German submarine U-584 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. She was laid down on 1 October 1940 by Blohm & Voss, Hamburg as yard number 560, launched on 26 June 1941 and commissioned on 21 August 1941 under Kapitänleunant Joachim Deecke.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Nazi Germany | |
| Name | U-584 |
| Ordered | 8 January 1940 |
| Builder | Blohm & Voss, Hamburg |
| Yard number | 560 |
| Laid down | 1 October 1940 |
| Launched | 26 June 1941 |
| Commissioned | 21 August 1941 |
| Fate | Sunk on 31 October 1943 in the North Atlantic in position 49°14′N 31°55′W / 49.233°N 31.917°W, by depth charges from US Avenger aircraft. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Type VIIC submarine |
| Displacement | |
| Length |
|
| Beam |
|
| Draught | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range | |
| Test depth |
|
| Complement | 4 officers, 40–56 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
| Service record[1] | |
| Part of: |
|
| Identification codes: | M 05 347 |
| Commanders: |
|
| Operations: |
|
| Victories: |
|
Design
editGerman Type VIIC submarines were preceded by the shorter Type VIIB submarines. U-584 had a displacement of 769 tonnes (757 long tons) when at the surface and 871 tonnes (857 long tons) while submerged.[2] She had a total length of 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in), a pressure hull length of 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in), a beam of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a draught of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two Brown, Boveri & Cie GG UB 720/8 double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft) propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).[2]
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph).[2] When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). U-584 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.[2]
Service history
editThe boat's career began with training at 5th U-boat Flotilla on 21 August 1941, followed by active service on 1 December 1941 as part of the 1st Flotilla for the remainder of her service.
In 10 patrols she sank three merchant ships, for a total of 18,478 gross register tons (GRT) and one warship of 206 tons.
US Saboteur Landing
editOn 25 May 1942, the boat departed Brest, France for a special mission as part of Operation Pastorius. On 18 June, she landed a 4-man saboteur team just south of Jacksonville, Florida. This was one of two teams landed within a week of each other on the US east coast; the other team came aboard U-202. The boat then returned safely to Brest on 22 July.
Wolfpacks
editU-584 took part in 16 wolfpacks, namely:
- Ulan (25 December 1941 – 10 January 1942)
- Stier (29 August – 2 September 1942)
- Vorwärts (2 – 26 September 1942)
- Luchs (27 – 29 September 1942)
- Letzte Ritter (29 September – 1 October 1942)
- Falke (4 – 19 January 1943)
- Landsknecht (19 – 28 January 1943)
- Hartherz (3 – 7 February 1943)
- Löwenherz (1 – 10 April 1943)
- Lerche (10 – 15 April 1943)
- Specht (21 April – 4 May 1943)
- Fink (4 – 6 May 1943)
- Elbe (7 – 10 May 1943)
- Elbe 1 (10 – 14 May 1943)
- Leuthen (15 – 24 September 1943)
- Rossbach (24 September – 6 October 1943)
Fate
editU-584 was sunk on 31 October 1943 in the North Atlantic in position 49°14′N 31°55′W / 49.233°N 31.917°W, by depth charges from US Avenger aircraft operating from escort carrier USS Card. All hands were lost.
Summary of raiding history
edit| Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage[Note 1] | Fate[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 January 1942 | M-175 |  Soviet Navy
|
206 | Sunk |
| 11 September 1942 | Empire Oil |  United Kingdom
|
8,029 | Sunk |
| 11 September 1942 | Hindanger |  Norway
|
4,884 | Sunk |
| 5 May 1943 | West Madaket |  United States
|
5,565 | Sunk |
References
editNotes
edit- ^ Merchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.
Citations
edit- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-584". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-584". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
Bibliography
edit- 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). Der U-Boot-Krieg, 1939-1945: Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
- Edwards, Bernard (1996). Dönitz and the Wolf Packs - The U-boats at War. Cassell. pp. 105, 107, 108, 199, 219, 220. ISBN 0-304-35203-9.
- Gröner, Eric; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). German Warships 1815-1945: U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
- Sharpe, Peter (1998). U-Boat Fact File. Great Britain: Midland Publishing. ISBN 1-85780-072-9.
External links
edit- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-584". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
- Hofmann, Markus. "U 584". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 29 December 2014.