U-32 had a single hull and was just over 121 feet (37m) in length. She displaced nearly 265 metric tons (261 long tons) when surfaced and over 300 metric tons (295 long tons) when submerged. Her two diesel engines moved her at up to 9 knots (17km/h; 10mph) on the surface, while her twin electric motors propelled her at up to 7.5 knots (13.9km/h; 8.6mph) while underwater. She was armed with two bow torpedo tubes and could carry a load of up to four torpedoes. She was also equipped with a 75mm (3.0in)deck gun and a machine gun.
In her service career U-32 hit five ships of 6,788gross register tons(GRT), sinking four and damaging one. At Pola at war's end, the boat was handed over to Italy and scrapped in 1920.[5]
After these steps alleviated their most urgent needs,[6] the Austro-Hungarian Navy selected the German Type UB II design for its newest submarines in mid 1915.[8] The Germans were reluctant to allocate any of their wartime resources to Austro-Hungarian construction, but were willing to sell plans for up to six of the UB II boats to be constructed under license in Austria-Hungary.[8] The Austro-Hungarian Navy agreed to the proposal and purchased the plans from AG Weser of Bremen.[9]
U-32 displaced 264 metric tons (260 long tons) surfaced and 301 metric tons (296 long tons) submerged.[3] She had a single hull with saddle tanks,[10] and was 121feet 1inch (36.91m) long with a beam of 14feet 4inches (4.37m) and a draft of 12feet 2inches (3.71m).[3] For propulsion, she had two shafts, twin diesel engines of 270bhp (200kW) for surface running, and twin electric motors of 280shp (210kW) for submerged travel. She was capable of 9 knots (16.7km/h) while surfaced and 7.5 knots (13.9km/h) while submerged.[3] Although there is no specific notation of a range for U-32 in Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921, the German UB II boats, upon which the U-27 class was based, had a range of over 6,000 nautical miles (11,000km) at 5 knots (9.3km/h) surfaced, and 45 nautical miles (83km) at 4 knots (7.4km/h) submerged.[10]U-27-class boats were designed for a crew of 23–24.[3]
U-32 was armed with two 45cm (17.7in) bow torpedo tubes and could carry a complement of four torpedoes. She was also equipped with a 75mm/26 (3.0in) deck gun and an 8mm (0.31in)machine gun.[3]
After intricate political negotiations to allocate production of the class between Austrian and Hungarian firms,[8]U-27 was ordered from Ganz Danubius on 12 October 1915.[1] She was laid down on 18 July 1916 at Fiume and launched on 11 May 1917.[2]
Service career
After launching, the U-boat made her way to Pola,[2] where, on 29 April 1917, SM U-32 was commissioned into the Austro-Hungarian Navy under the command of Linienschiffleutnant Gaston Vio.[4] Vio, a 30-year-old native of Fiume, was a first-time submarine commander.[11] Vio and U-32 began their first patrol on 3 July when they sailed from Pola for a Mediterranean deployment. East of Manfredonia two days later, an enemy submarine launched a spread of three torpedoes at U-32 but the Austro-Hungarian submarine avoided them all. Two days later, U-32 had an at-sea rendezvous with the German U-boat UC-52. The following day, Vio failed to hit a steamer in the Gulf of Taranto.[2]
On 15 July, U-32 launched torpedoes against the British steamer Incemore. Hit 225 nautical miles (417km) east-southeast of Malta, the 3,060gross register tons(GRT) ship was en route from Marseilles to Salonika when she was attacked. Incemore was damaged but continued on her way; no one aboard the steamer was killed in the attack.[12][Note 3] The U-boat docked in Cattaro to end her first patrol four days later.[2]
The next Mediterranean patrol for U-32 began on 14 August. Sister boatU-40 met up with her at sea on 29 August. Two days later, U-32 stopped a Greek sailing vessel, Agios Georgios and examined her, but let her go on her way. Vio put in his boat at Cattaro on 4 September, ending the boat's second patrol.[2] On 12 October, U-32 departed Cattaro for Durazzo, arriving the next day. On the 18th, the submarine departed there for Brindisi, screening for a sortie by the Austro-Hungarian cruiser Helgoland and a destroyer group. When U-32 reached Brindisi the following day, she was greeted by Italian torpedo boats which dropped five depth charges over her. After putting in at Cattaro on the 19th, she quickly departed for Pola to repair damage to her conning tower.[2]
After two months of repairs at Pola, U-32 set out on 27 December but had to return with engine problems. She departed for the Mediterranean the following day and cruised between Alexandria and Malta, but returned to Cattaro in late January 1918 without success. Another patrol beginning in late February was similarly fruitless and U-32 returned to Cattaro empty-handed again on 26 March.[2]
While at Cattaro, Vio was relieved of command on 24 April and replaced by Linienschiffleutnant Otto Kasseroller, who had formerly been in command of U-2. Kasseroller was a 31-year-old Salzburg native.[13] On 8 May, U-32 began her first cruise with Kasseroller at the helm. Five days out, the Greek sailing ship Julia was stopped near Cape Matapan. After allowing Julia's crew to board a lifeboat, Kasseroller sank Julia with fire from the U-boat's deck gun. After the 48 GRT ship was sunk, U-32 towed the lifeboat close to the shore. As a result, none of the Greek ship's crew died in the attack.[2][14]
A week later, on 20 May, U-32 sank two more Greek sailing ships: the 58 GRT Agios Dionysios, and the 30 GRT Angeliki.[15][16] The following day Kasseroller torpedoed a British steamer. Chatham, of 3,592 GRT , was headed from Karachi to Marseilles with grain and onions when U-32 sent her down 80 nautical miles (150km) from Cape Matapan.[17] Continuing her most successful patrol, U-32 met with the German UB-48 off the coast of Africa on 3 June, but returned to Cattaro on the 6th.[2]
During the remainder of June and into July, U-32 patrolled in the Adriatic out of Cattaro, calling at the Albanian ports of Durazzo and San Giovanni di Medua. Continuing this same duty into August, U-32 was forced to crash dive to avoid an attack by another submarine on 19 August. Five days later an airplane attacked the U-boat, dropping a total of five bombs. After the attack, U-32 made her way to Cattaro and, in early September, headed back to Pola. After making a stop at Fiume, the submarine docked at Pola on 13 September and remained there through the end of the war. She was ceded to Italy as a war reparation, and scrapped in 1920.[5] In total, U-32 sank four ships and damaged one other ship, hitting a combined total of 6,788 GRT.[4]
↑ Incemore was not so lucky the following month when the German U-38 attacked and sank her 52 nautical miles (96km) from Pantelleria.
Related Research Articles
The Austro-Hungarian U-boat fleet was created in the decade prior to the First World War. They were built to a variety of designs, many under licence from Germany. They served throughout the war against Italian, French and British shipping in the Mediterranean Sea with some success, losing eight of the twenty eight boats in service in return. They were reinforced by the Imperial German Navy’s Pola Flotilla, mainly comprising coastal U-boats transported by rail from Germany's northern shipyards to the Austrian ports on the Adriatic Sea. Following the end of the war in 1918, all Austrian submarines were surrendered to the Entente powers, who disposed of them individually. As both Austria and Hungary became landlocked in the aftermath of the war, no Austrian or Hungarian submarines have been commissioned since.
SM U-4 or U-IV was a U-3-class submarine or U-boat built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy before and during the First World War. The submarine was built as part of a plan to evaluate foreign submarine designs, and was the second of two boats of the class built by Germaniawerft of Kiel, Germany.
SM U-15 or U-XV was a U-10-class submarine or U-boat of the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. U-15 was constructed in Germany and shipped by rail to Pola where she was assembled and launched in April 1915. She was commissioned in October 1915. U-15 was the most successful boat of the U-10 class, sinking six ships totaling 8,044 gross register tons (GRT) and 745 tons. The boat survived the war and was handed over to Italy as a war reparation and scrapped in 1920.
SM U-21 or U-XXI was a U-20-class submarine or U-boat built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the First World War. The design for U-21 was based on submarines of the Royal Danish Navy's Havmanden class, and was largely obsolete by the beginning of the war.
SM U-22 or U-XXII was a U-20-class submarine or U-boat built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the First World War. The design for U-22 was based on submarines of the Royal Danish Navy's Havmanden class, and was largely obsolete by the beginning of the war.
The U-27 class was a class of eight submarines or U-boats built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. The class was based upon the German Type UB II design of the German Imperial Navy and was constructed under license in Austria-Hungary.
SM U-69 was a Type U 66 submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during the First World War. She had been laid down in February 1914 as U-10 the fourth boat of the U-7 class for the Austro-Hungarian Navy but was sold to Germany, along with the others in her class, in November 1914.
SM U-70 was a Type U 66 submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during the First World War. She had been laid down in February 1914 as U-11 the final boat of the U-7 class for the Austro-Hungarian Navy but was sold to Germany, along with the others in her class, in November 1914.
SM U-27 or U-XXVII was the lead boat of the U-27 class of U-boats or submarines for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-27 was built by the Austrian firm of Cantiere Navale Triestino (CNT) at the Pola Navy Yard and launched on 19 October 1916. She was commissioned on 24 February 1917.
SM U-28 or U-XXVIII was a U-27-class U-boat or submarine for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-28, built by the Austrian firm of Cantiere Navale Triestino (CNT) at the Pola Navy Yard, was launched in January 1917 and commissioned in June.
SM U-40 or U-XL was a U-27 class U-boat or submarine for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-40, built by the Austrian firm of Cantiere Navale Triestino (CNT) at the Pola Navy Yard, was launched in April 1917 and commissioned in August.
SM U-41 or U-XLI was a U-27 class U-boat or submarine for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-41, built by the Austrian firm of Cantiere Navale Triestino (CNT) at the Pola Navy Yard, was launched in November 1917. When she was commissioned in February 1918, she became the last boat of her class to enter service. She was also the last domestically constructed Austro-Hungarian U-boat to enter service.
SM U-29 or U-XXIX was a U-27 class U-boat or submarine for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-29, built by the Hungarian firm of Ganz Danubius at Fiume, was launched in October 1916 and commissioned in January 1917.
SM U-31 or U-XXXI was a U-27 class U-boat or submarine for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. U-31, built by the Hungarian firm of Ganz Danubius at Fiume, was launched in March 1917 and commissioned in April.
SM UB-47 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-47 was sold to the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the war. In Austro-Hungarian service the B was dropped from her name and she was known as SM U-47 or U-XLVII as a member of the Austro-Hungarian U-43 class.
SM UB-43 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-43 was sold to the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the war. In Austro-Hungarian service the B was dropped from her name and she was known as SM U-43 or U-XLIII as the lead boat of the Austro-Hungarian U-43 class.
SM UB-45 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat built for and operated by the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-45 operated in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas, and was sunk by a mine in November 1916.
SM UB-44 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-44 operated in the Mediterranean and disappeared in August 1916.
SM UB-42 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-42 operated in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas during the war. She was broken up at Malta in 1920.
SM UB-50 was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 20 May 1916. She was commissioned into the Pola Flotilla of the German Imperial Navy on 12 July 1917 as SM UB-50.
1 2 3 4 5 Helgason, Guðmundur. "WWI U-boats: KUK U32". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 22 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Incemore (d.)". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Julia". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Agios Dionysios". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Angeliki". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Chatham". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by KUK U32". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
Bibliography
Baumgartner, Lothar; Erwin Sieche (1999). Die Schiffe der k.(u.)k. Kriegsmarine im Bild = Austro-Hungarian warships in photographs (in German). Wien: Verlagsbuchhandlung Stöhr. ISBN978-3-901208-25-6. OCLC43596931.
Gibson, R. H.; Prendergast, Maurice (2003) [1931]. The German Submarine War, 1914–1918. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-1-59114-314-7. OCLC52924732.
Halpern, Paul G. (1994). A Naval History of World War I. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-0-87021-266-6. OCLC28411665.
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