uboat.net

Kurt Diggins

Kapitänleutnant (Crew 34)


Successes
2 ships sunk for a total of 7.584 GRT

Born  17 Oct, 1912Gut Mohrberg, Eckernförde
Died  1 Mar, 2007


Ranks

1 Jan, 1942Kapitänleutnant

Decorations

U-boat Commands

U-45812 Dec, 1941 - 22 Aug, 1943  7 patrols (170 days) 

Personal information

Oberleutnant Diggins was Langsdorff's Flag Lieutenant on the Graf Spee. (1)

After the Graf Spee was scuttled in December 1939, Diggins escaped from Montevideo to Buenos Aires by stowing away in the river ferry, and from there made his way back to Germany. In 1957 he joined the Bundesmarine.

This information quoted from Rust's Naval Officers Under Hitler amplifies on the escape attempt:

"internees from the pocket battleship Graf Spee -- Kurt Diggins, Rolf Schauenburg, Detlef Spiering and Karl-Heinrich Vagt -- upon crossing the River Plate from Uruguay to Argentina, faced comparatively minor difficulties in making their way home from that neutral and traditionally anglophobic South American country. The greatest challenge seems to have been to get from Uruguay to Argentina. It took Diggins no fewer than 18 attempts before he succeeded in reaching Buenos Aires from Montevideo as a stowaway on a river steamer. He then left for home disguised as a Romanian."

(1) Grove's "The Price of Disobedience"


Patrol info


 U-boatDeparture Arrival  
1. U-458 21 Jun, 1942  Kiel27 Aug, 1942  St. NazairePatrol68 days
2. U-458 1 Oct, 1942  St. Nazaire15 Oct, 1942  La SpeziaPatrol15 days
3. U-458 26 Oct, 1942  La Spezia15 Nov, 1942  La SpeziaPatrol21 days
4. U-458 6 Feb, 1943  La Spezia11 Mar, 1943  ToulonPatrol34 days
5. U-458 19 May, 1943  Toulon19 May, 1943  Toulon 1 days
6. U-458 25 May, 1943  Toulon31 May, 1943  ToulonPatrol7 days
7. U-458 21 Jun, 1943  Toulon6 Jul, 1943  ToulonPatrol16 days
8. U-458 14 Aug, 1943  Toulon22 Aug, 1943  SunkPatrol9 days

Ships hit by Kurt Diggins


DateBoatName of shipTonsNat.ConvoyFate *
30 Jun, 1942 U-458Mosfruit2.714 nw 
5 Aug, 1942 U-458Arletta4.870 br ON-115 
 7.584

* Unless otherwise noted the ships listed here were sunk.


Decorations and ranks information is in many cases not complete. If you can help on any of those missing that would be great.

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