U-135
Type | VIIC | |||||||
| Ordered | 7 Aug 1939 | |||||||
| Laid down | 16 Sep 1940 | Bremer Vulkan-Vegesacker Werft, Bremen-Vegesack (werk 14) | ||||||
| Launched | 12 Jun 1941 | |||||||
| Commissioned | 16 Aug 1941 | Oblt. Friedrich-Hermann Praetorius | ||||||
| Commanders |
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| Career | 7 patrols | 16 Aug 1941 - 1 Dec 1941 5. Flottille (training) 1 Dec 1941 - 15 Jul 1943 7. Flottille (front boat) | ||||||
| Successes | 3 ships sunk for a total of 21,302 GRT 1 ship damaged for a total of 4,762 GRT | |||||||
| Fate | Sunk 15 July, 1943 in the Atlantic, in position 28.20N, 13.17W, by the British sloop HMS Rochester and the British corvettes HMS Mignonette, HMS Balsam and an American Catalina aircraft (VP-92). 5 dead and 41 survivors. | |||||||
See the 4 ships hit by U-135 - View the 7 war patrols
Wolfpack operations
U-135 operated with the following Wolfpacks during its career:
Pfadfinder (23 May 1942 - 27 May 1942)
Panzer (29 Nov 1942 - 11 Dec 1942)
Raufbold (15 Dec 1942 - 22 Dec 1942)
Pfeil (2 Feb 1943 - 9 Feb 1943)
Neptun (18 Feb 1943 - 3 Mar 1943)
Trutz II (16 Jun 1943 - 2 Jul 1943)
Attacks on this boat
10 Aug 1942
At 18.25 hours, the outbound boat was strafed and attacked with 4 bombs by a Czech Wellington aircraft (RAF Sqdn 311 / H, pilot F/O J. Nývlt) in the Bay of Biscay. The boat fired with the 20mm AA gun during the first attack and recieved 6 more bombs after crash-diving.
U-135 only suffered minor damage, but one crewman had been killed by gunfire and another died of wounds one hour after the attack. [Matrosenobergefreiter Emil Hafner, Matrosenobergefreiter Erhard Pömpner]
8 Feb 1943
At 14.45 hours, the boat was attacked by British Liberator aircraft (RAF Sqdn 120 / K, pilot Bryan W. Turnbull) with 4 bombs near convoy SC-118. The Germans were surprised, fought off the first attack and then dived. Most damages were repaired by the crew and the boat continued its patrol, but later they found leaks from this attack that forced them to return to base on 28 February. (Sources: Rohwer/Ritschel)
2 recorded attacks on this boat.
Men lost from the boat
10 Aug 1942
Two men from U-135 were killed in an aircraft attack. [Matrosenobergefreiter Emil Hafner, Matrosenobergefreiter Erhard Pömpner]
Related: For more info on such losses see - Men lost from U-boats -
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There was another U-135 in World War One
That boat was launched from its shipyard on 8 Sep 1917 and commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 20 Jun 1918. The Naval war in WWI was brought to an end with the Armistice signed on 11 Nov, 1918. Read about the U 135 during WWI.