German torpedo boat Kondor

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Kondor
SketchPlan&ElevationMoweClass.svg
Right elevation and plan of the Type 23
History
War Ensign of Germany (1921-1933).svgWar ensign of Germany (1938-1945).svg Germany
NameKondor
Namesake Condor
Builder Reichsmarinewerft Wilhelmshaven
Yard number106
Laid down17 November 1925
Launched22 September 1926
Commissioned15 July 1928
Decommissioned28 June 1944
Fate Constructive total loss, 31 July or 2 August 1944
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type Type 23 torpedo boat
Displacement
Length87.7 m (287 ft 9 in) (o/a)
Beam8.25 m (27 ft 1 in)
Draft3.65 m (12 ft)
Installed power
Propulsion2 × shafts; 2 × geared steam turbine sets
Speed32–34 knots (59–63 km/h; 37–39 mph)
Range1,800  nmi (3,300 km; 2,100 mi) at 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Complement120
Armament

Kondor was the fifth of six Type 23 torpedo boats built for the German Navy (initially called the Reichsmarine and then renamed as the Kriegsmarine in 1935). The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the attack on Oslo, the capital of Norway, during the Norwegian Campaign of 1940. Kondor spent the next several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and damaged heavy ships back to Germany before she was transferred to France around September. She started laying minefields herself that month and continued to do so for the rest of the war. The boat returned to France in 1942 and helped to escort blockade runners, commerce raiders and submarines through the English Channel and the Bay of Biscay. Damaged by a mine shortly before the Allied Invasion of Normandy in June 1944, Kondor was under repair on the day of the landings. Recognizing that she could not be repaired quickly, the boat was decommissioned later that month and was then further damaged by British bombers so that she was declared a constructive total loss.

Contents

Design and armament

Derived from the World War I-era large torpedo boat SMS H145, [Note 1] the Type 23 torpedo boat was slightly larger, but had a similar armament and speed. [1] The Type 23 had an overall length of 87.7 meters (287 ft 9 in) and was 85.7 meters (281 ft 2 in) long at the waterline. [2] The ships had a beam of 8.25 meters (27 ft 1 in), and a mean draft of 3.65 meters (12 ft). They displaced 923 long tons (938  t ) at standard load and 1,290 long tons (1,310 t) at deep load. [3] Kondor was fitted with a pair of Schichau geared steam turbine sets, each driving one propeller, that were designed to produce 23,000 shaft horsepower (17,000  kW ) using steam from three water-tube boilers which would propel the ship at 33 knots (61  km/h ; 38  mph ). [4] The torpedo boats carried enough fuel oil to give them an intended range of 3,600 nautical miles (6,700 km; 4,100 mi) at 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph), [1] but it proved to be only 1,800 nmi (3,300 km; 2,100 mi) at that speed in service. Their crew consisted of 4 officers and 116 sailors. [3]

As built, the Type 23s mounted three 10.5 cm (4.1 in) SK L/45 [Note 2] guns, one forward and two aft of the superstructure; the aft superfiring gun was on an open mount while the others were protected by gun shields. [6] They carried six above-water 50 cm (19.6 in) torpedo tubes in two triple mounts [2] and could also carry up to 30 mines. After 1931, the torpedo tubes were replaced by 533-millimeter (21.0 in) tubes [1] and a pair of 2-centimeter (0.8 in) C/30 [Note 3] anti-aircraft guns were added. During the war a quadruple 2 cm mount was added just forward of No. 2 gun, three 2 cm guns were positioned around the aft funnel and another pair were mounted on the bridge wings, all in single mounts. Around 1944 a FuMB 4 Sumatra radar detector was installed as was radar. [8]

Construction and career

Named after the Condor, the boat was laid down at the Reichsmarinewerft Wilhelmshaven (Navy Yard) on 17 November 1925 [4] as yard number 106, [9] launched on 22 September 1926 and commissioned on 15 July 1928. [4] The boat was initially assigned to the 4th Torpedo Boat Half Flotilla. By the end of 1936 Kondor was assigned to the 4th Torpedo Boat Flotilla and the boat made several deployments to Spain during the Spanish Civil War. [10]

Second World War

Map of operations in the Oslofjord on the night of 8/9 April, showing how far the Germans had progressed at various times as well as their movements Blucher in Oslofjord.svg
Map of operations in the Oslofjord on the night of 8/9 April, showing how far the Germans had progressed at various times as well as their movements

Now assigned to the 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla, Kondor supported the North Sea mining operations that began on 3 September 1939. [11] During the Norwegian Campaign, the boat was assigned to Group 5 under Konteradmiral Oskar Kummetz on the heavy cruiser Blücher, tasked to capture Oslo. Kondor transported about 100 men of the invasion force and was one of the cruiser's escorts through the Baltic and Kattegat. At 02:30 the small motor minesweepers R17 and R21 and Kondor were detached to occupy the naval base at Karljohansvern, in the town of Horten. Her sister ship, Albatros, had become separated from the main body while crippling the Norwegian patrol boat HNoMS Pol III earlier that night and followed Kondor's group to Horten. [12]

The German force tasked to occupy Karljohansvern was scheduled to do so at dawn on 9 April, but Kondor's captain, Kapitänleutnant (Lieutenant) Hans Wilck, commander of the force, decided to assault the harbor directly since the Norwegians had already been alerted. About 140 soldiers were transferred to R17 and R21 and the former ship was in the lead as they steamed through the harbor entrance at 04:35 at high speed, slowly followed by Albatros, while Kondor was transferring her embarked troops to another ship. The minelayer HNoMS Olav Tryggvason engaged R17 ten minutes later and set her on fire, but not before she unloaded her troops. The minelayer was only able to get a few shots off at R21 before she steamed behind an island in the harbor. About this time, Albatros was approaching the harbor mouth and exchanged fire with Olav Tryggvason without effect. The torpedo boat, with only a single gun able to bear on the minelayer, withdrew behind one of the outer islands and started blindly bombarding the harbor. Albatros withdrew not long after she was hit by a shell around 06:30 and the German troops that had made it ashore bluffed the Norwegians into surrendering at 07:35, but not before Wilck had reloaded his troops and sailed to regain radio communication with the German cruisers to support the attack. [13]

Later that morning, Kondor and Albatros were ordered to land their troops at Son and then Kondor and several minesweepers were able to pass through the Drøbak Sound after the Norwegian coastal defenses had sunk Blücher while passing through the Sound further up the Oslofjord, and search for Blücher's survivors. During the search, she damaged a propeller on Blücher's wreckage. Later that day, Kondor supported German forces as they occupied Drøbak. The following morning, Albatros and Kondor were engaged by coastal batteries on the island of Bolærne and forced to turn away. After the coast-defense guns broke down, Kondor's crew occupied the island. After the heavy cruiser Lützow had been crippled by a British submarine off the Danish coast on 11 April, Kondor and her sister Möwe, among other ships, arrived later that morning to render assistance. [14]

Escorted by two destroyers, Kondor, Möwe, and the torpedo boat Wolf, minelayers laid a minefield in the Skaggerak on 29–30 April. En route, the torpedo boat Leopard was sunk when she was accidentally rammed by the minelayer Preussen. From 20–23 June, Kondor was one of the escorts for the badly damaged battleship Scharnhorst from Norway to Kiel, Germany. The following month, she helped to escort Scharnhorst's sister, Gneisenau from Trondheim, Norway, to Kiel from 25–28 July. Now assigned to the 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla, Kondor, her sister Falke, and the torpedo boats Jaguar, T2, T7 and T8 escorted minelayers as they laid a minefield in the southwestern North Sea on 7/8 August. The flotilla escorted another minelaying mission in the same area on 14–15 August. The following month, Kondor was transferred to the 1st Torpedo Boat Flotilla, with T1, T2, and T3. On 6–7 September they escorted a minelaying mission in the English Channel. Rejoining the 5th Flotilla before the end of the month, Kondor and her sisters, Falke, Greif, and Seeadler laid a minefield in the English Channel on 30 September – 1 October. Reinforced by Wolf and Jaguar, the flotilla made an unsuccessful sortie off the Isle of Wight on 8–9 October. They made a second, more successful, sortie on 11–12 October, sinking two Free French submarine chasers and two British trawlers. The 5th Flotilla was transferred to St. Nazaire later that month and its ships laid a minefield off Dover on 3–4 December. [15]

Kondor was refitted in Rotterdam, Netherlands, from March to May 1941. She was transferred afterwards to the Skagerrak where she was on convoy escort duties. The boat was again refitted in Rotterdam from November to December. [16]

1941–1944

The flotilla joined the escort force for Gneisenau, Scharnhorst and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen on 12 February 1942 off Cap Gris-Nez during the Channel Dash. From 12 March to 2 April, the flotilla escorted the commerce raider Michel through the English Channel despite heavy British attacks, damaging the British destroyers HMS Walpole and Fernie. The flotilla escorted the commerce raider Stier through the English Channel from 12 to 19 May. In heavy fighting on the 13th, British motor torpedo boats (MTBs) sank Seeadler and the torpedo boat Iltis while losing one of their own boats. Falke and Kondor and the torpedo boats T22 and T23 escorted the Italian blockade runner, SS Cortellazzo, from Bordeaux through the Bay of Biscay on 29–30 November. Another Italian blockade runner, Himalaya, escorted by Kondor and the torpedo boats T2, T5, T22, and T23, failed in her attempt to break through the Bay of Biscay when she was spotted by British aircraft and forced to return by heavy aerial attacks on 9–11 April. Kondor, Greif, Falke, Möwe and T22 laid two minefields in the English Channel on 4–6 June. Later that month the ships returned to the Bay of Biscay to help escort U-boats through the Bay and continued to do so into early August. Möwe and Kondor helped to lay two minefields in the English Channel on 3–5 September. Kondor, Greif and the torpedo boats T19, T26, and T27 followed this with another minefield in the English Channel on 29–30 September. [17]

The 4th and 5th Torpedo Boat Flotillas, consisting Kondor, Greif, Möwe, and the torpedo boats Jaguar, T27, and T29 laid minefields of 180 mines, off Le Havre and Fécamp, France, on 21 and 22 March. On 17–19 April 1944, the 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla, including Kondor, Greif and Möwe, sailed from Brest, France, to Cherbourg as distant cover for a convoy. A few days later, the flotilla laid a minefield on the night of 21/22 April. The following night the torpedo boats engaged British MTBs near Cape Barfleur and sank one of them. On the nights of 26/27 and 27/28 April, they laid 108 mines each night near Cherbourg. While trying to evade British aerial attacks on the latter night, Kondor struck a British mine, but was only lightly damaged. On 30 April and 1 May, the flotilla laid 260 mines in three minefields. Three weeks later, the flotilla was ordered to transfer from Cherbourg to Le Havre and departed on the night of 23/24 May. Kondor, Greif, Falke, Möwe and Jaguar were attacked by Allied aircraft early the next day and Greif was struck by two bombs that set her forward boiler room on fire and caused her to take on water forward. With both boiler rooms subsequently flooded, she was unmaneuverable and accidentally collided with Falke. The latter was only slightly damaged, but Greif's bow was badly bent, which caused problems for Möwe when she began to tow her sister. Around 06:00 Greif lost all power and sank a half hour later. At 07:43 Kondor struck a mine and had to be towed by Möwe for the remainder of the voyage. Kondor began a lengthy refit in Le Havre, but was cannibalized for spare parts after the Allies landed in Normandy on 6 June. The boat was decommissioned on 28 June and was then declared a total loss after being hit by bombs on 31 July or 2 August. [18]

Notes

  1. "SMS" stands for " Seiner Majestät Schiff " (German: His Majesty's Ship).
  2. In Imperial German Navy gun nomenclature, "SK" (Schnelladekanone) denotes that the gun is quick firing, while the L/45 denotes the length of the gun. In this case, the L/45 gun is 45 caliber, meaning that the gun is 45 times as long as it is in diameter. [5]
  3. In Kriegsmarine gun nomenclature, SK stands for Schiffskanone (ship's gun), C/30 stands for Constructionjahr (construction year) 1930. [7]

Related Research Articles

Type 23 torpedo boat Ship class

The Type 23 torpedo boat was a group of six torpedo boats built for the Reichsmarine during the 1920s. As part of the renamed Kriegsmarine, the boats made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, they played a minor role in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940, Albatros being lost when she ran aground. The Type 23s spent the next several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and escorting ships before the ships were transferred to France around September. Möwe was torpedoed during this time and did not return to service until 1942. They started laying minefields themselves in September and continued to do so for the rest of the war.

German torpedo boat <i>Albatros</i> 1927 torpedo boat

Albatros was the fourth of six Type 23 torpedo boats built for the German Navy. Completed in 1927, Albatros often served as a flagship of torpedo boat units. The ship made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. After an attack by aircraft of the Spanish Republican Air Force killed German sailors in 1937, she participated in the retaliatory bombardment of Almería.

German torpedo boat <i>Seeadler</i> Type 23 torpedo boat of the German Navy

Seeadler was the second of six Type 23 torpedo boats built for the German Navy. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the Battle of Kristiansand during the Norwegian Campaign of 1940. Seeadler spent the next couple of years escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and laying minefields herself. She also spent the latter half of 1941 escorting convoys through the Skaggerak. The boat returned to France in 1942 and was one of the escorts for the capital ships sailing from France to Germany through the English Channel in the Channel Dash. Seeadler then helped to escort one commerce raider through the Channel and was sunk by British forces while escorting another blockade runner in May.

German torpedo boat <i>Greif</i>

Greif was the third of six Type 23 torpedo boats built for the German Navy. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940 by transporting troops that captured Arendal. Greif spent the next couple of years escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and laying minefields herself. She also spent the latter half of 1941 escorting convoys through the Skagerrak. The boat had a lengthy refit that lasted all of 1942 and then spent March–April 1943 escorting ships in Norwegian waters before returning to France. While deployed there Greif laid numerous minefields and escorted U-boats through the Bay of Biscay. The boat was sunk by Allied aircraft in May 1944.

German torpedo boat <i>Falke</i>

Falke was the sixth and last Type 23 torpedo boat built for the German Navy. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940. Falke spent the next several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and damaged heavy ships back to Germany before she was transferred to France around September. She started laying minefields herself that month and continued to do so for the rest of the war. After a refit in early 1941, the boat was transferred to the Skaggerak where she was assigned escort duties. Falke returned to France in 1942 and was one of the escorts for the capital ships sailing from France to Germany through the English Channel in the Channel Dash. She helped to escort blockade runners, commerce raiders and submarines through the Channel and the Bay of Biscay for the next several years. The boat attacked Allied ships during the Invasion of Normandy in June 1944, but was sunk by British bombers that same month.

German torpedo boat <i>Möwe</i>

Möwe was the lead ship of the her class of six torpedo boats built for the German Navy. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During the Norwegian Campaign of 1940, she played a minor in the attack on Oslo, the capital of Norway. Möwe was torpedoed and badly damaged by a British submarine in May and did not return to active service until 1942 when she was transferred to France. The boat helped to escort blockade runners, commerce raiders and submarines through the Bay of Biscay. She also laid numerous minefields and attacked Allied ships during the Invasion of Normandy in June 1944. Möwe was sunk by British bombers that same month.

German torpedo boat <i>Wolf</i>

Wolf was the second of six Type 24 torpedo boats built for the German Navy during the 1920s. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the occupation of Bergen during the Norwegian Campaign of April 1940. Wolf escorted minelayers once as they laid minefields in late April before beginning a refit that lasted until August. She was transferred to France around September and conducted offensive patrols in the English Channel as well as laying minefields herself. The ship struck a mine and was sunk returning from one such mission in January 1941.

German torpedo boat <i>Iltis</i> Type 24 torpedo boat

Iltis was the lead ship of her class of six torpedo boats built for the German Navy during the 1920s. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she did not participate in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940 as she was under repair after having accidentally rammed and sunk a U-boat. Iltis spent the next couple of years escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and laying minefields herself. She also spent the latter half of 1941 escorting convoys through the Skaggerak. The boat returned to France in 1942 and was one of the escorts for the capital ships sailing from France to Germany through the English Channel in the Channel Dash. Iltis then helped to escort one commerce raider through the Channel and was sunk by British forces while escorting another blockade runner in May.

German torpedo boat <i>Jaguar</i>

Jaguar was the sixth and last Type 24 torpedo boat built for the German Navy during the 1920s. The boat made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. During World War II, she played a minor role in the Norwegian Campaign of 1940. Jaguar spent the next several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields and damaged heavy ships back to Germany before she was transferred to France around September. She started laying minefields herself that month and continued to do so for the rest of the war. After a refit in early 1941, the boat was transferred to the Skaggerak where she was assigned escort duties. Jaguar returned to France in 1942 and was one of the escorts for the capital ships sailing from France to Germany through the English Channel in the Channel Dash. She helped to escort blockade runners, commerce raiders and submarines through the Channel and the Bay of Biscay, as well as Norwegian waters, for the next several years. The boat attacked Allied ships during the Invasion of Normandy in June 1944, but was sunk by British bombers that same month.

German torpedo boat <i>T1</i>

The German torpedo boat T1 was the lead ship of her class of a dozen torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in late 1939, she was assigned to escort minelayers as they laid their minefields in the English Channel in September 1940. The boat participated in an abortive attempt to attack several convoys off the Scottish coast two months later. T1 was placed in reserve in April 1941 and was reactivated in June 1942 for duty with the Torpedo School. In April 1944 the boat returned to active duty and was assigned to the Baltic Sea area. She escorted a bombardment mission in January 1945 and was sunk during an air raid on 9 April.

German torpedo boat <i>T2</i>

The German torpedo boat T2 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was not combat ready until mid-1940 when she spent several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields. The boat returned to Germany after being damaged and supported operations in the Baltic Sea after the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941. T2 returned to France at the end of the year, escorting a commerce raider through the English Channel en route, and then escorted a pair of battleships and a heavy cruiser through the Channel back to Germany in early 1942 in the Channel Dash. The boat was placed in reserve upon her return and was transferred back to France in 1943 where she helped to escort blockade runners through the Bay of Biscay. In mid-1943 she returned to the Baltic and briefly served as a flagship of a submarine flotilla before being assigned to the Torpedo School. T2 was sunk in an air raid in July 1944, but was refloated several months later. She was never repaired and was scrapped in 1946.

German torpedo boat <i>T3</i>

The German torpedo boat T3 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1940, she was assigned to escort minelayers as they laid their minefields in the North Sea and English Channel in July. The boat was sunk in France by British bombers in September and was refloated the following year. T3 was assigned to the Torpedo School when her repairs were completed in 1943. She returned to active duty a year later and escorted German ships as they bombarded Soviet positions. The boat sank a Soviet submarine in early 1944 and she struck a mine in March 1945 and sank with heavy loss of life.

German torpedo boat <i>T5</i>

The German torpedo boat T5 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1940, she was assigned escort duties in June–July before she was tasked to escort minelayers as they laid their minefields in the North Sea and English Channel in August and September. T5 was transferred to Norway by November and escorted minelaying missions and supported operations in the Baltic Sea after the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941. T5 returned to France at the end of the year and then escorted a pair of battleships and a heavy cruiser through the Channel back to Germany in early 1942 in the Channel Dash.

German torpedo boat <i>T6</i>

The German torpedo boat T6 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1940, she initially escorted ships through the Skaggerak before she was assigned to escort minelayers as they laid their minefields in the North Sea and English Channel in July. T6 started laying her own minefields two months later and was flagship of the 2nd Torpedo Boat Flotilla when she struck a mine and sank when attempting to attack several convoys off the Scottish coast in November.

German torpedo boat <i>T7</i>

The German torpedo boat T7 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was not combat ready until mid-1940 when she spent several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields in the North Sea and the English Channel. The boat participated in an abortive attempt to attack several convoys off the Scottish coast in November. T7 returned to Germany for a refit in January 1941 and then supported operations in the Baltic Sea after the start of Operation Barbarossa in June. The boat was one of the escorts for several commerce raiders passing through the English Channel in late 1941 and then escorted German ships in Norwegian waters in mid-1942. She was briefly placed in reserve later that year and was then reactivated for service with the Torpedo School. T7 was sunk in an air raid in July 1944, but was refloated several months later. She was never repaired and was scrapped in 1947–1949.

German torpedo boat <i>T8</i>

The German torpedo boat T8 was one of a dozen Type 35 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was not combat ready until mid-1940 when she spent several months escorting minelayers as they laid minefields in the North Sea and the English Channel. The boat participated in an abortive attempt to attack several convoys off the Scottish coast in November. T8 returned to Germany for a refit in January 1941 and then supported operations in the Baltic Sea after the start of Operation Barbarossa in June. She was briefly placed in reserve at the end of the year and was then reactivated for service with the Torpedo School. In February 1944 the boat returned to active duty and was assigned to the Baltic Sea area where she supported German operations. T8 escorted a bombardment mission in February 1945 and was sunk by British aircraft on 3 May.

German torpedo boat <i>T16</i> German torpedo boat

The German torpedo boat T16 was one of nine Type 37 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during World War II. Completed in mid-1941, the ship arrived in France in January 1942. She helped to escort a pair of battleships and a heavy cruiser through the English Channel back to Germany in February in the Channel Dash and then was ordered to Norway for escort work. T16 returned to Germany in May to begin a lengthy refit and briefly returned to Norway in May 1943 before going back to Germany. She was assigned to a U-boat Flotilla as a training ship in September. The ship was damaged by a mine in February 1944 and completed her repairs in August. T16 was then assigned to the Baltic Sea where she screened German ships as they bombarded Soviet positions for the rest of the year. The torpedo boat was assigned convoy escort duties in the Skagerrak around the beginning of 1945. During one such mission in April, T16 was badly damaged by British bombers and was deemed a constructive total loss. The ship was scrapped in Denmark beginning in September 1946.

German torpedo boat <i>T19</i> German torpedo boat

The German torpedo boat T19 was one of nine Type 37 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during World War II. Completed in late 1941, she served as a training ship in the Torpedo School until mid-1942 when she was transferred to France. There she laid minefields in the English Channel and escorted Axis blockade runners and U-boats through the Bay of Biscay into the Atlantic Ocean. T19 returned to Germany in late 1943 and became a training ship again for the Torpedo School. She returned to active duty a year later and supported German forces operating in the Baltic Sea. The boat was then assigned escort duties in the Skagerrak around the beginning of 1945, which included covering minelaying missions. In May T19 helped to evacuate troops and refugees from advancing Soviet forces. The boat was allocated to the United States after the war, but she was sold to Denmark a few years later. Unused by the Royal Danish Navy, T4 was scrapped in 1951–1952.

German torpedo boat <i>T22</i> German World War II torpedo boat

The German torpedo boat T22 was one of fifteen Type 39 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during World War II. Completed in early 1942, the ship was transferred to France later that year where she escorted blockade runners and Axis submarines through the Bay of Biscay. T22 also laid minefields in the English Channel in mid-1943. She participated in the Battle of Sept-Îles, where she crippled a British destroyer, and the Battle of the Bay of Biscay later that year. After returning to Germany in early 1944, T22 struck a pair of mines in Narva Bay in August and blew up, with the loss of 143 men.

German torpedo boat <i>T23</i> German destroyer

The German torpedo boat T23 was one of fifteen Type 39 torpedo boats built for the Kriegsmarine during World War II. Completed in mid-1942, the boat was stationed in France later that year where she escorted blockade runners and U-boats through the Bay of Biscay. T23 also laid minefields in the English Channel in mid-1943. She participated in the Battle of Sept-Îles and the Battle of the Bay of Biscay later that year, neither receiving nor inflicting any damage.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gröner, p. 191
  2. 1 2 Sieche, p. 237
  3. 1 2 Whitley 1991, p. 202
  4. 1 2 3 Whitley 2000, p. 57
  5. Friedman, pp. 130–131
  6. Whitley 1991, p. 45
  7. Campbell, p. 219
  8. Whitley 1991, pp. 47, 202; Whitley 2000, pp. 57–58
  9. Gröner, p. 192
  10. Whitley 1991, pp. 77–79
  11. Rohwer, p. 2
  12. Haar, pp. 83–84, 121–123, 128–129
  13. Haar, pp. 147–151
  14. Haar, pp. 144, 153, 156, 163, 380, 382
  15. Rohwer, pp. 20, 22, 29, 34–36, 39, 43, 45, 51; Whitley 1991, pp. 104, 109
  16. Whitley 1991, p. 208
  17. Rohwer, pp. 148, 151, 165, 215, 241, 254, 256, 270, 279; Whitley 1991, pp. 109–110, 118, 144
  18. Rohwer, pp. 312, 317–318, 324, 345; Whitley 1991, p. 158

Bibliography