A member of twelve wolfpacks, she sank a total of Twenty one ships for a total of 69,589gross register tons(GRT) and 759 tons in five patrols. In addition, she damaged one ship with a total tonnage of 7,197 GRT.
Design
German Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-221 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 67.10m (220ft 2in), a pressure hull length of 50.50m (165ft 8in), a beam of 6.20m (20ft 4in), a height of 9.60m (31ft 6in), and a draught of 4.74m (15ft 7in). The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder superchargeddiesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350kW; 2,760 to 3,160shp) for use while surfaced, two AEG GU 460/8–27 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550kW; 740shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23m (4ft)propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750ft).[1]
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8km/h; 20.4mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1km/h; 8.7mph).[1] When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150km; 92mi) at 4 knots (7.4km/h; 4.6mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700km; 9,800mi) at 10 knots (19km/h; 12mph). U-221 was fitted with five 53.3cm (21in)torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8cm (3.46in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a 2cm (0.79in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.[1]
Service history
U-221 is also credited with the destruction of ten allied landing craft (nine LCMs and one LCT) that were lost aboard the British merchantman Southern Empress when that vessel was torpedoed and sunk on 14 October 1942.
First patrol
U-221 departed Kristiansand on 3 September 1942 having moved to the Norwegian port a day earlier. Her route took her through the gap between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. She claimed her first victim, Fagersten, about 500nmi (930km; 580mi) east of the Belle Isle Strait, in Newfoundland on 13 October. In the same attack, she sank Ashworth and Senta. There were no survivors from either vessel.
The next day two more ships fell to the torpedoes of the German U-boat. The Susana went down in six minutes northeast of St. Johns; Southern Empress was sent to the bottom, taking a deck cargo of ten landing craft with her.
The boat's second foray was one of anti-climax and tragedy. Although she scoured the Atlantic west of Ireland, she failed to find any targets. On 8 December U-221 and U-254 collided in heavy fog, resulting in the loss of the latter boat. U-221 was badly damaged. Unable to dive, Oberleutnant zur See Trojer aborted the patrol and returned to St. Nazaire.
Third patrol
Her third sortie was more fruitful. The Jamaica was destroyed on 7 March 1943. This ship took just two minutes to sink. As survivors took to the boats, Trojer surfaced and took the ship's 4th Engineer prisoner, but on March 21, the man, during an exercise period, jumped overboard and was lost.[2] The boat sank Tucurina on the tenth, southeast of Cape Farewell, (Greenland). In the same attack, the U-boat sank Andrea F. Luckenbach and damaged SSLawton B. Evans (probably due to a dud torpedo).
Retribution was swift; the convoy's escorts from HX 228 caused some damage to U-221. Repairs were carried out at sea, enabling the boat to sink two more ships on 18 March; Canadian Star and Walter Q. Gresham were added to her list of 'kills'.
Fourth patrol
U-221 only sank one ship on this patrol, Sandanger; the survivors had a remarkable escape. Occupying the only intact lifeboat, they found themselves in an area of low pressure created by the ship's burning fuel cargo. The flames were split in two by strong winds which also kept them above the men's heads by only a few feet as they rowed clear of the location.
Fifth patrol and loss
U-221 left St. Nazaire for the last time on 20 September 1943. On the 27th she was attacked by a Handley Page Halifax of No. 58 Squadron RAF with eight depth charges southwest of Ireland. The U-boat was seen to sink by the stern but the aircraft was also hit, forcing the pilot to ditch about three miles from the encounter. Two gunners from the Halifax were lost; the U-boat was sunk with all hands (50 men).[3][4]
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-221". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
Bibliography
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II: a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-55750-186-6.
Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945[German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol.IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN3-8132-0514-2.
Edwards, Bernard (1996). Dönitz and the Wolf Packs - The U-boats at War. Cassell Military Classics. pp.132, 173, 208. ISBN0-304-35203-9.
Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol.2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN0-85177-593-4.
Kemp, Paul (1999). U-boats destroyed: German submarine losses in the World Wars. London: Arms & Armour. ISBN1-85409-515-3. OCLC43972253.
External links
Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-221". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
Hofmann, Markus. "U 221". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 26 December 2014.
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