List of all U-boats

U-155

Type

IXC

 
Ordered25 Sep 1939
Laid down1 Oct 1940 AG Weser, Bremen (werk 997)
Launched12 May 1941
Commissioned23 Aug 1941Kptlt. Adolf Cornelius Piening (Knights Cross)
Commanders
23 Aug 1941 - Feb, 1944  KrvKpt. Adolf Cornelius Piening (Knights Cross)
Feb, 1944 - 14 Aug 1944  Oblt. Johannes Rudolph
15 Aug 1944 - Nov, 1944  Ltn. Ludwig-Ferdinand von Friedeburg
Nov, 1944 - Dec, 1944  Oblt. Johannes Rudolph
Dec, 1944 - 20 Apr 1945  Kptlt. Erwin Witte
21 Apr 1945 - 5 May 1945  Oblt. Friedrich Altmeier
Career
10 patrols
23 Aug 1941-31 Jan 1942  4. Flottille (training)
1 Feb 1942-14 Aug 1944  10. Flottille (active service)
15 Aug 1944-5 May 1945  33. Flottille (active service)
Successes25 ships sunk, total tonnage 126,664 GRT
1 warship sunk, total tonnage 13,785 tons
1 auxiliary warship damaged, total tonnage 6,736 GRT
Fate

Surrendered on 5 May 1945 at Baring Bay near Frederica, Denmark.

Transferred from Wilhelmshaven to Loch Ryan, Scotland on 22 June 1945.

Operation Deadlight (post-war Allied operation, info)
Sunk on 21 Dec, 1945 in position 55.35N, 07.39W

Final location

See the 27 ships hit by U-155 - View the 10 war patrols

This boat is a dive site

Innes McCartney dove on this boat in 2001 (see his report).

Depth: 240 feet (73 meters)
Position (lat, long): 55.35, -7.39

See more U-boat dive sites.

Wolfpack operations

U-155 operated with the following Wolfpacks during its career:
   Westwall (8 Nov 1942 - 16 Dec 1942)

Attacks on this boat and other events

19 Aug 1942
A man was lost overboard during an air attack off the coast of French Guyana, S. America. [Maschinengefreiter Konrad Garneier]

27 Apr 1943
While inbound to France the boat repelled a nighttime attack by an unidentified aircraft, reaching Lorient three days later. (Sources: Blair, vol 2, page 219)

14 Jun 1943
Aircraft attack, aircraft shot down:Polish Mosquito HJ648 (307 Sqdn RAF/B, pilot S/L S. Szablowski)

09.29 hrs, Bay of Biscay north of Corunna: four Mosquito aircraft (three from 307 Polish Sqdn RAF and one from 410 Sqdn RCAF) attacked a group of five outbound boats (U-68, U-155, U-159, U-415 and U-634). The leading Mosquito first strafed U-68 and then U-155, but its port engine stopped after being hit by flak and the aircraft was forced to return to base at Predannack, Cornwall, where it made a belly landing. A Mosquito piloted by F/O J. Pelka then made an attack run, but without firing, and the remaining aircraft were held off by an intense barrage of flak.Five of the crew of U-155 were wounded, two badly. The boat returned to base with U-68, whose doctor was transferred to treat the wounded on the way.

(Sources: Franks/Zimmerman/Ritschel)

21 Nov 1943
U-155 was severely damaged by enemy aircraft.

23 Jun 1944
A Mosquito (248 Sqn RAF/P) attacked the boat. Two men were killed and seven wounded. The boat was close to port when attacked and reached Lorient the same day. [Matrosenobergefreiter Karl Lohmeier, Mechanikerobergefreiter Friedrich Feller]

4 May 1945
Aircraft attack, aircraft shot down: British P-51 Mustang Mk.III KH578 (126 Sqn RAF/B, pilot SqnLdr Arne Austeen)

On 4 May 1945, U-155 was en route with U-680 and U-1233 from Germany to Norway through the Little Belt when they were strafed by Mustang fighters of 126 Squadron which were escorting Beaufighters of the North Coates Strike Wing. The flight broke off the attack after the leading Mustang was shot down, killing the CO of the squadron.

6 recorded attacks on this boat.

General notes on this boat

The crew of U-155 held their 25th meeting in September 1995! "Onboard" were the former Commander Oblt. Rudolph and the British pilot who bombed the boat in 1944 when she was returning to her base in Lorient.

The first commander of U-155, Adolf Piening, invented the so-called Piening-Route as a means to travel the Bay of Biscay.

15 Aug 1944. U-155 had the youngest U-boat Commander during the war, Leutnant zur See Ludwig-Ferdinand von Friedeburg. He took over the command of U-155 on 15 August 1944. He was 20 years and 3 months old at the time.

Schnorchel-fitted U-boat

This boat was fitted with a Schnorchel underwater-breathing apparatus and sailed equipped with it in August 1944 but it was of course installed prior to that date.

Read more about the Schnorchel and see list of fitted boats.

Men lost from the boat

10 Mar 1942
On the return from the US eastern seaboard, I WO Oberleutnant zur See Gert Rentrop was lost overboard.

19 Aug 1942
A man was lost overboard during an air attack off the coast of French Guyana, S. America. [Maschinengefreiter Konrad Garneier]

14 Jun 1943
Aircraft attack, aircraft shot down:
Polish Mosquito HJ648 (307 Sqdn RAF/B, pilot S/L S. Szablowski)

09.29 hrs, Bay of Biscay north of Corunna: four Mosquito aircraft (three from 307 Polish Sqdn RAF and one from 410 Sqdn RCAF) attacked a group of five outbound boats (U-68, U-155, U-159, U-415 and U-634). The leading Mosquito first strafed U-68 and then U-155, but its port engine stopped after being hit by flak and the aircraft was forced to return to base at Predannack, Cornwall, where it made a belly landing. A Mosquito piloted by F/O J. Pelka then made an attack run, but without firing, and the remaining aircraft were held off by an intense barrage of flak.
Five of the crew of U-155 were wounded, two badly. The boat returned to base with U-68, whose doctor was transferred to treat the wounded on the way.

23 Jun 1944
A Mosquito (248 Sqn RAF/P) attacked the boat. Two men were killed and seven wounded. The boat was close to port when attacked and reached Lorient the same day. [Matrosenobergefreiter Karl Lohmeier, Mechanikerobergefreiter Friedrich Feller]

  Related: For more info on such losses see - Men lost from U-boats -

U-boat Emblems

We have 2 emblem entries for this boat. See the emblem page for this boat or view emblems individually below.


Star with U-boat

Coat of Arms of Schwelm

Media links


U-Boat Attack Logs

Daniel Morgan and Bruce Taylor


amazon.co.uk
(£ 38.25)


The Grey Wolves of Eriboll

David M. Hird


U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 1

Wynn, Kenneth


The Royal Navy and German Naval Disarmament, 1942-1947

Madsen, Chris


amazon.com
($ 58.77)


German U-Boat Losses During World War II

Niestle, Axel


Hitler's U-boat War, Vol II

Blair, Clay


Dark Sky, Deep Water

Franks, Norman


Hitler's U-boat War

Blair, Clay


Torpedoes in the Gulf

Wiggins, Melanie

There was another U-155 in World War One
That boat was launched from its shipyard on 28 Mar 1916 and commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 19 Feb 1917. The Naval war in WWI was brought to an end with the Armistice signed on 11 Nov, 1918. Read about SM U 155 during WWI.




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