German submarine U-752
Encyclopedia
German submarine U-752 was a Type VIIC U-boat
built for the German
Kriegsmarine
for service during World War II
. She served with 3rd U-boat Flotilla from 24 May 1941 to 23 May 1943 under the command of Karl-Ernst Schroeter
.. U-752 completed nine wartime patrols and sank eight ships totalling 33,492 GRT
, and damaged one for a total of 4,799 GRT.
Thirty-two days into her ninth patrol, on 23 May 1943, U-752 was attacked by Fairey Swordfish
aircraft attached to the British escort carrier in the mid-Atlantic. A Rocket Spear
, a new weapon with a solid cast iron head, entered and left the pressure hull leaving large holes, and the U-boat went down with twenty-nine crew members, including her commander. Of the forty-six crewmen aboard, seventeen survived the sinking. This was the first success of the Rocket Spear.
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
built for the German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
for service during 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...
. She served with 3rd U-boat Flotilla from 24 May 1941 to 23 May 1943 under the command of Karl-Ernst Schroeter
Karl-Ernst Schroeter
Karl-Ernst Schroeter was a Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and commander of U-121 and U-752. Schroeter is credited with sinking eight ships, all in U-752, for ....
.. U-752 completed nine wartime patrols and sank eight ships totalling 33,492 GRT
Gross Register Tonnage
Gross register tonnage a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated from the total permanently enclosed capacity of the vessel. The ship's net register tonnage is obtained by reducing the volume of non-revenue-earning spaces i.e...
, and damaged one for a total of 4,799 GRT.
Thirty-two days into her ninth patrol, on 23 May 1943, U-752 was attacked by Fairey Swordfish
Fairey Swordfish
The Fairey Swordfish was a torpedo bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company and used by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy during the Second World War...
aircraft attached to the British escort carrier in the mid-Atlantic. A Rocket Spear
RP-3
The RP-3 , was a British rocket used in the Second World War. Though primarily an air-to-ground weapon, it saw limited use in other roles. Its 60 lb warhead gave rise to the alternative name of the "60 lb rocket"; the 25 lb solid-shot armour piercing variant was referred to as the "25 lb rocket"...
, a new weapon with a solid cast iron head, entered and left the pressure hull leaving large holes, and the U-boat went down with twenty-nine crew members, including her commander. Of the forty-six crewmen aboard, seventeen survived the sinking. This was the first success of the Rocket Spear.