German submarine U-233

For the isotope of uranium, see Uranium-233.

U-233 about to be rammed by USS Thomas
History
Nazi Germany
Name	U-233
Ordered	7 December 1940
Builder	Germaniawerft, Kiel
Yard number	663
Laid down	15 August 1941
Launched	8 May 1943
Commissioned	22 September 1943
Fate	Sunk 5 July 1944
General characteristics [1]
Class & type	Type X submarine minelayer
Displacement	1,763 tonnes (1,735 long tons) surfaced 2,177 tonnes (2,143 long tons) submerged
Length	89.80 m (294 ft 7 in) o/a 70.90 m (232 ft 7 in) pressure hull
Beam	9.20 m (30 ft 2 in) o/a 4.75 m (15 ft 7 in) pressure hull
Height	10.20 m (33 ft 6 in)
Draught	4.71 m (15 ft 5 in)
Propulsion	2 × supercharged GW F 46 a 9 pu 9 cylinder, four-stroke diesel engines, 4,800 PS (4,700 bhp; 3,500 kW) 2 × AEG GU 720/8-287 electric motors, 1,100 PS (1,100 shp; 810 kW)
Speed	16.4–17 knots (30.4–31.5 km/h; 18.9–19.6 mph) surfaced 7 knots (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) submerged
Range	18,450 nautical miles (34,170 km; 21,230 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 93 nmi (172 km; 107 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth	Calculated crush depth: 220 m (720 ft)
Complement	5 officers, 47 enlisted
Armament	2 × 53.3 cm (21 in) stern torpedo tubes 15 × torpedoes 66 × SMA mines 1 × 10.5 cm (4.1 in) deck gun (200 rounds)
Service record [2] [3]
Part of	4th U-boat Flotilla 22 September 1943 – 31 May 1944 12th U-boat Flotilla 1 June 1944 – 5 July 1944
Identification codes	M 54 276
Commanders	Oblt.z.S. / Kptlt. Hans Steen 22 September 1943 – 5 July 1944
Operations	1 patrol: 27 May – 5 July 1944
Victories	None

German submarine U-233 was a Type XB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was laid down on 15 August 1941, launched on 8 May 1943 and commissioned on 22 September of the same year. U-233 was commanded throughout her career by Oberleutnant zur See Hans Steen.

Service history

U-233 was assigned to the 4th U-boat Flotilla for training on 22 September 1943 and to the 12th U-boat Flotilla on 1 June 1944 for active service. Her first and only patrol commenced on 27 May 1944 when she departed Kiel to lay mines off Halifax.

Fate

On 5 July 1944 U-233 was intercepted by ships of the USS Card (CVE-11) hunter-killer group near Halifax. ^[4] She was identified by sonar, depth-charged to the surface and fired on by USS Baker (DE-190), before being rammed and sunk by USS Thomas (DE-102). 32 of her crew were killed in the action, 29 others being rescued by the escorts. Five of the crew were already dead, when the submarine was rammed. ^[5] Steen was also picked up, but died of wounds the next day. ^{[6] [7] [8]} US Navy report on U-233 survivors 1944 ^[9]

References

1. Gröner 1991, pp. 76–77.
2. Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type XB boat U-233". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
3. Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-233". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
4. "Seekrieg 1944, Juli". www.wlb-stuttgart.de. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
5. "U 233 – U-Boot-Archiv Wiki". www.ubootarchiv.de. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
6. Blair 2000, p. 568.
7. Kemp 2000, p. 201.
8. Niestlé 1998, p. 145.
9. Uboat archive 1944

Bibliography

• Blair, Clay (1 July 2000). Hitler's U-boat War: The Hunted, 1942-45. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN   978-0-304-35261-6.
• 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. ISBN   1-55750-186-6.
• 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. ISBN   3-8132-0514-2.
• 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. ISBN   0-85177-593-4.
• Kemp, Paul (1 March 2000). U-Boats Destroyed: German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. Arms & Armour Press. ISBN   978-1-85409-515-2.
• Niestlé, Axel (1998). German U-Boat Losses During World War II: Details of Destruction. ISBN   978-1-85367-352-8.

External links

• Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type XB boat U-233". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
• Hofmann, Markus. "U 233". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 31 January 2015.