1942

These pages contain a compilation of all known losses of life from U-boats that either survived the incident or were put into commission shortly afterwards.


January

U-582, 10 Jan 1942
During heavy weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-582 broke his arm.

U-654, 12 Jan 1942
During heavy weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-654 broke his arm.

U-575, 25 Jan 1942
During bad weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-575 broke his arm.

U-591, 29 Jan 1942
During bad weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-591 broke his arm.


February

U-585, 5 Feb 1942
The 21 year old Fähnrich zur See Eberhardt Vollmer (Crew 1940) was lost overboard in the south Barents Sea.

U-156, 16 Feb 1942
U-156 began to shell the oil refinery at Aruba in the Caribbean, but the gun crew forgot to remove the water plug from the barrel, causing an explosion that killed one man [Matrosengefreiter Heinrich Büssinger]. The gunnery officer [II WO Leutnant zur See Dietrich von dem Borne, see right] lost his right leg in this incident, and so had to be put ashore into captivity at Martinique on 21 February. The commander decided to saw off the ruined portion of the gun barrel, and using this shorter barrel, on 27 February U-156 sank a 2,498-ton British steamer.

U-454, 26 Feb 1942
Two days after leaving Trondheim, Norway U-454 lost Matrosengefreiter Josef Kauer overboard.


March

U-155, 10 Mar 1942
When returning from the US-East coast the boat lost I WO Oberleutnant zur See Gert Rentrop overboard.

U-123, 27 Mar 1942
After being torpedoed by U-123 the American Q-ship USS Atik (AK 101) surprised and attacked the boat off the US East coast. In the action one man from U-123 was fatally wounded and the Q-ship was sunk with all hands. [Fähnrich zur See Rudi Holzer]

U-703, 29 Mar 1942
One crew member on U-703 was badly injured in an accident off Heligoland.


April

U-81, 5 Apr 1942
On U-81 one crew member was injured during an accident.

U-334, 13 Apr 1942
A day before U-334 reached its base at Trondheim, Norway the 19 year old Matrosengefreiter Otto Mayerhofer was lost overboard.

U-657, 27 Apr 1942
The boat was damaged in an Allied air raid on the harbor at Trondheim, Norway. One crew member was injured.


May

U-507, 5 May 1942
During handling of a torpedo one crew member on U-507 broke his arm.

U-594, 25 May 1942
During a patrol in the Caribbean one man was lost during crash diving. [Matrosengefreiter Walter Kunde]


June

U-514, 3 Jun 1942
During a rescue action in the Baltic Sea an officer lost his life. [I WO Leutnant zur See der Reserve Rolf Kühl]


July

U-209, 9 Jul 1942
Two men were lost during an accident on the landing place in the harbor of Bergen, Norway. The boat went on its next patrol on 17 July. [Funkgefreiter Edmund Kiepulski, Funkgefreiter Alfons Kuklinski]

U-106, 27 Jul 1942
A Wellington aircraft (Sqdn 311/A) attacked U-106 killing the I WO Oberleutnant zur See Günter Wißmann and wounding the Commander. The boat had only left Lorient, France 2 days earlier and was forced to return, arriving on July 28.


August

U-598, 5 Aug 1942
While U-598 was refuelling in the Middle Atlantic by U-463 one of its men drowned during maintenance work on the hydroplanes and propellers. [Maschinenmaat Willi Bredereck]

U-612, 6 Aug 1942
During training in the Baltic U-612 collided with U-444 killing two men from U-612 which sank to the seabed. The boat was later raised and used for training. [Obermaschinist Wilhelm Merz, Maschinenobergefreiter Gerhard Ehrlich] (The I WO Herbert A. Werner described the loss in his book ´Iron Coffins´)

U-135, 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]

U-653, 18 Aug 1942
Near convoy SL.119 a British B-24 Liberator aircraft (Sqdn 120/F) attacked U-653. During the crash diving one man was lost. (There was a report that the man was saved by a British destroyer.) The boat was seriously damaged and had to limp back to base, reaching Brest, France on 30 August. [Matrosengefreiter Willi Pröhl]

U-155, 19 Aug 1942
During an aircraft attack on U-155 a man was lost overboard. [Maschinengefreiter Konrad Garneier]

U-596, 30 Aug 1942
In the North Atlantic U-596 lost a man overboard. [Fähnrich zur See Wolfgang Aldag]


September

U-203, 11 Sep 1942
The commander of U-203 (Kptlt. Rolf Mützelburg) died in a unique incident on 11 Sept. He allowed his crew to swim in the sea and when he was about to dive from the tower the boat moved and he hit the saddle tank being badly wounded. He died the next day.

U-515, 20 Sep 1942
A gunner from U-515 was killed in a misfire accident on on the 2cm machine gun. [Matrosengefreiter Matthias Biazza]

U-258, 22 Sep 1942
The navigator was lost overboard from U-258. [Obersteuermann Heinrich Wittmann]

U-177, 23 Sep 1942
On 23 Sept at 0605hrs a man was lost overboard from U-177. [Bootsmannmaat Erwin Henning]


October

U-575, 5 Oct 1942
A man was lost overboard from U-575. [Oberbootsmaat Herbert Bühler]

U-333, 6 Oct 1942
The boat fought an epic battle with the British corvette HMS Crocus on 6 Oct, 1942. The U-boat lost 3 men dead (including the IWO) and several men wounded, including the commander, Peter Erich Cremer. The boat was heavily damaged and limped back to base with help from a replacement WO, Kptlt. Lorenz Kasch, from the U-107. The doctor from the Milk Cow U-459 helped the wounded. Cremer then spent 3 months in a hospital.[Oberleutnant zur See Bernhard Hermann, Bootsmaat Heinz Kurze, Maschinenobergefreiter Erwin Levermann].

U-443, 9 Oct 1942
During very bad weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on broke his arm.

U-442, 10 Oct 1942
On board U-442, bad weather caused an accident in which one man was badly injured.

U-453, 13 Oct 1942
1 man was killed and 3 wounded on U-453 in an accident during handling the machine gun. [Matrosengefreiter Horst Saupe + on 13th Oct., Steuermannsgefreiter Helmut Lorenz died 2 months later]

U-67, 27 Oct 1942
After an explosion during torpedo loading on the U-67 one man was killed. [Matrosenobergefreiter Heinz Hartmann]

U-706, 27 Oct 1942
The same day 3 men were washed overboard from the U-706, 2 men died but the third was saved by U-463. [Leutnant zur See Erich Eichmann, see right, Matrosenobergefreiter Ralf Köhler]


November

U-197, 4 Nov 1942
Obermaschinist Alfred Wernicke died after an accident in Kiel.

U-117, 8 Nov 1942
While refuelling U-454 on 8 Nov Leutnant zur See der Reserve Helmut Schwenzel from U-117 was washed overboard.

U-620, 10 Nov 1942
One seaman from U-620 was killed in another air attack. [Bootsmaat Josef Leisten]

U-505, 10 Nov 1942
Aircraft attack, aircraft shot down:
British Hudson V9253 (53 Sqdn RAF/L, pilot F/S R.R. Sillcock, RAAF)

The II WO and one lookout from the U-505 were seriously wounded in a surprising air attack out of low clouds by a Hudson aircraft southeast of Trinidad. The aircraft dropped four depth charges and scored a direct hit, but was lost with its five-man crew in the explosion. The boat was damaged heavily and broke off its patrol. 12 days later the wounded II WO was transferred to the Milk Cow U-462.

U-354, 11 Nov 1942
U-354 lost one man overboard on 11 Nov. [Fähnrich zur See Horst Mayen]


December

U-610, 16 Dec 1942
During heavy weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-610 broke his arm.

U-653, 22 Dec 1942
The boat lost a man washed overboard at 0810hrs. [Bootsmaat Heinz Wendler]

Total numer of losses:
55 men in 42 incidents (37 dead and 18 wounded)


Return to Men Lost from U-boats