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German submarine U-701

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German submarine U-701 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine that served in the North Atlantic during World War II. It was launched on 16 April 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Horst Degen, with a crew of 43.

Survivors are rescued from U-701.
History
Nazi Germany
NameU-701
Ordered9 October 1939
BuilderHC Stülcken & Sohn, Hamburg
Yard number760
Laid down3 May 1940
Launched16 April 1941
Commissioned16 July 1941
FateSunk by a USAAF Hudson on 7 July 1942 about 22 miles off Cape Hatteras. Seven survivors including the Captain were taken as prisoners of war.
General characteristics
Class and typeType VIIC submarine
Displacement
Length
Beam
  • 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a
  • 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
Height9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
Draught4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
Installed power
  • 2,800–3,200 PS (2,100–2,400 kW; 2,800–3,200 bhp) (diesels)
  • 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric)
Propulsion
Speed
  • 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced
  • 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged
Range
  • 8,500 nmi (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
  • 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth
  • 230 m (750 ft)
  • Crush depth: 250–295 m (820–968 ft)
Complement4 officers, 40–56 enlisted
Armament
Service record
Part of:
Identification codes: M 44 322
Commanders:
Operations:
  • 3 patrols:
  • 1st patrol:
  • 27 December 1941 – 9 February 1942
  • 2nd patrol:
  • a. 26 February – 1 April 1942
  • b. 19 – 20 May 1942
  • 3rd patrol:
  • 20 May – 7 July 1942
Victories:
  • 5 merchant ships sunk
    (25,390 GRT)
  • 4 auxiliary warships sunk
    (1,666 GRT)
  • 4 merchant ships damaged
    (37,093 GRT)
  • 1 warship damaged
    (1,190 tons)
U-701 (submarine) shipwreck and remains
Nearest cityBuxton, North Carolina
MPSWorld War II Shipwrecks along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico MPS
NRHP reference No.15000806
Added to NRHP12 November 2015

In three operational patrols U-701 sank five ships, of 25,390 gross register tons (GRT) and damaged four others for 37,093 GRT. She also sank four auxiliary warships and damaged a destroyer.

She was sunk in an air attack on 7 July 1942 and rests at a depth of 115 feet (35 m) at 35°14.330′N 75°06.690′W / 35.238833°N 75.111500°W / 35.238833; -75.111500.[1]

Fate

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U-701 was sunk on 7 July 1942 off Cape Hatteras. While running on the surface U-701 was attacked by a Hudson of 396 Sqdn USAAF. She was hit by two bombs and sunk. 17 of her crew were able to escape, but were adrift for two days before being found and rescued by the US Coast Guard. By that time just 7 men had survived.

Final resting place

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Diving on the wreck of the U-701 in 2008.
 
Divers investigate the wreck of U-701.

At 115 feet (35 m) below the surface, U-701 is still intact, retaining its 8.8 cm (3.5 in) deck gun. Majority of the debris lies within 100 metres (330 ft) radius of the wreck.[1] This wreck has become an artificial reef that is heavily populated with Seriola dumerili.[1]

The wreck of the U-701 was originally discovered by Uwe Lovas in the coastal waters off Cape Hatteras in 1989.[2] The location of the wreck and the site remained a closely guarded secret and therefore undisturbed for 15 years.[2] The U-701 represents a virtually intact, pristine wreck site and a unique opportunity to explore and experience an unspoiled U-boat within recreational diving depths on the East Coast of the United States.[citation needed]

Recently, the vessel's location has been rediscovered and the coordinates have become accessible to the general public, who have already begun diving the site. An overwhelming majority of the local recreational and wreck diving community is deeply concerned about the potential for disturbance, damage and loss resulting from unauthorized salvage.[2][3][4] The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.[citation needed]

A dive to the wreck in 2011[5] was documented in the National Geographic TV documentary, Hitler's Secret Attack on America (2013).

Wolfpacks

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U-701 took part in three wolfpacks, namely:

  • Zieten (6 – 22 January 1942)
  • Westwall (2 – 12 March 1942)
  • York (12 – 26 March 1942)

Summary of raiding history

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Faroe postage stamp showing the trawler Nýggjaberg, which was sunk by U-701 on 28 March 1942
Date Ship Name Nationality Tonnage[Note 1] Fate[6]
6 January 1942 Baron Erskine   United Kingdom 3,657 Sunk
6 March 1942 Rononia   United Kingdom 213 Sunk
7 March 1942 Nyggjaberg   Faeroes 349 Sunk
9 March 1942 HMS Notts County   Royal Navy 541 Sunk
11 March 1942 HMS Stella Capella   Royal Navy 507 Sunk
15 June 1942 HMS Kingston Ceylonite   Royal Navy 448 Sunk (mine)
15 June 1942 USS Bainbridge   United States Navy 1,190 Damaged (mine)
15 June 1942 Robert C. Tuttle   United States 11,615 Damaged (mine)
15 June 1942 Esso Augusta   United States 11,237 Damaged (mine)
17 June 1942 Santore   United States 7,117 Sunk (mine)
19 June 1942 USS YP-389   United States Navy 170 Sunk
26 June 1942 Tamesis   Norway 7,256 Damaged
27 June 1942 British Freedom   United Kingdom 6,985 Damaged
28 June 1942 William Rockefeller   United States 14,054 Sunk
Sunk:
Damaged:
Total: 		27,056
38,283
65,339

See also

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References

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Notes

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  1. ^ Merchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.

Citations

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  1. ^ a b c Hoyt, Joe C (2009). "2008 Battle of the Atlantic Survey Methodology". In: Pollock NW, ed. Diving for Science 2009. Proceedings of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences 28th Symposium. Dauphin Island, AL: AAUS; 2009. Archived from the original on 16 April 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2013.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ a b c Hoyt, Joe C. "History and Disposition of the U-701" (PDF). Retrieved 11 March 2013.
  3. ^ Catherine Kozak, "Scuba Diving Thieves Plunder Rare Unspoiled WW II Submarine Wreck U-701," Virginian-Pilot, 8 September 2004
  4. ^ Jerry Allegood, "The U-boat," Raleigh News and Observer, 5 December 2004.
  5. ^ NOAA National Marine Sanctuary, 2011 Battle of the Atlantic Expedition
  6. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-701". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 6 February 2014.

Bibliography

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