German submarine U-632
History | |
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Name | U-632 |
Ordered | 15 August 1940 |
Builder | Blohm & Voss, Hamburg |
Yard number | 608 |
Laid down | 4 September 1941 |
Launched | 27 May 1942 |
Commissioned | 23 July 1942 |
Fate | Sunk on 6 April 1943 south-west of Iceland by British aircraft |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type VIIC submarine |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Height | 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in) |
Draught | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Range |
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Test depth |
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Complement | 4 officers, 40–56 enlisted |
Armament |
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Service record | |
Part of: |
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Identification codes: | M 22 623 |
Commanders: | |
Operations: |
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Victories: |
2 merchant ships sunk (15,255 GRT) |
German submarine U-632 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 4 September 1941 at the Blohm & Voss yard at Hamburg, launched on 27 May 1942, and commissioned on 23 July 1942 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Hans Karpf.
Attached to 5th U-boat Flotilla based at Kiel, U-632 completed her training period on 31 December 1942 and was assigned to front-line service.
Design
[edit]German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-632 had a displacement of 769 tonnes (757 long tons) when at the surface and 871 tonnes (857 long tons) while submerged.[1] She had a total length of 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in), a pressure hull length of 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in), a beam of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two BBC GG UB 720/8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[1]
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph).[1] When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-632 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and one twin 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.[1]
Service history
[edit]Operating from Brest, France, U-632 went on two war patrols. On the second patrol, while operating against Convoy HX 231, U-632 sank the Dutch cargo ship Blitar after chasing her for more than nine hours and having twice missed her target. Later that day Liberator of No. 86 Squadron RAF detected U-632 and sank her with five depth charges southwest of Iceland in position 58°02′N 28°42′W / 58.033°N 28.700°W on 6 April 1943. All 48 crew members were killed in the attack.[2]
Summary of raiding history
[edit]Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage (GRT) |
Fate[3] |
---|---|---|---|---|
3 February 1943 | Cordelia | ![]() |
8,190 | Sunk |
6 April 1943 | Blitar | ![]() |
7,065 | Sunk |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Busch & Röll 1999b, p. 84.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-632". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
Bibliography
[edit]- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999a). German U-boat commanders of World War II: a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, MD: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999b). Der U-Boot-Krieg, 1939-1945: Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
- Gröner, Eric; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). German Warships 1815-1945: U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
External links
[edit]- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-632". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- German Type VIIC submarines
- 1942 ships
- Ships built in Hamburg
- U-boats commissioned in 1942
- U-boats sunk in 1943
- U-boats sunk by British aircraft
- U-boats sunk by depth charges
- Maritime incidents in April 1943
- World War II shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean
- Submarines lost with all hands
- World War II submarines of Germany