U-51

Type

VIIB

 
Ordered21 Nov 1936
Laid down26 Feb 1937 F. Krupp Germaniawerft AG, Kiel (werk 586)
Launched11 Jun 1938
Commissioned6 Aug 1938Kptlt. Ernst-Günther Heinicke
Commanders
6 Aug 1938 - Aug, 1939   Ernst-Günter Heinicke
15 Jan 1940 - 20 Aug 1940  Kptlt. Dietrich Knorr
Career
4 patrols
6 Aug 1938-31 Aug 1939  7. Flottille (front boat)
1 Sep 1939-31 Dec 1939  7. Flottille (front boat)
1 Jan 1940-20 Aug 1940  7. Flottille (front boat)
Successes5 ships sunk for a total of 26,296 GRT
1 auxiliary warship sunk for a total of 4,724 GRT
Fate

Sunk 20 Aug, 1940 in the Bay of Biscay west of Nantes, France, in position 47.06N, 04.51W, by a torpedo from the British submarine HMS Cachalot. 43 dead (all hands lost).

See the 6 ships hit by U-51 - View the 4 war patrols

Wolfpack operations

U-51 operated with the following Wolfpacks during its career:
   Prien (12 Jun 1940 - 17 Jun 1940)

Attacks on this boat

21 Apr 1940
The U-51 was attacked by the French submarine Orphée with two torpedoes, but both missed.

1 recorded attack on this boat.

General notes on this boat

29 Jan 1940. On 29 January, 1940 U-51 had to abort patrol due to technical difficulties.

19 Apr 1940. The boat attacked the French cruiser Emile Bertin in Norwegian waters but missed.

Men lost from U-boats

Unlike many other U-boats, which during their service lost men due to accidents and various other causes, U-51 did not suffer any casualties (we know of) until the time of her loss.


We have an emblem for this boat!

You can view it here. (The emblem on the left is not the emblem for this boat).



U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 2
Wynn, Kenneth


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Books dealing with this subject include:

German U-Boat Losses During World War II. Niestle, Axel, 1998.
Hitler's U-boat War. Blair, Clay, 1996.
Hitler's U-boat War, Vol II. Blair, Clay, 1998.
KTB U 51 - U 99. Ritschel, Herbert, 2000.
Narvik. Dickens, Peter and Grove, Eric J., 1996.
Submarines versus U-boats. Jones, Geoffrey, 1986.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 1. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 2. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.


There was another U-51 in World War One
That boat was launched from its shipyard on 25 Nov 1915 and commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 24 Feb 1916. The Naval war in WWI was brought to an end with the Armistice signed on 11 Nov, 1918. Read about the U 51 during WWI.