![]() 23 × 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedoes ( or 17 × torpedoes and 12 × TMC mines).2 × SSW GV232/28 silent running electric motors.2 × SSW GU365/30 double-acting electric motors.2 × MAN M6V40/46KBB supercharged 6-cylinder diesel engines.In 1939-1941 only some 2 U-boats were sunk by aircraft (31 in 1942 alone). These figures show the immense effort put outīy the British to hunt down the U-boats and almost all the aircraft successes took place in 1942 and Losses but the U-boat figure is about right it seems. One source says that RAF Coastal Command (U-boat hunters) lost 700 aircraft (badly damaged, shot down and paid off) and sank 220 U-boats during the war. U-boat-successes against aircraftĪround 120 aircraft were shot down by U-boats for the loss of roughly 30 U-boats either sunk during the attack or due to being located by other forces shortly afterwards and sunk. From late 1944 when most combat boats had been fitted with theĭevice they spent more and more time beneath the surface and the AA guns went mostly silent. ![]() Many aircraft and eventually the only real option the U-boat had was to dive immediately and hope for Often the commander elected to fight it out and sometimes succeeded in shooting down the aircraft.īut even the example above was not enough of a defence against a determined attack from No wonder the AA defence was a priority, not to mention the fact that the U-boats (until the Schnorchel and theĮlektro boats came along) had to spend many hours on the surface recharging batteries and getting fresh air When one considers that during the war more than half of all the U-boats sunk at sea were sunk by aircraft it's On the type XXI there were 2 double-barrelled 3cmĬ/38 in two separate Flak-towers (earlier models had the 2cm model since the larger variant was not available in time), her smaller sister, the XXIII had no AA guns at all. Some Milk cow supply boats got an extra platform for the quadruple 2cm AA gun (see page for U-441 as the Flak boat Flak-U1 with the massive AA gun platform. That version was mainly used on the Mediterranean-boats from autumn 1942 to autumn 1943. There was widening of the bridge to put on two double-barrelled 13,2mm Breda-Fla-MG and one traditional 2cm gun. Turmumbau) was rebuilt several times for better AA defence.Ĭlose-up of the 2cm AA gun. In the following years the conning tower (Germ. But it was quickly apparent that this was no an effective defence. In 19 the weapon was located aft of the tower and it served its purpose up to a point. Type VIIC boat U-486 showing the normal tower before increased AA fire power was added. Often the C/30 version in LC 30/37 mountings. The Germans knew these as Flak from Flugabwehrkanone. At the beginning of the war the standard U-boat anti-aircraft (AA) weapon was a single 2cm gun.
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